Friends x Tretorn

”Imagine if I had someone to talk to. Image if I had at least one friend ” 

The thoughts went through Sara Damber's mind in the Swedish town Umeå in the early 90s when she was a target and valve for her classmate’s aggressions and feelings. Everything from mean and offensive words to exclusion and mockery. But everything changed overnight. You might wonder how… A friendly “hello” from the 

 most popular guy in school broke down the bullying spiral and turned Sara's life for the better. One voice and a simple hello made a difference that gradually laid the foundation for the children's rights organisation Friends. 

JOINING AS A CORPORATE PARTNER  

Tretorn is founded in Sweden and therefore we naturally feel that we can make the biggest impact by supporting crucial organisations like Friends that are based in Sweden as well. Thereby we want to pleasantly announce that Tretorn enters as a corporate partner to support Friend’s important work from September 2022 and a year forward. Additionally, this means that we are involved in enabling the children's rights organisation to continue to run its solid work throughout the country. Above all, it means that we are involved in the fight to combat bullying, discrimination and harassment against children and young people. 

Everything begun with a simple hello for Sara’s turnaround and that could be the salvation for many out there.  

We can all make a difference and prevent bullying together!  

FRIENDS FIRST BUILDING BLOCK 

Sara founded the organisation in 1997 with the vision of combating bullying in Swedish schools with a strong belief that one voice can make a difference. Just like it did for her. By then, the focus was on evoking emotions in the adults to make them see what the situation looked like for many children and young people. Today, Friends works interdisciplinary, which means a combination of research and proven experience with the goal that not a single child should be subjected to bullying. 

The basis of the organisation is to help schools and to create an active action plan against bullying where the adults are the most important factor in combating bullying. Everyone saw and heard the bullying Sara was subjected to, but no one acted. This should not be allowed to happen today and therefore Friends focuses on educating the school staff first and then approaching the students. It will always be the responsibility of adults to ensure that no one is bullied, according to founder Sara Dambers. 

Together with Swedish universities and Friends international networks, meeting places are created for children, parents, teachers, researchers, and practitioners where everyone gathers around the question of how bullying should be stopped in and out of school, online and in social media. In addition to this, Friends conducts structured public opinion work to inform and influence authorities, decision-makers, and the general public. Friends create space for influence, strengthen adults' ability to take responsibility and raise children's voices in all situations.