Georgia. A venue for Waldorf education and community building in Georgia.
The Georgian Parzival Youth Society was founded in 2016 by a group of young adults in their twenties. Since then, it has implemented many artistic and social projects. The challenges posed by the Covid pandemic ultimately awakened a desire among the members of the initiative to do more to improve education. So, in 2021, with the help of friends and local residents, the group built an educational space in the small village of Matsevani [50 km southwest of Tbilisi]. The intention for the space is to offer children and young people the opportunity to participate in an informal learning experience based on the principles of Waldorf education. The educational space also functions as a venue for art and culture and as a social meeting place. The long-term vision of the initiative is to organize the entire village community to help all its members and all their activities to become organically and supportively connected. Since building the educational space, the Parzival Youth Society has already taken some important steps in this direction. For example, the space now offers a Sunday school every weekend for children and young people aged seven to nineteen. Courses in English and History are given for adults. A one-year youth seminar has been organized for participants aged between 18 and 28, with the goal of helping young people find meaning and direction in their lives and careers. Participants will get to know themselves, their abilities, and their inner drives. The program includes both theoretical and practical elements as well as plenty of room for artistic expression through painting, clay sculpture, and acting, for example. All activities will prepare the participants to step into their personal and professional lives with self-knowledge and confidence.
More at Parzival
Translation Joshua Kelberman
Image Education centre in Matsevani, Georgia, Photo: Charles Cross
