WHO WE ARE
Initiated in Madagascar, Omena is a global youth-led initiative promoting Social and Emotional Intelligence, healthy relationships, and body safety in schools in hopes of preventing and breaking the cycle of emotional abuse around the world.
WHAT WE DO
We are breaking the cycle of emotional abuse by providing youth and young adults with support groups and with the social and emotional learning tools to nurture a generation with greater self-esteem and inner strength.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Volunteer to be involved with Omena virtually or in person as a global ambassador or a peer educator.
Volunteer with Omena
Omena is looking for Volunteers like you, ready to advocate and stand up against emotional abuse.
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ABOUT US
Omena’s Mission
Omena’s mission is to provide children and young adults with a program that helps them spot the red flags of emotional abuse while equiping them with the social and emotional intelligence tools which will foster healthy self-esteem and ultimately break the cycle of abuse in families, relationships, and communities.
What does Omena Mean?
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Impact of Omena
Omena traveled to Antananarivo for the initial pilot
school interventions
ENGAGED YOUTH AND YOUNG ADULTS
workshops
omena global ambassadors
Lives Impacted
Our students share what Omena has done for them:
“Today, I realized that my relationship with my boyfriend is toxic. I have unhealthy behaviors towards him and so does he. Thank you for showing me what a healthy relationship look like.”
Ny Avo
17 years old
“Today I learnt from Bema [The child from our book pilot]. I learnt that everybody has emotions and that I have emotions too. I can be happy, worried, scared, angry, sad. I know now that it is okay to cry and it is important for me to have 5 people I trust to share what’s going on in my life.”
Faniry
8 years old
“I didn’t know that there was such thing as self-love. I would have never thought looking at the mirror one day and telling myself that I was worthy of love. Even thinking about doing that was crazy before I did it. Thank you Omena for helping me start accepting and appreciating who I am.”
Fanja
16 years old
Omena in Schools and the Community
Omena has already made a difference in many areas in Madagascar during the Pilot Program
Child Guide
Our very first intervention on self-love, understanding emotions and body safety with children taken care of by an organization called Child Guide
CEG Ampefiloha
Our second intervention on self-love, understanding emotions and body safety at the College d’Enseignement General (CEG) Ampefiloha, which would be the equivalent of a secondary school in North America
Saint Francois Xavier high school
Our next intervention focused on distinguishing healthy from unhealthy relationships with students from Saint Francois Xavier high school
Jean Joseph Rabearivelo high school
Jean Joseph Rabearivelo – one of the first high schools in Antananarivo which actually celebrated their 80th anniversary last year during our next intervention.
Youth Civic Center
This intervention included a conversation on how we can use our voice and story to stand out. We talked about Omena’s story and answered to the question: “How do you know if you are being emotionally abused?”
Go Women Project
We were able to partner with the Go Women Project organization – a non-profit organization that’s dedicated to empowering Malagasy women in different areas of life. The discussion around emotional abuse and how it affects women in the professional world was explored during a women only conference.
Wherever you are, you can become an advocate and help us break the cycle of emotional abuse!
BE AN OMENA AMBASSADOR
Our Story
Francesca Raoelison
Founder of Omena
“Back in my country, Madagascar, the only form of abuse that I could recognize was physical abuse. Once in America, 5 years ago, I learned through my training as a Peer Educator that violence often begins with emotional abuse, gradually increasing to violent physical abuse. Through my research, I discovered I was not the only one with a limited definition of abuse. I started being passionate about the subject. I was mind blown by all the things I found out that I decided to share about it.
That’s how “Omena” came about. ”
Awards and Endorsements
Partnerships
Contact Us
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