Education for Sharing is a civic program developed by the Mexican Association for the United Nations of Youth and inspired by a Canadian educational program called “Sport in a Box”. The Association works closely with primary and secondary schools for its implementation, and has several sponsors, including AXA Seguros, HSBC, Ford Civic Committee, among others.

Education for Sharing is the product of the work of Dina Buchbinder and Yizreel Urquijo, two Mexican social entrepreneurs who initially founded “Sports to Share” in 2007. The innovative character of the initiative lies in addressing the world’s great challenges —and the role of citizens— through recreational activities. Pedagogy is based on sport as a tool that stimulates positive values and attitudes regarding children’s reflective capacity. It is based on the principle of involving the entire educational community in the process, including both teachers and families.

Seven values articulate the program and its activities: empathy, fair play, gender equality, respect, tolerance, responsibility and teamwork. Educational programs form the central axis of the intervention, which is complemented by training and advice for teachers in the area of systemic pedagogy. The educational axis is divided into 4 programs: “Sport to share”, which allows children to assimilate their knowledge in an experiential way under the supervision of a tutor. It begins with playful sessions during which an imaginary trip is made to a country where a Millennium Development Goal (MDG) is relevant, followed by physical activities. Afterwards, a reflection circle is organized where participants are invited to criticize, propose and act. On subsequent occasions, a renowned athlete (“ambassador athlete sessions”) is invited to set an example for children to value healthy lifestyle habits. In parallel, mothers and fathers live the same activities as their children. Finally, all graduate as strategic ambassadors for the continuity and dissemination of the lessons learned.

In 2010, “Initiatives to Share” was founded as the second part of the program, which focuses mainly on projects that encourage children to develop viable, relevant and socially impactful initiatives through the “Project Management” tool.

“Science for Sharing”, on the other hand, promotes mathematical learning and its relationship with other subjects, so that it can be applied to everyday life with solutions that resolve issues of environmental care and health.