Maya Foundation

Balat Child Center: In the Balat Child Center which is established in 2017 children are provided psycho-social support services. Within these services, art therapy-based groups therapies are conducted toward children to deal with their own negative emotions and thoughts and have a healthy relationship. In addition to this, according to children’s needs, there is individual therapy support which is provided by clinical psychologists. With Positive Parenting Skills Training, families are informed about the effects of the traumas on children and raise awareness about how the parents can deal with this issue. It conducts counseling and leading activities within the protection services to children who couldn’t reach the basic rights like education and health. In addition to this, it organizes informing and strengthening activities about risks that might affect children’s health and safety.

PhotoLIFT – Maya Foundation became entitled to make grants within the Supporting Civil Society Dialogs between the European Union and Turkey Program in the 5^th Term. PhotoLIFT project is conducting studies towards disadvantaged children at the age of 14-18 in terms of supporting them psycho-socially and for strengthening their social adaptations based on photographs. The project is supported by the European Union and it is a 15 months-long project. In the project, project partner Kulturhafen Wien (Austria) and Maya Foundation introduce children to the art of taking photograph and support them to heal psychologically, and at the same time make a contribution to different countries’ civil society organizations’ dialogs gain strength.

Trauma-Sensitive School Program – Maya Foundation believes that, with the holistic approach, children need to support in every field, and it maintains its studies according to this belief. Because of that since 2016, Maya Foundation is conducting Trauma Sensitive School Program for disadvantaged children who are exposed to traumatic events, make sure they are getting their education the best way they can and get over the traumatic effects. In the program within the framework of protocol that is assigned bythe Turkish Republic Ministry of National Education, schools are targeted to turn into safe spaces for children who are exposed to trauma.

Training and Supervision towards teachers within the program that is conducted in İstanbul and Şanlıurfa: orientation about child protection procedure for school administration, dealing with peer pressure for children, cultural combination towards social adaptation and rehabilitation studies like creative reading and provide Positive Parenting Skills Training for parents whose children have trauma symptoms.

Capacity Development Program – Maya Foundation aims to raise awareness about trauma in the institutions which has served for disadvantaged groups and develop their capacities about psycho-social support. It maintains its studies in the South-East Anatolian Region with the cooperation of GAP Management and it also maintains its studies in Social Services Centers in İstanbul within the framework of protocol that is assigned by the Turkish Republic Ministry of Family, Work, and Social Services. Vocational personnel who are working in the psycho-social support field are provided self-care studies and strengthening training with the purpose of protecting themselves from the effects of the secondary traumas.

Volunteer Program – Maya Foundation is targeting the dissemination of being a volunteer in the psycho-social field and it conducts studies since the first day it was founded. It gives information about trauma and its effects and working with the children in the fields in its training within the Volunteer program that is conducted actively. Volunteers who give big supports to the activities make contributions about conducting and disseminating these programs. While supervision support is given to the volunteers who are participated in the fieldwork that they could get an opportunity to learn, discover and develop themselves, at the same time foundation make social activities to consolidate their belonging and motivations.