Where Two Generations Meet
In the area around Bakota, the villages are located far from the nearest towns—and just as far from the reach of humanitarian aid. A project by the NGO Territory, supported by LIBERECO, brings residents of a nursing home there together with children from the surrounding area.
In the rural communities surrounding Bakota, distance is causing silent social harm. The cities are far away, and humanitarian aid and human rights work rarely reach these places. Two groups are most affected: seniors in nursing homes—including people with disabilities and internally displaced persons—and children from the surrounding villages, who have almost nowhere to go outside of school. Both groups live in isolation. Young people, in particular, need spaces where they can make connections and develop beyond the school setting.
The partner organization NGO Territory addresses these needs through its project.
A connection formed with the hands
What makes Territory’s work unique is the way this connection is formed. It doesn’t happen through words, but through collaborative creation. A shared task fosters the relationship-building that cannot be forced through conversation alone: two people stamping a pattern onto fabric side by side, or a child holding a cup when someone’s grip weakens. The conversation comes afterward, but it flows so easily precisely because it follows the activity.
An occasion worth dressing up for
According to Territory, the first session was marked by a sense of distance. The nursing home residents sat side by side with the children, and no one quite knew what to expect. By the most recent meetings, the change was clearly visible. Participants who had previously been reserved rushed to the door to greet the organizing team and counted down the days until the next visit. Nursing staff and teachers independently observed the same change.
The smallest detail speaks volumes: The residents began to dress up before the visits. In a daily routine with little variety, the workshops had become an occasion worth celebrating.
A friendship that lasts beyond the workshop
Among them is a woman who lost her leg when a rocket struck her home in the eastern part of the country. She now lives in a safer place, but since her grandchildren are far away, she longs for their company. She has found companionship at these gatherings. She befriended two of the schoolchildren, who then decided on their own to visit her after school—just to sit together, chat, or sing for her. For LIBERECO, this is precisely the essence of what Territory has achieved.
Thanks to the core funding provided by our donors, LIBERECO is able to support locally led projects, such as the one by Territory, as part of the “Humanitarian Action x Human Rights” call for proposals launched in November 2025. Your donation helps make this and other projects possible, thereby strengthening locally led initiatives.