EDUCATION

We discovered the need to create a comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health Education program during our first distribution projects in Greece. In Athens and on Chios, one of the main island hubs for newly landed migrants, our items–such as menstrual hygiene products and condoms–were met with questions and confusion. Similar questions were just as widespread in communities we worked with in Uganda and Kenya. Realizing that there were large gaps in knowledge that prevented displaced populations from protecting themselves and making informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health, we have developed a country-specific curriculum informed by field research.

Our Sexual and Reproductive Health Education program covers six critical units, necessary for a holistic and complete understanding of our bodies, choices, rights, and responsibilities. Community Educators, who are migrants themselves and trained in our curriculum, provide classes for men and women on Reproductive Physiology, Menstrual Health Management, Contraception, Sexually Transmitted Infections, Sexual and Reproductive Rights, and Sexual and Gender-Based Violence. Weaved into each of these topics is an underlying theme of healthy relationships and personal autonomy, ensuring that the education is empowering and long-lasting.