“Social Hacker” NGO is a non-profit organisation, which has created and operates in Athens the first model academy of technological education, “Social Hackers Academy”, for vulnerable social groups (unemployed, immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers), in order to help participants develop their digital skills, and ensure their social inclusion and their integration into the labour market. The goal of the academy is to highlight the importance of lifelong learning, through seminars and training programmes which help develop personal skills and foster teamwork, social entrepreneurship and innovation.

In 2020 the Social Hackers Academy, specialising in technological education, and the Centre for Research on Women’s Issues (CRWI) “Diotima”, with long experience in women’s empowerment, joined forces and implemented, with funding by the John S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation, the programme “Women Going Digital: Empowerment of the technological/digital skills of unemployed women and their connection to the labour market”. The Programme aimed at empowering unemployed women by strengthening their digital skills, upgrading their professional profile, facilitating their access to the labour market, raising awareness on low representation of women in ICT, and taking action to bridge the gender digital divide.

Within this framework, the participants were trained in the building and management of WordPress websites and basic computer skills, attended seminars for the development of soft skills, and networked with the labour market. Upon completion of the Programme, a research study entitled “Gender and Digital Exclusion in Greece” was conducted to shed light on the various aspects of low representation of women in the technology sector, seeking to encourage mitigation policies and practices. The study is available on the website of “Diotima” Centre.

• 30 women from all over Greece participated in the Programme.

“With the support of the Latsis Foundation, we were able to focus on empowering women towards their integration in the field of Technology (first in educational and then in professional terms). For this purpose, we collaborated with ‘Diotima’ Centre to design a comprehensive training programme and to conduct a research study on the position of women in the field of IT. Through the ‘Women Going Digital’ programme, which was implemented mostly online due to the current circumstances, we brought together women from all over Greece with an interest and/or prior experience in the field of technology, to help them develop their skills, interact with professionals, and build their network towards, with a view to enhancing their employability.”

Aggelina Mila

Programme’s Manager/Fundraising & Operations Coordinator, Social Hackers Academy

“Thank you for the great opportunity, the management and support you have offered to all of us. I am currently discussing my recruitment with an online private tutoring entity, and the publishing department of a well-known educational Group. After a long period of unemployment, I think I can smile with satisfaction again.”

Student of the 1st cycle of studies