Our Approach
Working in partnership with the girl champions, their parents, and the community, Protsahan has worked tirelessly over the past decade to ensure an end to sexual violence against girls, higher enrolment and attendance for girls, improved learning outcomes for all children, healing of trauma of abuse and increased resilience, and enhanced economic productivity.
Around the world, girls face barriers to safety & education that boys don’t. But when you holistically empower a girl through Education & Creative Arts, it creates a lasting impact on her, her family and the community she lives in. Protsahan’s programs have directly impacted 928 girls, and reach out to more than 72000 girls annually – empowering them to stand up for their right to receive quality education, healthcare, and against any form of violence and abuse. The Art & Technology based interventions at Protsahan have also resulted in a higher economic productivity for the girls as they are equipped with 21st century skills.
HEART Model
We have a unique way of designing, implementing, and advocat- ing our interventions. The goal is not to just talk about abuse. We want our impact to be far more significant than traditional methods of action and advocacy. For this very reason, we designed a common thread that runs across every step we take, every campaign we run, and every child we reach out to, a thread that enables us to get that lasting impact. We call it the HEART Model.
We use this model as a tool to help bring children out of their shells, and into a healthy learning environment. Together, the five pillars of the program ignite the spark of interest in young children rescued from vulnerable and abusive circumstances. The children we reach out to have usually never attended a formal school. By using inno- vative and hands-on approaches to teaching them social and educational skills, the children start learning and adapting subconsciously, all while having fun.
Protsahan’s Girl Champions Program
The Girl Champions Program is Protsahan’s umbrella community intervention program that involves in-depth work with each girl enrolled at Protsahan over a long period of time to truly transform her into a champion that the entire community looks up to. Each of the girls at our centers has access to the Program modules that help her grow out of a systemic, and intergenerational cycle of poverty and abuse.
Case Stories
HINA KAUSHAR
Hina is a young girl who has witnessed domestic violence emanating from child marriage in her neighborhood. Her father works as a plumber, and mother is a homemaker. Both of them supported her education, her father always tells her, “you’re the first girl in our family to get an education.” Her sister is a regular student at Protsahan. Hina, on the other hand, had never attended Protsahan’s programs, but when she learned of an opportunity through her sister that one of Protsahan’s partner organization was offering to teach women driving and help them pick up a career as a professional driver. She immediately registered for the program.
Her mother, who herself wants to learn to drive, inspired Hina to take driving lessons. Today at 19-years of age, she earned her permanent driving license, and is all set to earn a living as a cab driver. To reach there, she had to undergo extensive training in communicating, self defense, and first aid apart from driving lessons. After tests conducted by her instructors, and licensing authorities at the Janakpuri Regional Transport Office, she earned her license, a phone, and uniform to be inducted as a professional driver.
POOJA
Pooja is a 17-year-old studying in 12th grade who wants to be a dancer. Her family has been through a lot of difficult situations financially, and as a result, her parents discontinued her schooling and she had to take up work at a factory to support her family. Somehow, Pooja persevered through the situation. Counselors at Protsahan constantly engaged with her family throughout the year, and enrolled her in school again. Her passion to never give up on education became her biggest strength. She also took support from Childline on 1098 to make sure her education never stopped.
Pooja says, “Protsahan has helped me find my inner strength, now I know how to fight for my rights. I know my aim in life, and I’m willing to stand up for it. I have also learned the importance of family here. I believe that every girl should learn to read, write and speak English, and receive higher education, because when a girl is educated, she can educate her entire family.” Pooja wants to be a banker one day, and a classical Kathak dancer. She is currently pursuing her 12th grade in commerce stream and comes to Protsahan everyday for extra coaching.
RINA
After three years at Protsahan, Rina is now a 16-year-old firebrand crusader against sexual harassment. She comes from a family of five. Rina credits Protsahan for her new-found courage that she uses constructively to fight harassment on her way to school, talk about periods and menstrual hygiene, and put forth her views in front of others with utmost confidence.
She says, “I’ve learnt so much at Protsahan, done so many things that I’ve never done before. I’ve learnt that girls should not be discriminated against, instead, they should get a fair chance to prove themselves and move ahead in life. I also learned to work on a computer for the first time at Protsahan, and the faith that was entrusted in me here meant a lot to me. No one has ever trusted me like this before. It has changed my life. Now I’m not scared to fight injustice. I’ve seen so many times when boys harass girls on their way to school, and the parents make the girls quit school instead. How is that fair? Now I know that I will not stay quiet, I will raise my voice, and I will never quit.”
PIYALI
18-year-old Piyali loves computers, photography, and dance. Her parents work very hard to provide for a family of six. Her mother works at a hospital as a cleaner, and her father works as a cab driver. They never had the resources to allow her to follow her passions. But when she is at Protsahan, she has the agency to make that happen for herself. Piyali has participated in numerous workshops on menstrual hygiene, nutrition, and photography and cinema classes. She was also a part of the team of girls who made feature films on cleanliness and child marriage, and in her words, that made her feel empowered.
“Education is super important for every girl, for her independence. This is how patriarchy will end when girls get educated. Boys should understand that girls are not baby-making machines, and I will marry only after the age of 25. I will get a college education, and a job. That’s the confidence and self-respect I’ve received from Protsahan. Even though I’m a little emotional, but I believe that emotions and strengths should be equally important for everyone.”