16 April, 2013 – Amman, Jordan: Today, Generations For Peace celebrates its sixth anniversary since being founded in 2007 by HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein and HRH Princess Sarah Al-Feisal. Empowering change in communities at the grassroots level, Generations For Peace programmes have impacted a wide range of local issues of conflict and violence in communities around the world. Since inception, these programmes have trained more than 8,100 volunteers from 46 countries and territories, and supported and mentored them to implement programmes touching the lives of more than 210,000 children, youth and adults.
Generations For Peace’ unique Curriculum and Pioneer Certification Programme have gone through proof of concept, and the rapid growth has demonstrated the effectiveness of the “cascading model”, which transfers knowledge and skills from one generation of volunteers to the next. In partnership with Georgetown University and University of Oxford, the field research conducted by the Generations For Peace Institute is supporting programme innovation and learning. Programme evaluations are reporting reductions in violence, changes in attitudes toward violence, breaking of stereotypes, greater trust, strengthened social capital, increased feelings of safety, security and hope for the future, and increased volunteerism and responsible citizenship.
Applauding the achievements of Generations For Peace volunteers, HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein, Founder and Chairman said: “we celebrate together on this day the work of each and every volunteer who is inspiring and leading change through their efforts to promote peace and values of tolerance, respect, and inclusion. As we look back on the past six years, and the vision and hopes we had to inspire peace and create a better future for children and youth in communities around the world, let us recognize how far we have come, and mark every achievement on each step of our journey together with the partners and donors who support us.”
The conflict transformation programmes that Generations For Peace volunteers implement are demand-driven and respond to the local context and needs. Using sport, arts, advocacy and dialogue to engage communities, volunteers bring people together, breaking down stereotypes, instilling greater tolerance, trust and understanding, and strngthening capacity to manage and respond to conflict in a non-violent manner. In early 2013, Generations For Peace was selected as one of the “Top 10 NGOs in the World” by The Global Journal, a Swiss publication that focuses on development issues around the world.
President of Generations For Peace, HRH Princess Sarah Al-Feisal reflected on the accomplishments of Generations For Peace: “We are a global family of volunteers sharing a commitment and passion to lead change. The success and impact of our programmes are a direct result of a global team effort and steadfast determination to keep learning and improving, driving greater innovation, quality, impact and sustainability. These have become the hallmarks of what Generations For Peace represents. Our motivation is powered by our field research findings, which are showing real results, impacting real lives in communities facing difficult challenges of conflict and violence.”
As Generations For Peace celebrates its sixth anniversary, the schedule of programmes and field research is busier than ever. In addition, Generations For Peace will be hosting its third Advanced Training from 18-22 April, supported by Samsung, and its ninth International Camp in October, supported by the Royal Norwegian Embassy.
