Introducing Uplift
Since 2007, Utopia Foundation has invested in champions who are innovators and creators in their communities, or who are part of resilience projects that create sustainable improvements in the livelihoods of those in need. As part of its mission, Utopia Foundation has also created a few of its own social initiatives such as Squaring the Education Pyramid Institute (STEPi).
With STEPi, our focus is on building mindsets that believe in changing the world through early childhood development and education. When we give resources that support the healthy development of children, we are investing in a healthy future for our society. We know that kids take with them into adulthood the lessons that they learn when they’re young; so it’s time we pause and ask, what are we teaching our children?
Whether this is directly through the curriculums at school, conversations with adults, or the messages they’re exposed to through media, learning is happening all around kids. Holistic early childhood development means everyone and everything that exists in the environment of a child - caregivers, teachers, media, after-school services - should be equally supported with quality resources for teaching and learning.
In 2020, as a response to the pandemic school closures, STEPi collaborated with Spiritual Playdate, a mission-driven platform that seeks to foster understanding, communication and spiritual dialogue, to create Uplift.
In many of the sub-Saharan countries where STEPi operates, kids were out of school for almost 2 years as a result of the pandemic. In Uganda, that number is estimated to be around 15 million learners. Now that schools are open again, many youth have lost their opportunity to go back to study as a result of early childhood pregnancies, or employment they had to find in order to support themselves during those years. Read more here.
Our immediate goal with Uplift was to support the adults who were caring for out-of-school kids during this time, mostly program coordinators at organisations that stayed open to offer essential-need services. Although the Uplift team was based in 4 different time zones - Illinois, Florida, South Africa, and Uganda - we met virtually once a week for 6 months to create a training program for adults that would support them in offering social, emotional and spiritual life skills to kids.
Using STEPi and Spiritual Playdate resources that are socially-conscious and culturally relevant, Uplift activities are designed to inspire a love for reading and develop peace-building skills. The topics discussed in an Uplift training include Connectedness, the Golden Rule, Ubuntu, Mindfulness, Resiliency, Teacher-Learner Relationship, Literacy and Power of Words, and more.
Given the diversity of the Uplift team and its participants, the experience of a training programme fosters cultural appreciation, compassion, skill building, storytelling, and a sense of community.
Since the first training in October 2020, the Uplift team has held a total of 3 training sessions with over 25 participants, including teachers, program coordinators, and university professors throughout Uganda and South Africa. These training participants then become Uplift Mentors, and continue on to host Uplift activities in their local communities. Through these activities, over 200, 000 books have been distributed throughout rural communities in Uganda and South Africa.
The Uplift team hopes to host the training programme at least twice per year, with the next one tentatively scheduled for the later half of 2022.
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Uplift is a program that seeks to develop the social, emotional, and spiritual life skills of children around the globe, and hopes to empower young kids to be leaders and change-makers who contribute holistically to their fast-evolving societies, specifically through literacy and peace education.
For inquiries, please contact Karla Cordero, Utopia Foundation Executive Director, at karlacordero@utopiafound.org.
