Alive Peace Call for Participants 2017
Exploring Holistic Approaches Towards a Culture of Peace
A training course for youth workers, peace-builders and change-makers
Alive Peace are looking for up to 30 participants from 9 specific countries to take part in a training course ‘Exploring Holistic Approaches Towards a Culture of Peace’
Dates: 10–17 December 2017
Venue: Switzerland
Participating Countries: Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Poland, Turkey, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cyprus, Ukraine, Germany
Participation Fee: 100 CHF (Food, accommodation and travel costs are covered by the project)
Deadline for Applications: 20th October 2017
Profile of Participants
- Active or interested in the fields of peace and conflict / youth work / social change
- Involvement in a relevant local or international organisation / network
- Availability to take part in the whole duration of the project
- From one of the 8 partner countries or the host country Switzerland
- Good level of English
- Aged 18–35
Aim
The project aims to empower young people (active and experienced in peace-building, activism, change-making and social change) to explore ways of developing a holistic culture of peace in order to integrate into their work and to empower them as agents of change.
Objectives:
- to increase the effectiveness of youth workers, change-makers, peace-builders and activists through holistic peace-building approaches;
- to enhance participants’ understanding of peace education through a holistic and experiential approach
- to explore existing systemic structures and obstacles for peace in order to respond with creative and innovative solutions;
- to establish a sustainable cooperation between participants to implement common activities aiming to build infrastructures of peace within their communities;
- to encourage participants to transfer their peace-building skills to the young people with whom they work, and thus act as multipliers of peaceful values.
About the Training Course
One of the main problems with traditional peace-building is the lack of holistic approach and many global peace-building initiatives are overly focused on the political levels of peace and conflict without considering the personal and interpersonal dimensions, where the patterns of violence also exist.
However peace is not only about responding to international conflicts, it is also about how we relate to ourselves and those around us. By learning and exploring holistic approaches to peace, young people can become more effective peacebuilders within their communities and work.
Therefore, the project aims to encourage participants to explore creative ways of developing a holistic culture of peace. New skills, behaviors and attitudes will be developed amongst participants (such as non-violent communication, conflict transformation, well-being techniques). As a result the impact of their local work will ideally become more effective and they will be empowered in their role as educators, multipliers and mentors with young people around Europe.
About Alive Peace
Alive Peace is an international youth-led project promoting a culture of peace through experiential workshops, trainings and retreats. We are promoting a vision of peace which includes human well-being, fulfilment and joy.
We believe in creating a cultural shift in the field of social change and peace-building through a more holistic, inclusive and alive approach. Peace is not only relevant in contexts of conflict but instead it depends upon a cultural shift which includes all of us.
Alive Peace is an organisation which consists of international trainers and facilitators with backgrounds in the fields of peace-building, international development and youth work. We work with social projects, NGOs and youth organisations around Europe.
Methodology
The training is composed of an 8 day programme (which includes arrival day on 10th and departure day on 17th December) and activities are based on a non-formal education methodology, rooted in a participant-centred, experiential learning approach. Throughout all the activities, participants will be encouraged to actively participate bringing their own experiences, sharing best practices and identify the main challenges in their work with youth people, in order to find sustainable strategies to strengthen their role as agents of change. Participants will also be given the space to offer sessions if they wish to do so.
Participants will also be able to design concrete action plans in order to promote the culture of peace within their own groups, starting from a local level to an international level. After the training, a follow up system will be implemented, in order to assist participants in the development of their action plans.
Within the course we would like to explore the following 3 pillars of Alive Peace:
- The Personal Pillar
Participants will learn skills and knowledge based around well-being self-development in order to integrate into their lives and work. This allows participants to learn how to generate more well-being for themselves, learning how to flourish and release their full potential. Skills will include increased emotional intelligence and tools explore their own inner conflicts.
2. The Interpersonal Pillar
Participants from different cultures, nationalities and backgrounds will be exploring activities which increase interpersonal connection and understanding. Communications skills through methodologies such as Non-Violent Communication will be explored as well as methodologies which aim to improve participants’ abilities to deal with interpersonal conflicts and to sustain meaningful relationships.
3. The Planetary Pillar
The training will involve exploring ecological principles, sustainability and a focus on the natural world. Participants will explore the connection of how nature and environmental sustainability is relevant to peace-building. This includes exploring such concepts as systems thinking as well as the profound human connection to nature.
Application
The application form should be completed no later than 20th of October 2017. The course is organized with the support of the national agency Movetia. Travel costs (up to 400 CHF per participant) accommodation and food will be covered by the project. There is a 100 CHF participation fee (which will be deducted from the reimbursements so that you do not have to pay upfront), with a limited number of bursaries available.
We are looking forward to receive your applications! Please do not hesitate to contact us, if you have any further questions!
With love!
Alive Peace Team
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