On Thursday, 28 September, we had two online workshops led by professor Fella Benabed from Badji Mokhtar - Annaba University, Algeria. The workshops were focused on two human rights activists, and were titled Nelson Mandela: The Hero Within and Malala Yousafzai: Empowerment through education.

The first workshop presented the South African activist and politician Nelson Mandela through the concept of PsyCap, defined as an individual’s positive state of development, consisting of four elements: hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism, commonly abbreviated as HERO. The students were made familiar with how these qualities manifested in Mandela’s actions throughout his political life, and were then encouraged to identify and discuss how these qualities relate to specific quotes by Mandela.

The second workshop discussed the Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai. The students were introduced to the various factors that prevent girls across the world from accessing formal schooling, to Malala’s story, and her mission to fight for equal rights and to education for all children. The students discussed the advantages that female empowerment through education has on society, and after reading a summary of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, they were tasked to consider how they, as individuals, can contribute to the ideals the Declaration represents in their daily lives and in their communities.