1. Massar
Life is a journey…

2. The context in 2004
• Syria: one-party state; 18+18m population; commodity
producer; GDP c$42bn; oil/water short; sanctions; Iraq
• Change: role of government; private sector; global
relationships. Old Guard factor
• Tiny/fragmented/no civil society/ third sector
• 40% of Syria’s population <15 years old; 60% <25
• 5% of young people with personal access to a PC, <2% of
all web content available in Arabic
• Formal education system based on rote teaching; values
knowledge over competences; stigmatises failure
• High youth unemployment; lack of basic business skills

3. Early analysis
• Systemic, institutionalised bystander syndrome
• Dominance of inhibitory “rules”; orthodoxy; dependence
on instruction, permission
• Absence of non-formal learning opportunities
• Premium on traditional professions as career, esp.
medical; talent drain
• Knowledge economy opportunity – value chain
• Empty promises, white elephants, Damascus-centred
• Cultural integrity, cultural disparity
• Concept shift: “children’s museum” “citizenship”
• [Responsibility, Participation, Contribution, Individual]

4. Massar
• Project began February 2005
• Non-governmental, not-for-profit
• Mixed funding model
• Provides non-formal active learning opportunities
through multiple channels
• A national programme, open to all (1.5% special needs)
• Works in partnership with government and other NGOs
• Fosters competences (life skills), “the habits of
citizenship”, new attitudes, new perspectives

5. The vision
Through science-based, hands-on
experiences we will foster in the young
people of Syria a deeper understanding and
appreciation of their world, and empower
them as individuals to contribute actively
and positively in building their future.

6. Five steps towards responsibility
Drawing on work of John Darley, Bibb Latané and Erwin Staub
• I am self awareness, critical thinking,
confidence, sense of worth, curiosity
• I understand knowledge of the world, connection to
people, issues, choices
• I can self direction, capability, creativity,
licence to fail, collaboration
• I should values, empathy, insight, care,
inclusion
• I do contribution, engagement, activity,
result, catalyst

7. by directly reaching
8 million
5-21 year-olds

8. Massar channels
• Touring programme - >190,000 attendance to date
• Regional centres - Lattakia 2007 (+Homs, Aleppo)
• Web & ICT - portal, programs, computer labs (+OLPC)
• National discovery centre - Damascus 2012/13
• Events plus national/local media
• “Safe space” for expression, experiment, exploration
• Work phases: PARTNER, DEVELOP, DELIVER, EMBED

9. Touring programme

10. Regional centres

11. Web & ICT

12. Discovery centre Damascus

13. Events

14. Massar characteristics
• Content – exploration, issues-based, towards action
• Programmes – validate, involve, collaborate, pro-social,
inclusive
• Platforms – “space”, permission, structure, user-
ownership, open-source
• Partnerships – with, not for
• Communication – heroes, exemplars, catalysts
• Non-formal learning – fun, hands-on, multiple learning
styles, social, challenging
• Values – internal as well as external
• Long-term – generational change

15. Citizenship in action
• Recycling project
• Charity fun run
• Blood donor database
• Teaching IT skills to old, blind, deaf
• Young journalists special needs project

16. Massar’s own journey
• It’s happening
• Impact: c350,000 reached directly; c50,000 on-line;
c400,000 indirectly (media) – drop in the ocean!
• Influence on emerging schools curriculum, comms and
ICT, social development (Massar as common thread)
• International interest eg HBS, OSI, OLPC
• Two regions in development; discovery centre under
construction; growth rate dependent on building
sustainable resource/income models
• Brand is trusted by stakeholders
• Making the case for change, alternatives, possibility

17. Lessons
• Belief (in young people, purpose, future), respect
• Up-front thinking gets to the deep What For?
• Deliver!
• Cultural sensitivity; response, not imposition
• Catalysts act as multipliers
• The organisation must represent/“live” the values
• Be honest about long haul, get quick touchable wins
• Create partnerships, ownership
• Communicate obsessively, but don’t over-promise

18. Responses
“It opens up the eyes of children to the larger world and helps
them explore and become self-dependent” – parent
“We felt free to put our thoughts into words and I felt that my
opinion was being heard and respected” – teenager
“I wish my parents could have been here to see that I have
opinions” - 12-year-old
“Children remember information they gather themselves much
more than that passed to them through conventional teaching”
– teacher
“Now that we have Massar I no longer feel we are less
privileged than children in the west” - 14-year-old

19. “We may not have changed anything
but
we changed ourselves.”
Massar volunteer, age 16, 2009

20. “A small revolution.”
HE Mrs Asma Al-Assad