Aruzhan Audanbekova was recognized as a finalist for the Basel Peace Office PACEY Award, which supports innovative projects of active youth seeking to contribute to Peace, climate security and disarmament. She holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from NU.
Her project, “Ertis Mektebi”, aims to support children with special needs and offers an inclusive study with children without health problems so that they can integrate into society. The school opening is planned in Semey in September 2023. According to some reports, over 4000 children with neuropsychological and musculoskeletal disabilities, most likely to be third and fourth-generation victims of Soviet nuclear tests, live in Semey.
The project idea is to educate special children in four different programs tailored to the student’s necessities. At this stage, the team focuses on the elementary school level and conducts psychological and physiological tests to understand which of the four programs is appropriate for the child.
Soon, she plans to complete the reconstruction of the swimming pool, organize a massage room, a playground, and other organizational activities before the technical launch of the school.
Besides children, Aruzhan Audanbekova plans to help parents to understand their child’s natural talents to encourage them to reach their highest potential. She urges parents not to ignore their child’s educational needs and to avoid special remedial schools.
Basel Peace Office announced the nine finalists of the 2023 PACEY Youth Award, held annually in cooperation with the Basel Peace Forum and the Basel Intergenerational Forum on Peace, Disarmament and Climate Action. This year, the geography of the competition has expanded, and in addition to European participants, projects from outside the region were also evaluated. In total, more than 80 applications were received for the contest.
The winners, each of whom will receive prizes of €5000 each plus organizational support for their project, are Peace in our Schools (Georgia), Adopt a tree, not a weapon (Democratic Republic of Congo) and Storytelling as a Catalyst of Action for Peace, Love, and Climate Justice in the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa).
