Open Call Application: Co-developing Activity Plans for Youth-led Advocacy on LGBTIQ+ Learner Inclusion
(a pilot project supported by Youth Voices Count and UNESCO)
Background
The regional LGBTIQ+ youth organization, Youth Voices Count (YVC), in partnership with UNESCO Bangkok, is carrying out a 24-month pilot project in the Republic of Korea (ROK) that will engage LGBTIQ+ students and student solidarity groups to design and implement advocacy efforts that help make their university learning environment and social climate more inclusive.
At regional level, the main implementing partner will be Youth Voices Count (YVC), whose role will be to provide project coordination and liaison support as well as technical backstopping to the national implementing partner in each of the countries where project activities will occur. YVC is governed by a board of LGBTIQ+ youth with a regional coordination team from countries across Asia and the Pacific. YVC’s situation at regional level will also facilitate amplification and dissemination of the pilot outputs and enable a smoother transition to the scale-up phase after the country level pilot.
UNESCO is the United Nations’ specialized agency for education, providing global and regional leadership to drive progress, strengthening the resilience and capacity of national systems to serve all learners. The project is coordinated by UNESCO Bangkok, the team on Education for Health and Well-being, in the Section of Inclusive Quality Education. As a main coordinating partner, UNESCO Bangkok will provide overall coordination and technical feedback and support to YVC, convene a Pilot Reference Group of partners to strengthen the pilot’s innovative aspects and increase access to networks and talent, mobilize and make available the necessary resources, and monitor and document results and communicating these with the project donor.
Project steps include:
- Carrying out a needs-assessment among LGBTIQ+ university students on how inclusive of LGBTIQ+ persons they consider their university to be, with recommendations on what more could be done to support inclusion;
- Consulting with LGBTIQ+ university student solidarity groups to identify their main priorities for inclusive change in their university settings, and the skills and support that they need and want to help create or advocate for change;
- Building the skills of LGBTIQ+ university students, student solidarity groups and allies to carry out advocacy, awareness-raising and social change activities that they have designed, with additional support through small financial grants;
- Supporting the progress monitoring by LGBTIQ+ university student solidarity groups of their advocacy efforts, and to communicate about the impact that their efforts are making in their university settings. (Progress monitoring will be supported by a pilot monitoring and evaluation framework);
- Evaluating the pilot and using the findings to inform the scale up of the project in additional Asian countries.
To design and co-implement this pilot project that will empower students to create more inclusive learning and social spaces in their universities, UNESCO Bangkok and Youth Voices Count are recruiting up to six LGBTIQ+ youth advocacy/ university student activism groups working on LGBTIQ+ inclusion, human rights and gender equality.
Objectives & the role of Young People
- Co-create an activity plan with LGBTIQ+ university students and student advocacy groups on what they can do to help create a safer and more welcoming environment for LGBTIQ+ students in their university.
- Identify the additional skills and resources needed to implement the activity plans that they have developed.
- Carry out, monitor and document delivery of their activity plans for inclusive change through meaningful, engaging, and innovative approaches, and with mentoring, skills-building and financial support
Process and Timeline
|
Step |
Time |
|
Open the call |
25 October 2022 |
|
Information session (online) |
1 and 8 November 2022 |
|
Deadline for applications |
12 November 2022 |
|
Announcement/Notification for all applicants |
15 November 2022 |
|
Orientation meeting |
18 November 2022 |
|
Youth Advocacy Activity Planning Workshop: Social Norms Analysis and Advocacy Actions for Inclusion Part 1 (2-day online event) |
30 November – 1 December 2022 - TBC |
|
Youth Advocacy Activity Planning Workshop Part 2: Creating Advocacy Messages and Platforms for Dissemination (3-day in person event) |
Last week of January/ first week of February 2023 - TBC |
|
Project implementation period |
End of October 2023 - TBC |
|
Project closing and evaluation |
End of 2023 - TBC |
We are looking for youth who are:
- Aged 18 – 30 and living in Republic of Korea
- Passionate about or have experience in youth advocacy work on LGBTIQ+ related issues
- Able to commit in late November/early December 2022 to participate in one online workshop and in late January/early February 2023 in one in-person workshop in Seoul.
- Willing to collaborate with their peers to carry out advocacy/social norms change activities over a period of up to 8 months
- Able to comfortably listen, speak, write and read in Korean. Having English-language skills is and additional asset.
- Ideally, currently a member of a university student activism group/club. However, university students not currently engaged in campus clubs and societies are also welcome to apply
Submission
Applicants should submit these following documents no later than Saturday, 12 November 2022 at 11.59 PM ROK time to YuJeong Hwang at y.hwang@unesco.org with a copy to Worapot Yodpet at w.yodpet@unesco.org with subject: “Application for Open Call on Inclusion”
A sample of LGBTIQ+ advocacy related work that the applicant has worked on in the past or if none, another relevant example that demonstrates their interest in or commitment to these issues
- A motivation letter of not more than 350 words explaining why you are interested to join this project.
- A completed application form in Korean or English
Benefits
- Develop new knowledge and skills to design and implement social and behavior change campaigns, important for civic engagement and leadership roles
- Have the opportunity to expand peer and ally networks in ROK and throughout Asia for solidarity on LGBTIQ+ rights, including opportunities for further learning
- Have access to financial and mentoring support to design and implement an initiative that tackles an issue that directly affects you or your peers
- Be exposed to new tools and experts in various fields (research, civil society, international development, private sector)
- Grow in confidence and power as youth leaders who are making positive change for themselves and their peers by having your voices heard.
Further information
Join us to find out more about this opportunity in our information sessions! The applicants will have the chance to ask any questions to the YVC and UNESCO Teams. The information sessions will be conducted on:
- Tuesday 1 November 2022 at 6.00 – 7.00 PM ROK time
https://unesco-org.zoom.us/j/85871995343
Meeting ID: 858 7199 5343
Passcode: unes01 - Tuesday 8 November October 2022 at 6.00 – 7.00 PM ROK time
https://unesco-org.zoom.us/j/85871995343
Meeting ID: 858 7199 5343
Passcode: unes01
FAQ
How can we help you to apply for this Open Call?
General
- Why are we doing this project?
- All learners, at all levels of education, have the right to access and participate in education and learning, where they feel safe, seen and included.
- Ensuring inclusion in education is a commitment of all countries under Sustainable Development Goal 4 (Inclusive, quality education)
- Evidence shows that students who are seen as gender non-conforming, including those who are, or may be perceived to be LGBT, are more at risk of school violence and bullying than those who fit into traditional gender norms.
- Exclusion, discrimination and violence in all its forms infringe on young people’s right to education and negatively impacts their learning, health and well-being
Desired profile
- Does the applicant have to be a certain age to participate?
To involve a wider group of young people in ROK, we welcome receiving applications from young people aged 18-30. However, it is preferable if the applicants are aged 24 maximum.
- Does the applicant have to be fluent in English?
The regular communication and coordination with the meeting the workshop will primarily be conducted in Korean. However, if the applicants are comfortable with speaking, reading, listening, and writing in English, they are encouraged to apply.
- Does the applicant have to be a university student and a member of a university student group?
We welcome all young people who are already taking action or advocating on LGBTIQ+ inclusion in education settings, either as an individual or as part of a youth-led or youth serving civil society group. Because the pilot is targeting change in university settings, preference will be given to young people who are currently enrolled as university students, and, those who are members of student university groups who have previously implemented, or now have interest to implement activities on LGBTIQ+ inclusion, human rights or gender equality.
Submission
- Does the applicant have to create a new advocacy plan to apply?
We do not require the applicants to create new advocacy campaigns or strategies to submit their application. As part of the submission process, we would like to know the applicants' experience in deigning or carrying out any kind or advocacy or activism work for LGBTIQ+ youth generally and LGBTIQ+ students specifically.
- What kind of educational resources that are acceptable for the submission?
The Committee accepts any example of online or offline campaign materials that help raise awareness, call for social change, or encourage supportive attitudes to LGBTIQ+ youth. These may be targeted at the general public, members of the education community or within LGBTIQ+ networks themselves. Samples may be submitted in multiple formats: audio, video, images (photos or artwork), documents (blogs or articles) etc.
- Do the examples for the application have to be submitted in English?
Since the outputs of this pilot project will be targeting different groups in ROK then it is preferable for submissions to be made in Korean language. However, submissions in English language are also welcome.
