As a result of a co-operation between researchers on Åland and in Latvia within the project Challenging Gender Roles for Prevention of Trafficking, the ÅIPI can present the report Effects of the girl and boy group method – A gender and social psychology perspective on gender equality youth work on Åland and in Latvia.It also represents the interdisciplinary meeting of two scientific directions, i.e. social psychology and gender studies. Dr Egita Gritane, Latvia, has been responsible for the social psychology study and Golnar Bahar, Åland, for the qualitative analysis in a gender perspective. They have been supported and guided by project manager Jenny Jonstoij who has tied the two strands into one coherent whole.
The report has been published in Swedish and English within the ÅIPI report series Report from the Åland Islands Peace Institute. It has also been published in Latvian by Resource Center for Women, Marta, in Latvia.
Challenging Gender roles for Prevention of Trafficking was a joint Åland-Latvian project aiming at combating stereotypical gender perceptions at a grass-root level in order to undermine conditions for development of gender related violence, human trafficking and sexual slavery.
The project has been focusing on preventive work through empowerment of young girls and boys. The girl and boy group method is a Nordic model of direct work with young people aiming at strenghtening individuals, enhancing the participants’ possibilities to become active citizens and at the same time questioning prevailing gender stereotypes in order to achieve greater gender equality and a non-discriminatory setting for individual development.
The project has been carried out by the Åland Islands Peace Institute, Åland, Finland, and the Resource Center for Women, Marta, Riga, Latvia from October 2009 until December 2011. The project has been financed within the framework of the INTERREG IV Programme of the European Regional Development Fund. National co-financing has kindly been provided by the Government of Åland.
The report can be ordered from the ÅIPI or downloaded in pdf. Find out more here.
