As you might be aware, pupils from Skibbereen Community School have previously participated in UNICEF Activism and Advocacy Training Programme. This is a programme designed to accommodate students interested in doing their work experience with UNICEF.

The course gives students an opportunity to understand more about the role of advocacy in a human rights setting. Students receive a full assessment and certificate at the end of the course.

We have begun running our courses this year and offer two options.

1. Online option aimed particularly for students outside of Dublin – This is a 5-day course running from 9-1 every day and facilitated using ZOOM and the collaboration software Mural. The course is based around our global issues resources. We address, poverty, inequality, discrimination, gender, climate change and advocacy skills. At the end of the week the students draw up and plan for taking action in their local school or community. We still have a few spaces left in the first course starting next week 16-20 October.

2. In Person option (Dublin Based) aimed at students who are able to get to our offices in Dublin. This is a 1-day course. Students spend the day focused on one topic through a child rights lens and they develop an advocacy plan to carry out the following week (if feasible) in their school.

We have scheduled 8 courses for the 23/24 school year, with 30 places on each course.

If you have students interested in participating this year, please ask them to go to our website www.unicef.ie/ty to learn more and register if they are interested.

Students enrolled in our courses will be eligible to apply for the Taoiseach Takeover, an annual initiative we organise to celebrate World Children's Day on November 20th. Through this initiative, one fortunate young individual will have the chance to present their advocacy issue in a meeting with the Taoiseach and spend a day engaging in discussions with them.