ArmenTeKort

a szervezet leírása

ATK (ArmenTekort) wishes to eradicate endemic poverty within the next generation.

Why

Endemic poverty in a civilized society is a human injustice comparable to discrimination on the grounds of gender. The current manner of dealing with it is clearly not effective and alarmingly expensive. It costs 7 times more to support and rehabilitate a father with economic and/or psychological problems than to educate a youngster in search of his destiny. Considering the growing challenges that come with rapidly changing global trends, we urgently need to find practical and sustainable alternatives. Radically ending endemic poverty is more economical than mitigating its impact.

What

1) To address the existing segment of the population already living in endemic poverty for several generations, we are mobilizing thousands of resilient citizens in a Buddy project. The project was inspired by Esther Duflo, who, together with more than 100 scientists and experts in four continents, developed a radically alternative approach. During a 3-year demonstration proof of concept project, the method was refined and measuring tools optimized its sustainability. The first challenge of scalability to 1000 people was successfully met. Currently we are optimizing the method to make it measurable, scalable and affordable.
2) To address the structural causes of new poverty we are mobilizing opinion leaders and tens of thousands of individual citizens, to reflect and take legislative actions to correct the underlying faults in our fast-evolving knowledge society.
The project contributes to the achievement of the following SDG’s: GOAL 1 No Poverty, 3 Good Health and Well-being, 4 Quality Education, 8 Decent Work, 10 Reduced Inequality, and equally important, 17 Partnerships.

How

1) The model constitutes a synergetic buddy relationship between a resilient citizen and a citizen living in a hopeless endemic poverty situation. Both discover each other’s world, develop a trust relationship fueled by attentiveness and togetherness. They will meet each other 100 times over a two-year period. During this time the latter buddy will develop his self-esteem and get rid of a number of limiting beliefs. This new mindset will allow him to make alternative decisions about his capacity to develop and to act. The first buddy receives an intensive personal development programme and an incomparable experience that will significantly enhance his social awareness and personal skills.

The method is based on behavioral science, psychological understanding of self-esteem, the “unconditional attention” approach of Dr Andries Baert, Neuro Linguistic Programming, Appreciative Inquiry, Thinking Environment (NancyKyne) and the empowerment frameworks (from Amartya Sen to Tine Van Regenmortel),

2) The “empowerment of women” movement from the early 20th century has been an inspiration for the structural changes that are necessary.

Who

The partnership consists of an evolving group of around 100 experts from neuromarketers to employer branding consultants, academic researchers and social work organizations., Funding is provided by about 100 corporate partners either for their CSR engagement or from their personal development training objectives. This will become a flagship project for some large corporations’ SDG plan.
An expert advisory board and corporate goodwill ambassadors guide the strong board of directors and a well-developed core team.
All three government levels fully support and are co-funding this initiative. ATK enjoys a “can do” reputation.

When

The project is now in its 6th year. The experiments in transferring this approach to other regions are already operational and a first foreign city has adopted the method. This year the target is to double the numbers again. The project runs until 2023.

Where

The original model started in Antwerp because of its sizeable target group and extreme diversity. Half a dozen other cities have engaged their local actors to set up local ATK based actions. We will develop an English version of all the material by the end of 2021.