Social Hackers Academy, an NGO that pushes against discrimination through coding

Social Hackers Academy, a non-profit organization based in Athens, offers front-end courses to people within vulnerable groups like refugees, migrants, unemployed, or asylum seekers.

According to the United Nations, at the end of 2019 more than 79 million people were forced to leave their homes to protect their lives. Millions of people face uncertainty, anxiety, discrimination and a lack of opportunities. In a world globally communicated, internet and technology can be used to promote inclusion and equality. With that assumption and motivation is how Social Hackers Academy was founded in 2017: a coding school aimed to support refugees, asylum seekers and migrants that were arriving in Greece.

After more than three years of work, Social Hackers Academy is a non-profit organization that nowadays offers web development online courses to people around the world within more diverse vulnerable groups like refugees, migrants, unemployed people and people with disabilities. With a group of volunteers and staff, their goal is to push against discrimination, offer an opportunity to those groups and help them to reach their dream of becoming a web developer.

Kato Elvis is one of the more than 300 students that have been part of Social Hackers Academy. He arrived in Athens from Uganda close to three years ago. This is his story:

Discovering tech

When I was younger, I realized that having a phone was making you able to integrate yourself into society. So, for me, it made sense to try to understand how that connection takes place and how to create them. I wanted to be part of it and that’s how all this path started.

SHA as a social choice

For me, joining SHA is the result of social and professional thinking. The environment that HAS creates the resources available, the diversity of backgrounds and nationalities are what I needed.

Looking to the future

I want to feel integrated into society. I want to find myself in a place that I won ́t be looked over the shoulder. I want to reach a position where I would be able to take care of my needs while giving a helping hand to those that would need it more than I do.

As developers, we find ourselves locked out of the world most of the time, but we actually run the world. Most of our daily life is now operating through technology and technology means code. We do help and contribute to society in much bigger scopes than we can think. So I would like to find a job in which I will help and reach places that I ́m not able to reach otherwise.

Fighting discrimination as a society

Information is exchanged nowadays in seconds and the involvement to push against discrimination is constantly eluding us as humans. We have to be more inclusive and create opportunities for all people, beyond race, gender, culture... For me that ́s what equality means, to create a society in which there would be space for all to participate.

I'm proud to say that SHA is providing equality and equity in learning while making IT accessible to all. There are no preferences, there is room for everybody and that ́s what makes a difference for me. Is nice to be able to say that SHA is doing something to change the situation.

Big changes come through ordinary reactions as people in society, not through big actions. Is a matter of what I create and what I receive within the sector of the society that you ́re living in.

Through the scholarships that they offer to people within vulnerable groups, they aim to inspire and educate students like Kato all over the world to keep chasing their dreams while pushing for a better and more inclusive society.