The Ukraine Solidarity Response Initiative (USRI) was born out of a critical need to fight the rampant disinformation related to the war in Ukraine after full invasion in 2022.

One of the disinformation frontlines concerns food and its production. Its aim is to spread fabrications through these topics to support the Kremlin's “traditional” long-term disinformation narratives. These narratives are largely about the decadent West disregarding traditional values, the upcoming catastrophe, which is always around the corner, but never actually happens and caring more about the LGBTQ+ community than about the so-called traditional families.

In the heart of the Havířov region in Czechia, a dynamic group of young minds from the Comenius High School would like to shape the future in the region they call home. Havířov, an economically and socially excluded region with a long-lasting poor level of infrastructure and education, with many challenges, is also vulnerable towards disinformation. Led by a TechSoup Master Trainer Aneta Bednářová, supported by an active teacher Jana, this passionate team embarked on a project focused on combating disinformation. Their journey unfolded through creating and piloting of a peer-to-peer workshop, igniting a spark of awareness and empowerment among their peers. “Let`s empower media literacy in Havířov”, we say.

Today, we would like to share with you an important awareness-raising campaign - a case study from the Local Action Plan carried out by our TechSoup Trainers.

How can a theatre association and a school in a small town work together effectively? How to actively involve overburdened teachers and young people with difficulties beyond school? In February 2023, the NIOK Foundation organised a workshop entitled Acting Locally in partnership with the Hive Mind community. After the training, the selected participants were able to practice what they had learnt in implementing actions with the support of NIOK. The experiences of the Tandem Theatre's Local Impact action are shared below.

Every day millions of people access the internet and browse through countless content within the reach of a few clicks. Children and teenagers are connecting more and more frequently, finding facilities to access information, knowledge and opportunities, while exposing themselves to different risks such as cyberbullying, sharing private information with strangers, sexual exploitation online, among others.

Main goal of this Local Action aimed at development of parenting skills of fathers in the cities of Falesti, Calarasi and Orhei by encouraging active involvement in their education, and fostering positive narratives by building their online community, as well as offering dedicated courses and trainings.

Outreach to socially deprived suburban areas through grassroots, youth journalism.

Breaking the echo chambers. Building teachers' and students' resilience.

Creative information literacy techniques for children? Look no further.

Improving the knowledge and skills for working in a digital environment, developing critical and analytical thinking and avoiding risks on the Internet

Teenagers from Dream Factory acting studio created 8 raising awareness videos focusing on how to recognize Fake News, Deep News and how to behave when someone spreads misinformation, or simply is being abusive online.

"Bro/ Sis, Just Be YOURSELF. I got your back!" - 1st Community Building Billboard Campaign Targeting Siblings of LGBTIQ+ Persons.

Protecting young people from becoming targets of internet trolls, haters, stalkers & other cyberbullies.

Critical thinking skills development for students and teachers alike.

A series of workshops and online games for secondary school students.

A simple guide through the media jungle for senior citizens.

A three-part animated video series on disinformation

A social media-driven campaign to bring the topic of information verification to average users in an easy-to-understand way.

Raising awareness with actions! Strengthening resilience of activists through workshops, lectures & digital safety and security training.

Building resilience against disinformation.

Success stories at the grassroot level.

A journey through the political views of young people.