15. June 2026 – SPACES TO GROW
SPACES TO GROW: FOSTERING ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS AMONG DISPLACED CHILDREN
Environmental education plays a vital role in helping children understand the world around them and their place within it. By encouraging curiosity, critical thinking, and a sense of responsibility, it empowers young people to make informed choices and contribute positively to their communities. As environmental challenges continue to affect communities around the world, providing children with opportunities to learn about the natural environment and sustainability is an important factor in a more resilient and sustainable future.
SPACES TO GROW by HÁWAR.help supports internally displaced children’s emotional wellbeing and access to education by offering them safer, inclusive, and innovative spaces for learning. Alongside a dedicated Digital Lab, where participants developed digital literacy, basic programming, coding, and creative technology skills, we transformed an unused outdoor area between several of the camp schools into a community garden and provided workshops on environmental education for girls and boys aged 5 to 17.
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The workshops covered environmental protection, care for the new community garden, waste disposal and recycling, climate change and climate action, as well as water conservation awareness. They were designed to complement the environmental education provided in schools and always combined a theoretical component with a creative or hands-on activity. Thus, our participants also planted trees in the garden, took part in a clean-up challenge to collect litter, and created eco-crafts from found and recycled materials, fostering environmental awareness, creativity, sustainability, and active engagement. Participants especially enjoyed planting trees and seedlings in the garden, as well as taking part in eco-craft sessions, where they creatively repurposed waste collected from the camp and their homes into useful everyday items.
Today, the garden, wich features green spaces, raised gardening beds, shaded seating, and play zones is open to everyone form the community – functioning as a recreational and relaxation space; a place to meet friends, play, or enjoy nature.
SPACES TO GROW supports internally displaced children’s emotional wellbeing and access to education by offering them safer, inclusive, and innovative spaces for learning. The goal is to create nurturing environments where children can learn, grow, recover from traumatic experiences, and imagine brighter futures. With new skills and confidence, the project opens doors to education, opportunity — and a future our participants can shape themselves.
With financial support from the State Parliament of Baden-Württemberg and the State Ministry of Baden-Württemberg through the Baden-Württemberg Foundation for Development Cooperation, as part of the partnership initiative between Baden-Württemberg and northern Iraq.
