Our aim
The 4Watoto Foundation wants to create value through education in the area of; unity, awareness, social impact
and knowledge transfer. We focus on the Netherlands and DR Congo.
Our projects:
Education, You may be thinking: that's a broad concept. What does 4Watoto value when it comes to education?
- Create understanding
Learning is a fundamental process of education, but learning is not always related to education.
Indeed, learning is one of the fundamental processes on which education is based. Learn something. But don't just learn anything. You can learn a trick. You can learn to make fire. You can learn all of these things, but that does not mean that you have learned them through education.
Education is essentially about understanding, not just about knowledge or skills. Understanding arises from a contemplative attitude towards a process, in order to be able to ask questions about how the process works. Understanding originated in this contemplative space where openness and honesty are central.
- Education for all people
The 4Watoto Foundation wants to make education available to everyone. Education is something that does not belong to any particular group, class or religion. Education and knowledge are universal and should not be distinguished. Whether that takes place directly or indirectly. Education therefore stands for knowledge, and more can be linked to this. Consider, for example, independence, self-reliance and self-reflection.
By using education as a tool, certain systematic, social problems can be tackled. Instead of temporary, dependent solutions, through education you are dealing with a permanent, independent approach. It is therefore an investment, which can take a longer time. The moment these change processes have been set in motion, we can speak of a snowball effect. The acquired knowledge is passed on to the next group of youth and young adults. After which they do that again. This makes a community independent.
According to the Universal Rights of the Child, every child has the right to education. Whatever your background, story or situation is. And 4Watoto fully agrees with this.
- Consciousness
Education and knowledge means broadening consciousness. As mentioned above, we are talking about themes such as self-reflection, independence and self-knowledge. But a greater awareness of the surrounding world is also extremely valuable. The more you learn about what is outside of you, the more you actually learn about yourself.
- Connection and equality
