11 June, 2013 – Kathmandu, Nepal: Generations For Peace, the Jordan-based global peace-building organisation, has given its volunteer youth leaders in Nepal and India a major boost with a three day regional refresher workshop. The workshop, which began in Kathmandu on 6 June 2013, aimed to empower volunteer youth leaders with new tools for leading and cascading social change in their communities.
The 15 young Generations For Peace volunteers who took part in the workshop come from a wide range of backgrounds, but all are passionate about addressing local issues of conflict and violence, making change in their home communities in Nepal and India. These include ethnic and religious divides, gender-based violence and inequality, protracted cycles of poverty leading children and youth into crime and violence, and – especially in Nepal – post-conflict rehabilitation and reconciliation. The joint workshop was a valuable opportunity to share and exchange experiences across different cultures and contexts facing many similar community issues.
Helga Rana Rayamajhi, a Generations For Peace Delegate from Nepal, commented: “I am very passionate about making change in my community and Generations For Peace is giving me the opportunity to make a difference. This refresher workshop helped us to renew the skills we need to continue to make that difference. We are thrilled to have hosted the Generations For Peace refresher workshop here in Kathmandu and enjoyed sharing this experience with Delegates and Pioneers from both Nepal and India.”
The excitement was shared by the young volunteers from India. Commenting on his participation in the workshop, Ashok Rathod, leading the Generations For Peace volunteers from India, said: “I am so excited about being here in Nepal with our team of Delegates and Pioneers from India. This refresher workshop marks a very significant step for us, because we have been able to share and exchange what we have learned and experienced with our fellow participants in a neighbouring country, making it real and relevant to our context.”
Based on Generations For Peace’ unique conflict transformation curriculum and cascading model, the dynamic sessions over three days provided participants with advanced skills and knowledge in conflict analysis, programme design and planning, and monitoring and evaluation. These skills will allow them to better serve their communities and achieve greater impact with their peace building programmes.
The three-day refresher workshop was led by pioneer facilitator, Safiya Ibn Garba from Nigeria, supported by Programmes Officer, Dinesha Suppiah, from Sri Lanka. Both are experienced Generations For Peace volunteers, who joined the headquarters staff in Amman after successfully implementing their own programmes in their own communities. Will Bennett from the Generations For Peace Institute also attended as part of an ongoing investment in field research to support greater innovation, ensure quality, and increase programme impact and sustainability.
Yubraj Sunwar, a participating Generations For Peace Delegate from Nepal, explained: “This workshop provided the opportunity for us to refresh and rebuild our capacity to work as a team. We identified young people in the community who might be vulnerable to violence, and we want to facilitate dialogue between different groups helping them to explore the causes and consequences of conflict, and its impact. We want to talk about tolerance for people of different faiths and we believe Generations for Peace can make a real difference in places where building peace is a dire need and often hard to achieve.”
