NEW GAMIFICATION PLATFORM ON GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT LAUNCHED
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Youth volunteers of the HeforShe movement, in partnership with UN Women and with the support of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, launched ‘WeRise’: a gamification platform aimed at raising awareness on gender equality and women’s empowerment in a fun and engaging way. Fully developed in Jordan and designed by the youth, the platform is the first of its kind that enables the youth to build knowledge, awareness and language on key gender issues and social norms through experiential learning presented in the form of games, challenges and quizzes.
“It’s really important to be always innovative. We found out that there is a gap in promoting gender equality using modern technologies. After brainstorming with the team, we came up with the idea of developing a gamification platform that focuses on promoting gender equality and works as a tool to raise awareness, create interactive communities, and enhances creativity through its endless map. We believe it’s always you, and now! So we brought to the public a game with a purpose to start playing a role in making a bold change” explained Laith Abu-Taleb, Coordinator of Arabic HeForShe.
A key feature of the app is the ‘WeRise’ community, a dedicated space within the game that encourages players to discuss different topics related to gender equality and women’s empowerment with the help of prompts, such as podcasts, competitions, news, articles, and other learning resources. The app also includes an event section, promoting initiatives targeting youth organized both at the national and international level. Following two successful university tours, the HeforShe movement will start using the app in a series of virtual open days organized in partnership with Jordanian schools.
The Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, H.E. Mr. Dolf Hogewoning said “We are delighted to support UN Women and the HeForShe movement in raising the awareness of women’s rights and gender equality. We are also encouraged by the creativity of using gaming as a platform and avenue for social change. It is important that we speak the language of the youth and reach them where they are.”
This initiative is part of the project “From principle to practice: understanding stereotypes that discriminate against women and pave the way for policy reform” implemented by UN Women with the support of the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The project aims at providing evidence-base knowledge and expertise on gender-sensitive policy formulation, fostering national and regional networks to facilitate the share best practices, and promoting innovative approaches for youth’s leadership and engagement on gender equality and women’s empowerment.
“Young people in Jordan have demonstrated exemplary efforts in leveraging innovation in their advocacy efforts. This is a key driver for change. We hope that, through WeRise, players will grow their understanding about gender equality and women’s empowerment, while actively engaging in a dynamic community managed by their peers.” said Ms. Aisha Mukhtar, Deputy Representative of UN Women Jordan.
The ‘WeRise’ app can be downloaded for free on both Android and IOS.
Available in Arabic here.
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