The Regional Director for Youth pointed out the importance of initiatives intended to promote equality and non-discrimination as "driving forces for a fairer and more inclusive society."
 
Lúcio Rodrigues spoke at the presentation of the fifth edition of the campaign "Before you Discriminate me, Know me," an initiative of the Regional Government implemented through the Regional Directorates for Youth, Social Solidarity and Education in partnership with CIPA Association - Novo Dia.
 
In his speech, the Regional Director for Youth highlighted the areas of a campaign that, over the years, has contributed to the "promotion of equality, prevention of domestic and dating violence, teen pregnancy and the fight against various types of discrimination, through the implementation of a series of events and activities directed to young people and those playing a key role in their education and social integration."
 
Lúcio Rodrigues stressed the importance of promoting this type of initiative among young people, especially in view of "various forms of discrimination" that have emerged in this age group, namely bullying and cyberbullying.
 
According to him, this campaign has "been promoting, over the years, a growing awareness and the change of mentality and attitude among those who can effectively provide and perpetuate this change: young people and their educators."
 
For her part, the Regional Director for Social Solidarity, Marta Bulhões, stressed the importance of coordination between the several bodies of the Regional Government and the integrated work that has been developed. The government official mentioned its importance as "privileged tool in the contact with authorities as well as in the development of new social and educational paradigms, through its multidisciplinary perspectives, which is essential in community awareness for discrimination issues."
 
The Regional Director for Education, José Freire, highlighted at the presentation the work that is being developed on five islands regarding the promotion of school success, ProSucesso - Azores for Education. The programme includes a partnership with the educational community and social inclusion associations, focusing on the areas of promotion of citizenship and the principles of equality. "
 
The campaign "Before you Discriminate me, Know me" will be implemented in twenty regional schools in the region and includes 50 sessions in class context by the end of this year.
 
The 2017 edition will focus on the training of teachers and other education professionals in the preparation of a good practice guide for the Subject of Citizenship and the establishment of an itinerary that will cover various islands of the archipelago and will not be limited to major population centres.