Skate park opening in Syria

On Monday it was time: The skate park in Qudsaya near Damascus, which was built by skate-aid in cooperation with the SOS Children's Villages, was officially opened.
skate-aid and SOS Children's Villages worldwide are using the educational power of skateboarding in worldwide skate park projects to support kids in their personality development and to empower them. After successful joint projects in Kigali (Rwanda) and Bethlehem (Palestine), another lighthouse project was opened with this first skate park in Syria.
"Especially in civil war-stricken Syria, skateboarding can help young people to regain their courage, self-esteem and perspective and to overcome the traumatic experiences of violence and escape," explains Dittmann the intention behind the project. Both organizations planned it for two years and finally realized it in spring of 2019. "Our approaches to provide support and security to traumatized kids and teenagers complement each other very well," says Dr. Wilfried Vyslozil, CEO of SOS Children's Villages worldwide. "The joint project will hopefully find many imitators in Syria."
The new skate park in Qudsaya, on the outskirts of Damascus, is an open place of integration and encounter that will hopefully bring together all population groups and does some peace work in this country.