Educators and Youth Workers Come Together in Warsaw to Explore Debate for Inclusion

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Jun 04, 2025

May was dedicated to hosting a project meeting where educators and youth workers came together to exchange and develop debate methods for civic education and inclusive work in society. The focus was on sharing practices, building skills, and exploring how debate can be used beyond competition. It was a valuable time for reflection, collaboration, and building connections for future work.

From May 21 – 23, 2025, our member organisation Fundacja Polska Debatuje hosted the Speak Together training event in Warsaw. The event brought together 19 educators and youth workers from Poland and Ukraine, many of whom work directly with refugee and multilingual youth communities.

The training featured a series of intensive, participant-led workshops designed to build practical skills in using debate as a methodology for civic education and social integration. Sessions included an introduction to debate formats, techniques for guiding inclusive deliberation, and strategies for supporting student voice in complex or multilingual classrooms. Participants also collaborated on planning civic debate projects for their local contexts.

In addition to the structured training, the event provided space for peer learning and community-building through multilingual reflection circles, issue-mapping activities, and collaborative planning exercises. Participants were invited to share their own practices and insights, fostering a rich exchange of experience between Polish teachers and Ukrainian educators currently based in Lithuania.

This training is part of the broader Speak Together project, which aims to equip educators with the tools to foster youth participation, critical thinking, and civic engagement through structured debate. By focusing on educators working with refugee and multilingual learners, the project contributes to creating more inclusive educational environments and stronger community connections.

We thank all participants for their engagement, openness, and commitment to using debate to empower the next generation.