Stand with youth in Lebanon & Jordan this Ramadan

Aim

Donate to Seenaryo and help us equip young people with the vital skills they need to transform the future of the Arab region

This Ramadan, will you help Seenaryo to equip young people in Lebanon and Jordan with the skills to secure their region's future?

The Arab region has the highest unemployment rate in the world, according to the UN. Through our theatre and training programmes, Seenaryo aims to equip young people in Lebanon and Jordan with the transferable life skills they need to take on leadership roles in their communities and access diverse and sustainable employment in their futures. You can learn about our impact in 2022 here.

As the region faces soaring unemployment, brain drain is a looming threat. On top of that, the Lebanese lira has lost 98% of its value since the country’s economic collapse four years ago, leaving 82% of Lebanon's population in poverty - up from 25% in 2019. It is vital that we provide young people with opportunities to thrive in their own countries, in order to guarantee a vibrant future for Lebanon and Jordan.

In 2023 we aim to expand our programming to reach thousands more young people in the region, and your support is vital in making this happen.

In 2023, we will launch a major new programme that will train 130 young adults to teach the curriculum through theatre. We’ll be lighting up 50 schools through the arts - while addressing the youth unemployment crisis in both Lebanon and Jordan.

Addressing the limited access to the arts in Lebanon and Jordan, we will also develop and roll out our Theatre Leadership Training – giving trainees the tools to bring theatre into their own communities. When we surveyed 63 Theatre Leadership trainees in 2022, 100% felt they had more of their own ideas since taking the training and a further 98% of trainees said they felt better able to articulate their ideas. 

“I learnt to express my feelings freely. I got to know my body better and how to react in a room full of people.”

– Aya (trainee in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon) 

Our training also equips young people with vital skills needed to succeed in a competitive jobs market. After the training, 100% of participants said they felt more confident applying to jobs in theatre and education and there was a 12.5% increase in those who thought of themselves as a leader, while 30% of our trained theatre leaders go on to find relevant employment with Seenaryo or elsewhere.

Our participatory approach to theatre puts young people at the centre of the creative process: they write the script, build the scenes, tell their own story and even paint the set.

Engaging in theatre provides participants with a creative outlet for self-expression, supporting them to improve their wellbeing as well as building transferable life skills, social skills and leadership skills. In past years, we have led theatre with young people affected by the Beirut explosion to help them heal from trauma, and in 2023 we plan to work with those affected by the recent earthquake in Syria. 

“The beautiful thing about this project is knowing who you are and what your path is, where you will be going and why.”

- Buthaina (theatre participant in Mafraq, Jordan)

Theatre also encourages the development of positive relationships between people from different communities - essential to ensuring a cohesive and peaceful society. In a survey of 63 Seenaryo participants in 2022, 80% of them said that they will now have more conversations with people from other backgrounds (compared to 45% before).

Seenaryo has reached over 100,000 people since creating our first play with children in Shatila refugee camp seven years ago.

Through theatre and play, Seenaryo supports children, youth and women to find their voices as powerful agents of change. We facilitate the production of original theatre with under-served communities in Lebanon and Jordan and have also created the Seenaryo Playkit app and training, which brings theatre and play into the classroom.

www.seenaryo.org | www.seenaryoplaykit.org
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Why Ramadan?

The Muslim month of Ramadan is traditionally a time of charitable giving (known as zakat) to the most vulnerable. This year, Ramadan falls from March to April, a time when Seenaryo pauses many of our programmes in Lebanon and Jordan to allow our participants to rest and reflect - and to give what they can to those around them. Whatever your religious beliefs, we hope that you will consider giving in solidarity with the communities with whom we work.

Every pound you donate makes a huge difference. Here are some ways you can support our campaign:

Donate here: Give anything from £5 to £5,000 online through this page. 

There may be a better way for you to donate: Would you rather give by cash, cheque, or CAF? Or do you live in Hong Kong, the USA, Lebanon, or Jordan? Learn how you can give here. 

Finally, don’t forget to share: Share our campaign with your friends, and help spread the word about Seenaryo’s mission across the globe.

This project successfully funded on 1st May 2023