Plataforma PAJE aims to promote empowerment and social inclusion of youngsters who had lived in foster homes during childhood and teenager years. PAJE relies on the support of a multidisciplinary team, made up of volunteers. Help us to step forward.
The need to create Plataforma PAJE – Apoio a Jovens (Ex)Acolhidos arose from the lack of support on the post-hosting period to youngsters who have lived in foster homes. We often meet young people who reveal handicaps, both in their social skills and platforms and in their daily activities. The consequences of these handicaps can become tragic, such as transgressive behaviour, social helplessness and “parasitic” lifestyle. In order to reverse this process, and in an era when values like kindness, comprehension and altruism become scarcer, we aim to raise social awareness on this issue, and also to give those youngsters the skills they lack to build their own life in an autonomous and responsible manner.
In order to achieve these goals, PAJE relies on the support of a multidisciplinary team of volunteers of many fields of work. There are volunteers in the fields of Psychology, Couseling, Social Service, Health, Education, Legal Issues, Accounting, Computing and Information, Arts, etc.
We also intend to intervene at early stages of this process. To achieve this goal, we need to implement classes and training, directly in foster homes, both to the children and teenagers and to their caregivers, in order to improve the autonomy and skills of the former. Interventions at this stage of the process makes it easier to build healthier psychological frameworks, which will be essential during the post-hosting period, a period full of changes and challenges.
About the author
Plataforma PAJE is a nonprofit association, which was recently created in order to support youngsters who had lived in foster homes. We intend to encourage and improve their individual competences, favouring their social inclusion through a multidisciplinary support based on their individual needs.
This idea appears also as a research project, integrated in Instituto de Psicologia e Desenvolvimento Humano e Social (Unidade de I&D da Universidade de Coimbra – IPCDHS/FCT), and has its basis on the PhD final thesis of its mentor, João Pedro Gaspar, alongside with more than fifteen years of direct relationships with foster home residents and foster homes themselves.
Budget and due dates
Our goal is to collect 3,100.00€ by August 12. The amount raised will be used to cover part of the inicial PAJE’s costs, so that we are able to give our first steps. These costs can be divided in facilities (1,200.00€ for restoration of offices, intervention rooms and classrooms), equipment (650.00€ for the acquisition of a desk, a stove, tables and chairs), an “emergency kit” for specific needs of youngsters (150.00€ for food, clothing and housing), accreditation and creation of education plans (850.00€) and divulgation and promotion of PAJE in order to achieve the largest number of needed youngsters (150.00€ for marketing). This value includes the costs of PPL commission.
In case this campaign collects more than the originally intended value, the remainder will be used to acquire facilities to host PAJE, with an intervention/assistance room and a kitchen, in order to promote plans to achieve the youngsters’ autonomy.In the case of this campaign collect more funding than originally intended value, the remainder will be used to acquire facilities where will be hosting the PAJE with its room of assistances for young people and a kitchen so that we can promote empowerment plans for young people.