Current Projects
lead & debate academy 2024 (lda)
mena and germany
****** APPLY HERE UNTIL JULY 10th ********
What about being first Female President? In Lebanon, Palestine or Jordan?
Or better the youngest president of Germany?
A social change maker? A democratic future leader in your country or region?
Would you like to learn leadership & debate skills from international experts?
And would you love to visit Berlin, meet politicians, CEOs and young future leaders from Germany?
Are you striving for peaceful social change, but lacking the skills and resources to take action?
Then we have the perfect program for you!
Lead & Debate Academy (LDA) trains and empowers around 150 Arab and German young leaders from 4 countries/regions to become future political leaders.
We, the elda, are more than ever convinced that a peaceful future is only possible through empowerment and inclusion of pluralistically inspired young leaders and the strengthening of democratic change in societies.
The participants are young leaders or would be leaders from Lebanon, Jordan, Palestinian territories and young leaders from Germany (age: 18-29) who want to drive democratic change in Middle Eastern societies by engaging democratically. We empower, activate and connect Arab young leaders with like-minded young leaders from Germany.
The program consists of three phases, starting with a digital summer school, then continuing with live trainings in Lebanon, Jordan and Germany and ending with a final networking week in Berlin and a public debate event. The participants will not only learn and enhance their communication and leadership skills but also develop their own digital video formats to further visualize their topics on social media.
female talent academy
female talent academy | Germany, Luxembourg and Europe 2023/24
❓Are you from Ukraine living in Germany or could you imagine to live there?
❓Are you an interested in a sustainable job in a well known European company?
❓Are you a talent or young professional in a field like IT, project management, tech sales, education, law, economy or creative business or could you imagine to work in one of those fields?
❓Do you want to improve your female empowerment skills, become an insider in German / EU corporate culture and a female pro in communication and leadership techniques, conflict management and obtain personal coaching for your new career start?
❗️Then we think you are the perfect match for us!
The Female Talent Academy 2023/24 prepares Ukrainian talents for the German and European labor market. The academy recruits, empowers and integrates Ukrainian talents into the participating companies with trainings, online seminars and personal coaching – for their start and onboarding in big European companies.
Interested?
We are looking forward to hearing from you! Please fill out the form and upload your CV.
https://forms.gle/6DzeN1ExP6EnVbHL9
For further questions please contact info@eldacademy.org
future projects
We publish new projects regularly. Follow us on social media and be the first one to apply!
Past Projects
Addressing young leaders from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Armenia and Azerbaijan as well as Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan elda european leadership and debate academy has organized between one and three seminars annually since its foundation in 2014.
female future for ukraine | 2023
“Female Future for Ukraine” is a project that empowers and connects female leaders from Ukrainian civil society, equipping them with leadership skills, communication expertise, and the tools needed to create impactful social projects. After a series of online seminars, the selected finalists presented and refined their projects during a networking week in Berlin.
The program is generously funded by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany and organized by elda, the european leadership and debate academy, along with project partners Support Ukraine Now, OneUkraine, Institute Respublica, and Right to Dignity.
Photos by Daniel Wetzel
remember the future | lebanon 2023
In May 2023, elda started the project “Remember the future”.
Remember the future addressed young, committed Lebanese filmmakers to deepen their filmmaking skills and jointly develop, realise and publish the mini-series “remember the future” dealing with a united peaceful future of Lebanon and shared values.
The program consisted of 8 digital workshops and an intensive week in Lebanon with workshops and 48 hours sprints to shoot a mini series under the umbrella of “Remember the Future”.
This project was realized with our partners Beirut Film Society, She dares by Sabine Abi Aad, INJAZ Lebanon, men.tell and Bromwkhdom and with generous funding provided by the German Federal Foreign Office 🙏
female campaigning school | middle east 2023/24
The Female Campaigning School teaches women from Palestine and Lebanon who believe in a pluralistic and democratic society and strive for peaceful social change the resources to take action by gaining in-depth knowledge on social campaigning. During the 1 year project they enhance their skills, promote a topic they are passionate about, and contribute to their personal missions and goals.
We will help you spread your message and effectively reach your audience and goals by providing knowledge and tools for campaign management.
The project consists of …
… a series of online classes with experts of communications and social campaigning 🧑🏽💻
… intensive consultation by the elda team 💁🏽♂️💁🏻
… seminars in Ramallah 🇵🇸 and Beirut 🇱🇧
… and the chance to be selected for a final event in Berlin, Germany! ✈
We are proud and excited to work on this project with our partners Palestinian Consultative Staff for Developing NGOs (PCS), She dares by Sabine Abi Aad, INJAZ Lebanon, Factory-x, men.tell and Bromwkhdom.
Generous funding is provided by the German Federal Foreign Office 🙏
filmmakers x ngos lebanon 2022
Filmmakers meet NGOs addressed young filmmakers and video content creators aswell as NGOs, social activists engaged in civil society believing in a pluralistic and democratic society.
During the program, the participants were provided with the knowledge and tools of storytelling and campaigning, to help them spread their message through film. They were enabled to promote a social issue of their choice by
… a series of online classes with experts from all fields of filmmaking, storytelling and social campaigning 🧑🏽💻
… networking
… building a filmmaker-activist-power-couple or team 🦸🏻♀️🦸🏾♀️
… developing a film concept and producing a short preview film
… receiving intensive consultation and check ups by the elda team along with an easy and structured template for developing the film concept 💁🏽♂️💁🏻
… a 5-day seminar in Beirut 🏖️
… meeting film fund representatives
… presenting the film concept at the award ceremony with the chance to be awarded a cash booster 💰
The program was organised and realised with our partners Sabine Abi Aad @shedaresbysabine, The Beirut Film Society and INJAZ Lebanon @injazlebanon aswell as @men.tell8, @bromwkhdom and Read with Ninette @ninetteabiatallah with generous funding by the German Federal Foreign Office.
young women for politics palestine 2022/23
Young Women for Politics is an opportunity for Palestinian women to get their voices heard and gain more impact in local politics!
The program was created for socially or politically engaged women from the Palestinian territories, to provide them with the knowledge and tools of Democratic change and pluralism, to enhance the women participation in politics.
“Young Women for Politics” contains …
… a series of online classes and mentoring with experts from the fields of political communication and strategy🧑🏽💻
… a lot of networking
… developing strategies for women’s political participation in Palestine 🦸🏻♀️🦸🏾♀️
… workshops in Ramallah in October 2022 with remote participation from Gaza
… intensive consultation and check ups by the elda team
… a 4-day networking trip to Berlin in January 2023
The project was successfully organized with the valuable help of our Palestinian project partners Palestinian Consultative Staff for Developing NGOs (PCS) and Factory-x.
Young Women for Politics is generously funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.
Participants’ projects (click for more information):
NOOR THABET – LEADERS 👣
WATAN ABUQAOUD & AYA ADWAN – ROAR 🦁
HAYA ABUSAMRA & HEBA EDWAN – SHEROS 💫
ANGELA KASSIS – FIGHT AGAINST FEMICIDE 💪
RAZAN ALSHAHROURI – OUR STORIES 📖
KATE KHAIR – YOUTH FOR PALESTINE 🌟
digital media lab ukraine 2022
+++ Podcast “War at Home” on Spotify +++
In fall 2022 young Ukrainian journalists, bloggers, storytellers, media professional and students believing that good journalism can make a difference especially in times of war came together for the program Digital Media Lab.
During a series of online classes the participants received online training from experts from different fields of journalism, storytelling, rhetorics, podcasting and social campaigning.
The group agreed to create a the podcast “War at home – Stories about Life and war from Ukraine”, containing stories from Ukraine, developed, recorded and published by the participants together with the German production company Bosepark during a week of seminars in Warsaw, Poland and Uzghorod, Ukraine.
The project was created with our partners Institute Respublica and Right to Dignity and generously funded by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany. Special thanks to our Ukrainian project coordinators Korney Gritsyuk and Philippe Schockweiler.
social campaigning school – middle east 2021/22
The Social Campaigning School gives the opportunity to a group of young Palestinians, Lebanese and Jordanians to learn the tools and techniques of campaigning and mass communication in order to empower them and give them the chance to practice their ideas and beliefs democratically. The aim of the seminar is to empower young leaders to become multipliers of social change.
This project is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, and hosted by elda – european leadership & debate academy and Stahlmedien and their partners Factory-x, Sabine Abi Aad and BuildPalestine.
Find the participants’ amazing campaigns here:
Men.Tell by Lama Hatoum & Ola Zeiter on Instagram
Brom w khdom by Leila & Louloua Bachachi on Instagram
Ambulogy by Husni Sawalha on Facebook
Read with Ninette by Ninette Abi Atallah on Instagram and Facebook
Social Media Minimalism by Madleen Abu Irayeh on Instagram
Green Souls Palestine by Habiba Masoud, Ahmed Quraish, Warda Ajjour & Islam Masoud on Instagram
Create Debate! 2020
Create Debate! empowers and connects participants in order to increase democratic participation and visibility for actors of social change. Through the 3 phases of the program the participants will learn, cultivate and practice democratic social change.
We proudly present the projects that our participants created during our online academy Create Debate:
Digital Social Change Academy 2020
Join our Free Online Course!
The Covid-19 crisis shows international NGO work the difficulties and chances of social change – more than ever. Due to social distancing and lockdowns we are forced to completely switch into the digital sphere. This holds problems but also offers us chances: We can meet people that we might have never met. Our experience shows, that digital communication is possible – if it is moderated well. The Academy that took place in November and December 2020 with participants from all over the world consisted of 10 online seminars in form of an online salon, each focusing on a different aspect of social change and/or NGO work. One or two experts introduced their perspectives in short inputs to the group. Victoria Schneider accompanied the discussion as a moderator. 8 topics were be given, 2 topics were proposed and voted by the kick off participants.
Dive into our digital salons now by rewatching the sessions on video and checking out the slide shows, links and additional material on Candid (registration is free).
Female Leader Summit 2020
In three seminars our participants focussed on the topics Leadership & Agile Work, Communication & Networking and above all Female Empowerment and meanwhile designed, organized and promoted a hybrid 2-day event.
About the summit.
Although international studies show that more women on the board mean more economic success, women in powerful positions are quite rare to find. It is still not understood that female leadership is not about women’s promotion – it is about the economic wellbeing and innovative power of organizations.
We discussed the issue with women who experienced themselves what it means to be a woman with power:
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Anna Christmann, Member of Parliament (Bündnis 90/ Die Grünen) (GERMANY)
Maria Mezentseva, Member of Parliament (UKRAINE)
Miranda Tkabladze, IFES Georgia (GEORGIA)
Anastasia Barner, Founder and CEO of Fementor (GERMANY)
Franziska Leonhardt, Founder and CEO of Ave & Edam (GERMANY)
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The talk took place in our Berlin studio, Fluxbau of FluxFM and was streamed live via Facebook.
About the project.
The future is female? Okay, got it. But change does not drive without the right players. That is why we want YOU to become a true leader – with a personality, mindset and skills that make the difference. Being a woman in a predominantly male leadership environment can be challenging. Women on the rise are often struggling with a lack of support. We believe that one of the biggest strengths of female leaders is their ability to connect and build communities. That is why we created a safe space for women who believe they can make a difference and accompany them on their path.
#Digital Dialogue – Barcamp Moscow 2018
Changing the world within three days!
European Barcamp and Hackathon was held on 16-18 November, Moscow
Location: www.deworkacy.ru
Can we change this world? Drive social change in Russia, Belarus, Armenia? Impossible? No! It is possible. And: Yes, we can. Between 16-18 November 2018, we brought together NGOs, activists and the creative community to connect, exchange and start new projects under time pressure during a unique European BarCamp. We also announced the first “Changing the World Award” for the best projects of the 24h-hackathon, held during the event.
Democracy rests on debate and civic engagement. With the internet, we have more channels than ever to make ourselves heard. How can we harness digital media for new forms of social campaigning and a vital participatory democracy? How does storytelling for human rights works? How can we raise awareness in society for social change and participation in the democratic process? And what does it take for you to become a relevant actor in the digital environment? These are some of the questions at the core of “Changing the world within three days”, the first European BarCamp and hackathon, held in Moscow on November 2018. So what about you? Are you ready to change the world? We are waiting for your ideas.
What is a BarCamp? The project
The Digital Dialogue 18 series, held in Kyiv and Moscow, was unlike any classical conference you have ever attended. User-generated, fast and fun, it offered a unique opportunity for participants from the creative community, civil society, politics, the tech, and startup scene to come together, learn from each other, start new projects and co-create. Leading experts from tech and politics, filmmaking and storytelling stood ready to provide inputs and feedback and there was ample room for personal reflection. But in the end, it was YOUR conference, a unique “learning and doing experience” driven by participants’ desire to share and learn in an open environment.
Female Leadership Academy | 2018-2019
THE FUTURE IS FEMALE
Exclusive and innovative ELDA Female Leadership Academy 2018/2019 was held in three different cities:
Lviv, Ukraine: 26th – 30th of November 2018
Tbilisi, Georgia: 01st – 05th of April 2019
Odesa, Ukraine: 13th – 17th of May 2019
About the project
The Future is Female? Okay, got it. But change doesn’t drive without the right players. That’s why we want you to become a true leadership personality. Being a woman in a predominantly male leadership culture can be challenging and women on the rise are often struggling with a lack of support. We believe that one of the biggest strengths of female leaders is their ability to connect and built communities. That’s why we created a space for women who believe they can make a difference and accompany them developing not just their own leadership skills and personality but also train them the right techniques to share their gained knowledge with other women after the program is completed.
Digital Dialogue 2018 – European Hackathon and Barcamp Kyiv
The idea
Can we change this world? Drive social change in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia? Impossible? No! It is possible. And: Yes, we can. Between 5-7 October 2018 we brought together NGOs, activists and the creative community to connect, exchange and start new projects under time pressure during a unique European Hackathon. And we also announced the first “Change the World Award” for the best projects from 24h hackathon, held during the event.
Democracy rests on debate and civic engagement. With the internet we have more channels than ever to make ourselves heard. How can we harness digital media for new forms of social campaigning and a vital participatory democracy? How does storytelling for human rights works? How can we raise awareness in society for social change and participation in democratic process? And what does it take for you to become a relevant actor in the digital environment? These are some of the questions at the core of “Change the world within three days”, the first European Hackathon/ barcamp, held in Kyiv in October 2018.
The project
The first European Hackathon/barcamp is unlike any classical conference you have ever attended. User-generated, fast and fun, it offers a unique opportunity for participants from the creative community, civil society, politics and the tech and start up scene to come together, learn from each other, start new projects and co-create. Leading experts from tech and politics, filmmaking and storytelling will stand ready to provide inputs and feedback and there is ample room for personal reflection. But in the end it is YOUR conference, a unique “learning and doing experience” driven by participants’ desire to share and learn in an open environment.
The Kyiv edition of Digital Dialogue 18 took place from 5th to 7th of October in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Generous funding was provided by German Federal Foreign Office.
YouTube and Social Responsibility | 2017
YouTube constitutes a key resource for media makers. However, finding relevant and reliable information on YouTube can pose a challenge. Against this backdrop, this 7-day elda workshop focused on how YouTube can be used as a tool for social change and democracy. elda invited 18 journalists and film makers from Ukraine, Armenia and Russia to Lviv, Ukraine, where they developed, amongst other things, a campaign entitled „Break the Cycle“.
Future Media Lab: Digital Journalism and Democratic Politics | 2016
In October 2016, elda invited 16 selected journalists and NGO representatives from Ukraine, Armenia and Russia to a “Future Media Lab: Digital dournalism and democratic politics” in Minsk, Belarus. See a short documentary here:
Journalism between politics and Propaganda | 2016
This elda seminar, held in summer 2016 in Kyiv, focused on propaganda as a key challenge to independent journalism, the public sphere and democracy. Participants from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia and Ukraine, most of them journalists, were offered practical insights and strategic reflection on the role and relevance of journalism in modern democracies as well as the challenge of old and new forms of propaganda.
A key result of the workshop was the campaign “young journalists against propaganda”.
European Young Leaders – Kyiv 2016
In this special edition, held in June 2016 in Kyiv in cooperation with the UN-Youth-Ambassador-Program, elda invited participants from Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia aged between 15-20 years to discuss youth engagement in democratic politics.
Social Campaigning School – Odessa 2015
In October 2015, the second edition of elda. was held in Odessa for participants from Ukraine and Moldova, focusing particularly on “Social Campaigning” (in cooperation with Institute Republika). The seminar was based on the elda-concept but was focused on the main competences and techniques of public communication in the context of digital media (social networks, Internet campaigning).
European Debate Academy – Kyiv 2014
The first edition of the elda was held in Kyiv in December 2014 (organized with funding by the German Federal Foreign Office). Less than a year after the revolution on Kiev’s Independence Square, 20 participants from civil society and media were provided with a unique learning environment – to reflect on the developments of the past months and their role there-in as well as on the steps, capacities and mentalities necessary to foster democracy in Ukraine.
#Engage Black Sea | 2017
#Engage Black Sea provided a forum for young politicians and activists from Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova, Russia and Armenia to discuss and apply cutting-edge tools and approaches to foster social change and a more participatory democracy. Focusing on the impact of the internet on democracy, the workshop series took a phenomenon as a starting point which affects both East and West, transition countries and developed democracies alike. The seminars were held in Odessa, Ukraine, and Tbilisi, Georgia, in autumn 2017 and resulted in several social campaigns.
#verify – digital Journalism and democracy | 2017
This project brought young journalists from Ukraine, Russia and Moldova together to discuss and work on the challenges of journalism in context of digitalization and the trend towards “fake news” and “post-factual” societies. This project was conducted in cooperation with the National University Odessa. The seminars were held in Odessa, Ukraine, and Chișinău, Moldova.