มูลนิธิละครชุมชน - One District One Theatre Group (ODOT)
Gabfai, founded in 1996 in Chiang Mai, uses community theatre to drive social change. Their work focuses on issues such as statelessness, human trafficking, and domestic violence. Gab Fai’s mission centers on three pillars: empowering youth through drama to express themselves and raise awareness of social issues; facilitating community campaigns to address these issues collectively; and advocating for policy changes at both community and national levels. Gabfai registered as a foundation under the name “Community Theatre Foundation” in 2025. With the “One District One Theatre Group” project, the foundation aims to popularize the use of drama in schools for youth development and build capacity among teachers so that they would be able to use drama to support education in the long run.
Despite its powerful potential, drama remains an underutilized tool for developing children and youth, especially in both rural areas and big cities where opportunities are limited. Drama is more than just entertainment — it creates shared experiences that foster self-expression, empathy, creativity, teamwork, leadership, and awareness of social issues. When integrated into youth development, drama can bridge the gap between young people and their communities, supporting their growth into active, engaged citizens. The foundation thus sees the need to promote and expand the use of drama as a transformative learning and empowerment tool.
To promote the use of drama in schools, the “One District One Theatre Group” (ODOT) project will begin with a pilot performance on forest fires and smog, reaching 100–500 students across five schools in Muang and Mae Rim districts, Chiang Mai. This aims to spark interest and raise awareness among students and teachers. Following the pilot, three schools expressing interest in forming drama clubs will be selected to receive intensive training for both teachers and students, targeting 30 teachers and at least three student groups per school. By the end of the program, each drama club is expected to stage at least three performances and be equipped to use drama as an ongoing educational tool.
: 5
: 300,000.00
To popularize drama as a tool for self development and learning in relation to social problems among schools
Goal 4: Quality Education
4.7 By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture's contribution to sustainable development
Students (who attend drama performance) |
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100-500 elementary to high school students from 5 schools in pilot project area (Muang district and Mae Rim district). The students would watch the drama performance which campaign on forest fire and smog issues prepared by the foundation.
Using drama to communicate social issues is still relatively new to the students |
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Watch drama performance which campaign on forest fire and smog issues and participate in activities and discussion before and after the performance |
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Teachers |
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Teachers who are interested in starting drama club in their schools and being the advisor teacher and club manager
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Receive basic training to be teacher advisor and drama club manager |
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Increase in capability in training students and organizing drama performance
Teachers receive drama training Acquisition of technical knowledge in organizing drama performance Increase in knowledge on incorporating social issues into the development of drama performance |
Students (who join basic drama training) |
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3 groups of students per school. Students recruited based on their interest in drama. They are expected to produce 3 drama performances by the end of the training.
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Receive basic drama training |
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Deliver drama performanceTeachers receive drama training Acquisition of technical knowledge in organizing drama performance Increase in knowledge on incorporating social issues into the development of drama performance Students receive basic drama training Increase in drama knowledge Increase in awareness and understanding of social issues* (* social issues selected for developing drama performance) |
New team members of the foundation |
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A new team of 5–10 actors will be developed through the drama performance on forest fire and smog. In addition to training in performing arts, they will gain knowledge on key social issues such as human rights, gender roles, children's rights, positive discipline, human trafficking, air pollution, and natural disasters. The training will also include organizational skills, covering areas such as project coordination, financial management, public relations, and social communication.
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Training on performing art, social issues and management skills |
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| No. of persons selected for probation |