What we do Education

Bridges to school and working life

Our educational programmes

Our educational programmes create fair opportunities for children and young people in disadvantaged situations.

Bridge to school programme

The care and attention a child receives in the first years of life has a significant impact on their future development opportunities. Reliable relationships, stimulation, healthy nutrition and adequate healthcare have been proven to increase the chances of successfully completing school.

However, children from disadvantaged families often cannot count on this foundation. For them, high-quality care outside the family is therefore extremely important: pre-school support has a direct impact on their educational opportunities.

Our goal is to increase the numbers of socially disadvantaged children who complete primary education.

The video from Guatemala provides an insight into bilingual kindergartens for Maya children (currently available in German only).

Bridge to working life programme

Vocational training has been proven to increase the chances of finding adequately paid work and has a preventive effect against poverty and youth crime. However, many young adults from marginalised population groups do not have access to vocational training. Studies also show that finding a first job is the most difficult, often insurmountable hurdle when entering working life.

With our vocational training programmes and youth empowerment initiatives, we provide holistic support to young people affected by poverty and help them enter the world of work.

Our goal is to empower and train young adults so that they can earn a sustainable livelihood under decent working conditions and shape their own future.

The video from Colombia shows the context in which Vivamos' vocational training projects take place and what makes them special (currently available in German only).

Our Contribution to the SDGs

With the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the international community has created a framework for joint solutions to overcome the great challenges facing us – such as migration, climate change, environmental destruction, poverty and hunger. This agreement names 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which define the social, economic, and environmental policy milestones that should be reached worldwide by 2030. These goals apply to all countries – including Switzerland.

With the ‘Bridges to School and Working Life’ programmes, we contribute to the following SDGs:

SDG 1 No Poverty SDG 4 Quality Education SDG 5 Gender Equality SDG 8 Decent Work SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities