Ecological Education Centre (ÖBZ)

Since 2021, the SI Club Munich-Schwabing has supported the Ecological Education Centre (ÖBZ).

The ÖBZ is an environmental station in the middle of Munich, jointly operated by the Münchner Umwelt-Zentrum e.V. and the Münchner Volkshochschule. Its events are aimed at children, young people, families and adults.

The goals of the ÖBZ are environmental education and education for sustainable development. The guiding idea is the sustainable development of the city of Munich. The gardens around the ÖBZ cover various thematic areas: Insect, fragrance and herb garden, rock garden, dry and water area as well as berry and vegetable garden. There is also a 6.5 acre outdoor area. Here there are nature play areas, gardens, hedges, meadows and wetland biotops.

The theme of the environment and sustainability is meant to be expirienced by city dwellers through join in and hands-on experiences.

Through its donations, the SI Club München-Schwabing supports the further development of the centre, among other things the creation of a water body for green toads (Bufo viridis). The green toad is an endangered amphibian that is native to the north of Munich. The facility has since been well received by the amphibians..

The SI Club München-Schwabing supports the police project 'zammgrauft'

of the Munich police force

Violence characterises the lives of children in many situations. That is why it is not possible to "practise" how to deal with violence early enough.

The police project 'zammgrauft' run by the Munich police is aimed at children and young people aged between eleven and 18. Here, pupils learn the importance of solidarity, trust and moral courage through exercises and role-playing games. The various forms of violence, for example physical violence or bullying, are also addressed and strategies against them are developed:

The police train teachers, social education workers and police officers from Munich to become "zammgrauft" trainers so that they can then pass on the content to the target groups.

It also organises courses at the schools itself. The programme takes place over two mornings with the whole school class. The trainers do exercises and role-plays with the pupils on various topics, such as "standing up for your own opinion", "community” or "violence".

The "tools" that are taught the children so that they can resolve conflicts peacefully and avoid violent behaviour are: communication and empathy, creating a supportive environment, role modelling, boosting self-esteem and conflict resolution strategies.

The experience of violence among children and dealing with this violence is of great importance in order to promote a peaceful society.

The 'zammgrauft' police project run by the Munich police has been doing exemplary work in this area since 2001, which we are happy to support.

One girl's comment:

what a great day!

Otherwise I would have spent it again at home with my mobile phone.

Lichtblick Hasenbergl

Sailing trip to Lake Chiemsee

For 16 children and 4 educators from Lichtblick Hasenbergl, the day began early in the morning with a train ride to Prien. They were already expected at the station and taken to the yacht school. And there the much-awaited sailing day began for the children, which has been sponsored by the SI Club Munich-Schwabing for years.

For the children it means spending a day in beautiful nature and without electronic media. With full sails, they sailed along Lake Chiemsee in ideal sailing weather and made new experiences such as tying different knots or initiating different sailing manoeuvres.

We support women: SI scholarship for a Sudanese female scientist

As a global organization, we work at the local, national and international levels to concretely improve the rights and living situations of women and girls. In this regard, a central concern of SI International is to promote educational programs for women at a global level to improve their status, autonomy and agency.

With this in mind, we are particularly pleased to be able to award the SI Scholarship of the Year 2021 to a young, dedicated female scholar in Sudan to support her academic education.

Due to the problematic political situation in the country, the SI Club München-Schwabing has decided to briefly describe the commitment and goals of our scholarship recipient in this context, but to keep her more detailed data anonymous until further notice.

Although a significant turnaround in Sudan was announced in 2019 with the overcoming of the 30-year military regime, the hopeful democracy efforts were set back by a renewed military coup at the end of 2021.

In particular for Sudanese women, this is a bitter blow, as Islamic Sharia law has had a dramatic impact on their lives over the past decades. They suffer from early marriage, polygamy, female genital mutilation (FGM), and sexual violence by police and the national security services. (See Amnesty International report).

Furthermore, according to UNICEF, 49 percent of girls and young women in Sudan are excluded from basic education; see, e.g., UNICEF's Report on Women's Education in Sudan. Dismissals of many women from working in education and bans on work, e.g., in petty trade, contribute massively to their economic exclusion.

Despite these difficulties existing on many levels, through strength, commitment and perseverance, our scholarship recipient was able to successfully complete her studies in 2013 with a master's degree in archaeology at the universities of Dongola, Al Nilein and Khartoum and subsequently take up a position as curator at the Sudan National Museum. She also accompanies foreign missions on international excavations as an inspector for the National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums Sudan. 

The great dream of our scholarship holder is to advance and complete her doctorate in archaeology at the University of Khartoum - a step that is urgently needed for her professional future.

Especially in Sudan, archaeology is not only an important field of work. It also represents an important component within diplomatic, political and cultural relations on an international level (see, for example, Sudan's UNESCO World Heritage Sites).

Despite its potential, this field of occupation, is only one example of many in which women in Sudan face significant obstacles to achieving a higher level of education. For example, scholarships are awarded primarily to male colleagues.

By covering the tuition fees of the University of Khartoum as well as the English courses at the British Council Khartoum, the SI Club München-Schwabing would like to support our scholarship holder on her professional way.

Our scholarship holder, whom we wish all the best for the realization of her goals, has accepted the support of the SI Club München-Schwabing with great pleasure.

SI Club Munich- Schwabing supports homeless women in Munich

otto&rosi is an open day centre for homeless people or

people threatened by homelessness.

The service is aimed at single adult women and men. The visitors of the day centre are in a difficult situation in their lives. The day centre offers them a place of retreat, but also the opportunity to receive counselling. There are shower facilities, the opportunity to do laundry and cook, as well as lockers for personal documents.

Of particular note is a women-only common room, for which we as a club made a donation.

The room gives the women the opportunity to find peace from the hard everyday life on the street. Women living on the streets are usually exposed to even more additional burden of risks than men. This means an additional burden.

With its donation, the SI Club München-Schwabing has made it possible to refurbish the women's lounge. As Soroptimists, we want to stand up for the needs of all women, but especially for women in difficult life situations.