On April 23, 2025, Plovdiv hosted a national training dedicated to the theme “Dismantling Stereotypes: How to Build Effective Campaigns Against Disinformation?” The event was part of the initiatives under the GenderED Coalition Project and brought together 20 participants from diverse personal and professional backgrounds. It was organized by the Bureau for Integration and Social Innovation and the Sofia Development Association, with the National Alliance for Volunteer Action serving as host.

The seminar opened with welcoming remarks from representatives of the two partner organizations – Denitsa Lozanova and Mina Antonova – who presented the goals of the project and invited participants to engage with the program. The seminar was facilitated by Hermina Emiryán.

The first session featured an interactive exercise in which participants assumed different social roles to explore how stereotypes can influence the perception of individuals in society.

After a short coffee break, the program continued with a presentation by Marina Kissiova de Heus from the “Ekaterina Karavelova” Foundation, focused on building networks and conducting public campaigns. Topics included practical examples and opportunities for inter-organizational cooperation.

In the next exercise, participants explored how communication messages are formed and perceived by society. The final session was led by Asya Velichkova – a digital marketing expert – who presented approaches for creating online campaigns with a focus on reaching the right target groups.

The seminar is part of the GenderED Coalition Project, which is co-funded by the European Union.