EFHR trainees visit the Centre for Civil Education

On 25th July, the European Foundation of Human Rights (EFHR) visited the Centre for Civil Education in Vilnius. Two trainees – Aiden Tamasauskas from Canada, and Marta Bednarczyk from Poland – were accompanied and guided through the centre by the EFHR Lawyer and Project Coordinator, Monika Guliakaitė.

As a part of its apprentice programme, EFHR regularly organises visits to cultural and educational institutions for its trainees, interns, and volunteers.

This time, the visitors gained a general overview of the notion of citizenship and its different forms. Using tablets equipped with graphic code scanners and augmented reality technology, they followed Lithuania’s path towards sovereignty and learnt about the history of citizenship and democracy in Lithuania. Through a variety of interactive tools, the trainees explored the country’s population, administrative structure, ethnic minorities, and political affiliations.

“I was happy to learn more about Lithuanian political history and its governance system. Knowing things like these helps one to understand the country they live in. Political culture and civic involvement strongly shape the mentality and attitudes prevalent in a society, so recognising these is crucial to appreciating the culture,” says Marta who began to work in EFHR two months ago.

Marta joined EFHR as a part of the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) project within the Erasmus+ programme. “ESC framework focuses on and supports initiatives that help to create bonds and cohesion in local communities. But, it brings many benefits to the volunteers and trainees as well. Without this project, I would know much less about Lithuania and the Lithuanian people than I do now,” Marta admits.

“I really enjoyed the visit because I wish to be an active citizen regardless of where I live. My goal is to get to know Lithuania and its system in-and-out so that when I revisit the centre in spring next year, the exhibition will seem obvious to me,” she concludes.