Almost two hundred and fifty young people received the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award, DOFE for short, on Thursday 23 April at the Poklad Cultural House in Ostrava. Young people from the Moravian-Silesian and Olomouc regions came to Ostrava. Ondřej Syrovátka, the vice-mayor of Nový Jičín, congratulated the Dofaks.
The programme also included a festival of opportunities for the further development of young people, where organisations such as Thanks that we can!, Mary's Meals, Wise Network, Záchranka, Tutorie and GasNet presented their activities.
Festival part of the program, dofáci at the GasNet stand.
The non-formal education programme is designed for young people aged 13 to 24 and operates in the Czech Republic in close cooperation with primary and secondary schools, children and youth homes, children's homes and sports clubs. The award was presented to dofacs and dofacs who have completed the bronze or silver level of the programme, i.e. have been engaged for at least six and twelve months respectively in activities of their choice in the field of exercise, skills development and volunteering.
In Nový Jičín, the DOFE operates in two of the four primary schools, says Deputy Mayor Ondřej Syrovátka. "DOFE is a great training for life. Congratulations to all participants and good luck in your personal development!”
They all also completed a team expedition that tested the ability cooperation, adaptation to discomfort, and trust in the team. „DOFE is unique in that it holds young people personally responsible for what and how they learn. It is a framework they can use to give regularity and consistency to their activities. And all the time they have a guide beside them who does not take over their journey, but helps them to carry and understand it,“ says Gabriela Drastichová, director of the Czech office of the International Prize.
Deputy Mayor of Nový Jičín Ondřej Syrovátka congratulates the dofaks and dofaces.
Almost 9 000 young people took part in the programme last year. Together, they worked 85,000 hours of volunteering and experienced the joy of helping others. They gave 122 thousand hours to movement, where they learned about personal discipline and their relationship with their bodies. They spent 85 thousand hours developing skills to experience the focus and joy of shifting.
There are currently more than 450 DOFE centres in the Czech Republic - schools and other youth organisations - where more than 1,600 leaders accompany the participants. „An internationally recognised certificate is important not only because it provides physical evidence of a graduate's success - have I made it or have I done it - but it is also a validation of non-formal learning outcomes that should be of interest to schools for admissions and employers,” adds Gabriela Drastichová.
Valerie Lipková also completed the silver level within the Foundation Fund Helping Children Live Better. During the program, she improved her running, learned Japanese and volunteered to visit patients in the hospital. The biggest part of her volunteering was volunteering at the hospital in the geriatrics and long-term care department. „I used to fold origami with the patients, play guitar with them and just try to make their long moments more pleasant.,” says the student.
Awarded dofačka Valerie Lipková
"DOFE changed my life. I'm a very active person, I have a lot of projects and it wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for DOFE. I used to be scared to start anything, if I could even do it. And in DOFE I got the support that I can just,” adds Valerie.
The Duke of Edinburgh's International Prize programme was founded by Prince Philip in 1956 to encourage the self-development of young people from all backgrounds. The programme was brought to the Czech Republic in 1995 by golf champion Luisa Abrahams.
