POETA DigiSpark

Cristopher is a 19-year-old man from Maipu, part of the Santiago Metropolitan Region in Chile. He was finishing his high school studies and was looking for an internship opportunity that would give him the necessary credits to graduate when he heard about POETA DigiSpark. It was through his school that he heard about the project since Fundación Lace teaches courses on Digital Skills and Job Readiness here. To strengthen his profile, he decided to enroll in Workforce Readiness, Introduction to Excel, and Building a Professional Profile on LinkedIn courses. 

           Since day one, Cristopher stood out for his enthusiasm and willingness to help, assisting facilitators during class and helping his classmates build their LinkedIn Profiles. As a result of these efforts, and with the support of Lace, Cristopher was able to secure a paid internship at MOVA Energía, a local company focused on providing heating to households through renewable sources. For Cristopher, this opportunity represents not only the possibility of helping his parents, who obtain their income from scavenging waste, but also a step in the right direction to obtain his high-school technical degree. In 2023, Cristopher plans to obtain a full-time job and enroll in an IT or Sustainability Bachelor’s Degree program, becoming the first person in his family to access tertiary education.  

Beyanid (30) lives with her partner and two children in Usme, a district in the south of Bogota. As a teenager, Beyanid’s foster mother introduced her to dressmaking, which later became its profession. Beyanid worked for large companies, juggling between her job and caregiver responsibilities. To become more autonomous, Beyanid opened a workshop in her house, in which she and other women tailored clothing for large companies. Nonetheless, managing her own entrepreneurship came along with some challenges, one of which was the lack of machinery that would allow her and her employees to work more efficiently. 

Since Fundación Laudes Infantis has an important presence in Beyanid’s community, she knew beforehand that the POETA-Laudes Center offered sewing machines and other equipment. Beyanid arrived at the POETA-Laudes Center looking for access to this equipment, but she also encountered a team available to provide her with training, counseling, and support to boost her entrepreneurship. Beyanid was redirected to the Basic Excel and Entrepreneurial Skills for Business courses, while also receiving counseling to increase her confidence and strengthen her leadership abilities. As a result of this comprehensive support, Beyanid has taken her workshop to the next level. Besides increasing her clothing production by connecting with more companies, Beyanid consolidated her business’ brand -“Confeccionando Sueños”- and officially launched its first collection at the POETA-Laudes Center. Additionally, all the other women that are part of Beyanid’s workshop also received training in digital and entrepreneurial skills. Today, Beyanid is able to provide other women with employment opportunities and hopes to continue growing her business initiative with the support of the POETA - Laudes Center team.

William (22) is autistic. He is a Biomedicine student who lives in Curitiba with his grandparents. William is very passionate when it comes to promoting inclusion: before joining POETA DigiSpark, he was involved in extracurricular projects to generate tech-related solutions for people with Parkinson, Alzheimer, Down Syndrome, and Autism. 

Despite enjoying his studies and projects, William’s disability made socializing with his colleagues challenging. 

William heard about POETA DigiSpark through a friend and decided to enroll in the Computer Science course offered at the POETA–UNILEHU Center in Curitiba. During this time, William increased his programming knowledge and was able to develop an app to aid neurodivergent people and those with disabilities to increase their productivity. But for William, the biggest impact that POETA had on his life was helping him strengthen his interpersonal and communication skills: with the support of the psychological team of the center, William was able to gain greater confidence and develop key life skills to navigate the job market. As a result of these efforts, William secured his first job at NTT Data, an IT consulting company. Today, William has overcome his fears of being excluded and uses social media as a platform to talk about his experience as an autistic young man to promote the inclusion of people on the autistic spectrum. In the future, he looks forward to continue working on tech-related solutions for this population.