Dhouha Maalaoui

My name is Dhouha Maalaoui, I’m 24 years old and I’m from Tunisia. I have a bachelor degree in occupational health and safety and I’m now in my second year of masters in QHSE (quality, health, safety andenvironment).

My participation in this program was all by chance and I'm thankful for that chance because for a long time I was one of the many people who were aware of the environmental and social issues around the world and our country in particular but never actually did anything to help create the change that is highly needed. My experience with Safir and my interactions with the other candidates and the ATPNE members have inspired me to be a part of the change and take action.

"As for my experience I think the most interesting aspect about Safir is that it's not all about learning or educating as a sole core of the program, it actually encourages and stimulates one's personal and critical views and understandings of the SDGS."

The different training sessions were mostly based on the insights and exchanges we had with one another which is very nourishing as we all come from very different backgrounds and fields so everyone had something unique and original to bring to the table. The workshops were a good tool to strengthen the teamwork spirit in each and every one of us and to emphasize on the importance of partnership which is one of the SDGS as well.

Through the different sessions of trainings I learned that each goal can't be taken separately but rather as a whole package as it's merely impossible to work on one SDG without finding an interaction with one or several other goals, and this is a fact that I and my teammates have had stumbled across through the preparation of our advocacy campaign.

I also discovered that sustainable development and humanrights were created and developed separately as approaches but finally found a way to be combined, as they both share the same philosophical target : protecting humanity, thanks to the 2030 agenda.We were trained on how to prepare and run a successful advocacy campaign to push and create the change.
The Safir program was also for me a very interesting personal experience as I got to meet amazing, inspiring and ambitious people.
At the end I want to say that even though the program is very new and can, surely as any concept or program, use some adjustments and improvements, it is a good and interesting opportunity to learn more about the SDGs, new experiences give us new knowledge enabling us to widen our perspectives and to raise our awareness. Also a very deserved thank you is due to the hosting association ATPNE Korba and "Les casques verts" for their serious efforts to make this happen during a pandemic and for their warm and kind hospitality.