Multimedia project “Youth for Social Changes” presents twelve young persons from different regions of Georgia who dedicate their actions and enthusiasm trying to change the society, achieve gender equality and contribute to creation of a healthier environment.
Salome Toradze, 18, from Kutaisi
There are many problems in today's society that need to be solved. Therefore, the involvement of young people is both necessary and important to make the future brighter and better for the next generation. If everyone does their best, I think the results will be there. Currently, I plan to continue my studies at Akaki Tsereteli University in Kutaisi. However, eventually, I want to study abroad. I have wanted to live in the USA since childhood. I imagined living in New York and rushing to work with a cup of coffee in my hand. I want to study law. I love this field and find it very interesting: you learn a lot about your rights and duties and you know how to behave in a community, and then you teach others to do the same. I really like playing chess and I participate in tournaments whenever they are held. I am also fond of fencing. To tell you the truth, I’m not very good at fencing - I’m better at chess - but I love it anyway and you should do what you love. We, the younger generation, are free and have more opportunities. We want to find ourselves in life, to have our rights protected, first of all, in our country, and to be able to realize ourselves. When you cannot realize yourself, you cannot be free. This, first of all, requires awareness and education, because without education, freedom cannot be attained. [Changes] should be introduced by young people because the older generation have already formed [their opinions] and we cannot change them, although we can inform them and call for the elimination of gender inequality, but still, one way or another, some stereotypes are stuck in their subconscious. That's why we should work more with young people. I would advise young people to get out of their homes, first of all, because contact with nature is very important. I would advise them to engage in sports and similar activities, because this is also very important to gain energy, not to dwell on depressing thoughts. It’s very common now, many people have panic attacks, my friends have had them too. Being locked at home might result in all this. During the COVID -19 pandemic, and in general, we had little contact with the environment as we mostly tried to do everything on our computers from home. We don't go outside, we do everything undisturbed at home.
“Youth for Social Change" is an initiative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Georgia Country Office aimed to promote gender equality, eliminate gender stereotypes and harmful social norms.
It is part of the three EU-funded programmes: “Ending Violence Against Women and Girls in Georgia (EVAWGG)” programme (Kvemo Kartli region), “Addressing Gender-biased Sex Selection and Related Harmful Practices in South Caucasus” (Samtskhe-Javakheti region) as well as “EU4GenderEquality: Together against gender stereotypes and gender-based violence" (Guria and Imereti regions).
About the authors:
Dina Oganova is a Georgian documentary photographer working in Georgia and other countries on different long term projects. She has been a laureate of prestigious awards, including the EU Prize for Journalism and Litera. Ms. Oganova has been named among the best woman photographers under the age of 30. Her photo projects include: “I Am Georgia”; “My Place,” “Frozen Waves.” Ms. Oganova’s works have been exhibited in Italy, France, USA, Spain and other countries. She is an author of the first Georgia handmade limited edition photobook “My Place”, which is a part of collections of several museums, including the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Dina Oganova has cooperated with UNFPA Georgia since 2016 on different projects: “A Girl is Born” (“Silent Garden”), “Girls from the Future”, “Mothers and Daughters”, etc. Women’s and girls’ rights remain in focus of her artistic work.
Tatia Nadareishvili is a freelance Georgian illustrator, co-founder of studio “Illustrator” (2016), who writes and illustrates children’s books. One of her books “Sweet Dreams” was published in 2017 and translated in several languages. Tatia Nadareishvili has cooperated with UNFPA Georgia since 2018. In 2020 she illustrated a bestselling bedtime story “Luna and The Planet of Fireflies”, which will soon turn into a play.
