Social exclusion and violence:
Education for social cohesion

The Region against Violence Corporation

Medellin, Columbia

The main actions of the Region Corporation are developed in the area of citizens' participation for the human development and social policies against poverty. Among many other initiatives, this NGO works on educational and pedagogical experimentation projects in "liceos"(high schools) and other schools of the city of Medellín, Colombia, in order to improve the quality of education in those centers. For example, young students learn to know better the services offered by their city. This proposal has the aim of reducing urban conflicts and allowing them to live in peace in the city, being aware of the existing resources at their disposal in case of necessity.

Youngsters are invited to understand how their society works, since this may be a way-out of the circle of violence. Thus, an alternative is generated for a discussion space about injustices and violent actions, which they have personally experienced in many cases. Based on this proposal, they will be able to defend their rights, learn and understand what the practice of responsibility implies.

The organization tries to respond to the problem of the extreme violence experimented by young people and specially in the schools of Medellín. It has been considered necessary to teach the students to know the city's services, in case of necessity to face violence, providing people with the tools to better understand community life and look for a space of their own in it. The idea then is that of generating an essay of answers to the question: How to get out of the infernal circle of received and given violence?

Ramon Moncada Cardona
Region Corporation (NGO)
Calle 55 N°41-10
Medellín, COLOMBIA
57 4 239 55 44
E.mail : ramoncada@epm.net.co or coregion@epm.net.co
Web site : www.region.org

Ministry of National Education,
Colombia Government of Antioquía
City of Medellín
National Medellín University

Terre des Hommes, Basel, Switzerland (NGO);European Commission; Manos Unidas (Spain); National Endowment for Democracy (USA) and some institutions of the Basque Country (70% of the financial resources, another 20% corresponds to the Region Corporation NGO).

1989 (NGO 's foundation). The program is implemented shortly after that moment.

Special mention for the television program "Muchachos a lo bien", ("Boys at their best"), 1997. National Award of educational innovation for the inter-school project "History of a neighborhood, history of a city", 1997.
Special Mention for the work on human rights, 1998.