In late February and early March 2025, National Awareness Raising Workshops were held in Sofia, Bulgaria, with the aim of raising awareness among young people and youth workers about gender disinformation, risks and online harassment. The seminars, organized by the OPEN SPACE Foundation, brought together 151 young people from 12 cities in the country to discuss these important topics and learn how to deal with them.
The main goal of the seminars was to raise awareness among beneficiaries and the general public about the causes of disinformation that denigrates women and online harassment, as well as the negative impact they have on individuals and society. The participants were young people aged between 16 and 26, youth workers and trainers from different cities in Bulgaria. An interesting fact is that only 30% of the participants had previous experience with seminars or training outside of school, which highlights the need for such initiatives.
The workshops were led by experienced trainers who used interactive methods and approaches to engage participants. The program included sessions on gender equality, gender stereotypes, online disinformation and harassment, and emotional self-regulation techniques. The evening sessions were dedicated to meetings with practitioners – fact-checkers, digital security experts, and representatives of the National Commission for Combating Human Trafficking.
The overall training evaluation was very high, with 89% of participants being satisfied or very satisfied. 90% of them stated that they would recommend the training to others. Participants highly rated the usefulness of the materials and the knowledge and skills acquired, especially in areas such as understanding gender stereotypes, identifying disinformation, and emotional self-regulation.
Impact and future needs: 99% of participants believe that the workshop increased their awareness of gender equality issues, and 98% feel more confident to participate in conversations about disinformation and protecting women’s rights. Many of them expressed interest in additional training in digital literacy, critical thinking and public speaking.
Here is what two of the participants shared:
“It is not shameful to talk about problems and it is not scary to seek help! It is scary to fall into the trap of social networks, and it is even more shameful to remain silent when someone needs help.“
Darina Shtereva – student
(The whole article here: You are not alone_author Darina Shtereva)
“...civic position is not limited to knowing rights and obligations or being aware of the main problems in the country, but also includes practical life skills. When a student learns to check sources of information or recognize signs of manipulation, this is not just a “lesson”. It is a weapon against exploitation and lies. I believe that this workshop is the first big step in the right direction and will deal a serious blow to the practices of imposing control through lies and fear.”
Denis Yotsov – history and civic education teacher
(The whole article her: Desinformation_author Denis Jotsov)
The training is part of our work on the G-LENS project, which is aimed at combating online harassment and disinformation, especially targeting women. Our goal is to enable young people to recognize manipulative practices in the digital space and become active participants in the fight against them, and is a continuation of our work to increase media literacy, which we have been working on since 2019.
An analysis of the participants’ feedback can be read here: WP4-Report_National Awareness Raising Workshops in Bulgaria
Materials for the training and shared by the participants can be found on the pages of the new issue of Voyager magazine, which is in the process of being published. preparation.
Project partners:
Fundacja British Council (Poland)
IPA Poland (Poland)
MIGS (Cypros)
ANAIS (Romania)
Open Space foundation (Bulgaria)
Co-funded by the EU program CERV
