Posted: April 19 2005,11:38 |
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PROGRESS: Has your organization seen
progress toward a culture of peace and nonviolence in your domain of
action and in your constituency during the first half of the Decade? |
The
International Education for Peace Institute (EFP-International) is a
non-governmental research, training, and service organization
specializing in programs aimed at creating a culture of peace and a
culture of healing in and between school communities around the world.
EFP-International was established in 2000 and had its first main
program in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). To bring its programs to BiH,
EFP-International has established the Education for Peace Institute of
the Balkans (EFP-Balkans) with its main office in Sarajevo, BiH.
EFP-International has offices in Neuchatel, Switzerland and Vancouver,
Canada. All programs of EFP-International are administered in
collaboration with and involve active participation of its sister
agencies, three of which have been thus far established: EFP-America,
EFP-Balkans, and EFP-Canada.
The Education for Peace Institute
of the Bakans (EFP-Balkan) is a non-governmental research, training,
and service organization specifically formed to bring programs aimed at
creating a culture of peace and a culture of healing in the school
communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the former Yugoslavia
countries. EFP-Balkans is a regional branch of the International
Education for Institute (EFP-International) with its offices in
Neuschatel Switzerland and Vancouver, Canada. All programs of
EFP-Balkans are administered in collaboration and active participation
of the Faculty of EFP-International, which has designed a comprehensive
curriculum of peace education and is continually expanding on the basis
of new insights and lessons learned in the course of implementation of
its programs in various cultural and social settings.
The
Faculty of EFP-International has designed a comprehensive, universal
curriculum of peace education which is continually expanding on the
basis of new insights and lessons learned in the course of
implementation of EFP-International’s programs in various cultural and
social settings. The universal EFP curriculum forms the foundation for
programs implemented by all EFP agencies. Educators from each
specific community work in consultation with EFP faculty to adapt the
curriculum to address the specific needs within their unique cultural
and historical contexts. Thus far, the EFP program has been primarily
administered to schools in BiH, however, plans for its introduction to
schools in several African countries, the United States, Canada, and
elsewhere are now in progress.
Since the introduction of the EFP
pilot project in 2000 to six schools in BiH, EFP-Balkans has expanded
its domain activities and is currently implementing the EFP program
into some 108 BiH schools located in over 60 communities across the
country. These schools have a total of 80,000 students, 5000 teachers
and some 150,000 parents. The EFP program has received unqualified and
universal support from all 13 Ministries of Education, and the senior
officials of BiH Government both at the entity and state levels. As
well, EFP-International has the full and active support of OSCE, which
has the primary responsibility, on behalf of the international
community, for education reform in BiH. Considering the monumental task
of creating a culture of healing and culture of peace among former
warring communities, the EFP program has seen considerable progress
towards realization of its twin objectives—to establish a culture of
peace and a culture of healing in and between the participating school
communities in BiH.
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OBSTACLES: What are the most important obstacles that have prevented progress?
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Two
major obstacles have been identified. The first is in establishing a
sustained financial basis for EFP-International’s expanding programs
and the increasing demands for introduction of EFP programs in new
communities. The funds are required to assist with projects, train and
hire personnel, for on-going research, and for curriculum development.
The second obstacle is that at the conceptual level, EFP-International
considers the tripartite challenges of poverty, disease and conflict as
well as environmental degradation as challenges of governments which
have their genesis in the absence of an established culture of peace in
those communities. EFP-International puts a high premium on prevention
of outbreaks of violence in communities that are vulnerable or at risk
with a complementary emphasis on the introduction of comprehensive and
sustainable programs for rehabilitation of communities that have
experienced conflict and violence. With regard to dealing with all of
the issues, we observe a fragmented approach that side-steps the
primacy of peace education with respect to all other challenges
mentioned.
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ACTIONS: What actions have been
undertaken by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence during the first half of the Decade?
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Since
the signing of the Dayton Peace Accord in 1995, ending four years of
war, a process of social, economic and political recovery has been
taking place in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This process, mainly led by the
international community, has channelled financial and technical
assistance into the areas of physical and, to a far lesser extent,
psychosocial and educational reconstruction of the country and its
people.
The groups hit particularly hard by the war and
its aftermath in Bosnia and Herzegovina are children and youth of all
ethnic backgrounds. Having experienced the atrocities, violence and
pain, together with extremely difficult living conditions, children and
youth along with their parents, have been severely traumatized. A
critically important step in the process of reconstruction yet remains:
to appropriately address the psycho-social needs of these young people,
to assist them to gain confidence in their future, and to help them
envision their own contribution to the development of a united and
prosperous BiH.
Education for Peace aims to assist the
population of the three communities of Bosnia and Herzegovina's society
(Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats) in the building of peace, democracy, and
intercultural and inter-ethnic understanding and respect.
The
initial two-year pilot project of Education for Peace was launched in
June 2000 in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), with the participation of
more than 400 teachers and school staff, 6,000 students and their
parents, education ministries, municipal leaders, international
authorities and the media. The pilot program yielded such significant
results that it gained the recognition and endorsement of the BiH
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the BiH Mission to the United Nations and
the Office of the High Representative in BiH. The government
subsequently invited EFP-International to create a strategy of program
expansion to all schools in the country.
To initiate the
expansion of EFP, in March 2003 two full-day Consultative Forums on
Education for Peace were held in Sarajevo, with the participation of
all thirteen Ministries of Education at the Entity, Cantonal and
District levels and all Directors of the eight Pedagogical Institutes
of BiH. The consultations resulted in unanimous support from all
educational authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the BiH Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and the Office for Security and Cooperation in Europe
in BiH (OSCE Mission) for the country-wide implementation of Education
for Peace. It also laid the foundations for the gradual inclusion of
Education for Peace in the formal curriculum of BiH schools and the
implementation of EFP as a framework for the modification of the
country’s educational policies.
EFP Framework
The aim
and challenge of the Education for Peace program is to educate every
new generation of students to become peacemakers and to devote their
talents, capacities and energies towards the creation of a civilization
of peace based on the twin pillars of a culture of peace and a culture
of healing. This requires the engagement of the students in a
systematic and sustained program of full emersion in the study of the
principles of peace by integrating these principles into the daily
lessons of every subject. EFP Programs are designed to respond to the
need for healing in a culture damaged by violence, conflict, and
oppression, while also creating avenues for building peace through
programs aimed at understanding the root causes of violence, conflict
and oppression and providing skills for future prevention. EFP has
established three inter-related programs to accomplish these
objectives: EFP-INTENSIVE, EFP-WORLD and the Youth Peacebuilder Network
(YPN) for implementation in schools and the EFP-LEADERSHIP with its
objectives to inform the leaders of each community with the principles
of EFP and peace-centered leadership.
The EFP curriculum is
designed to be both universal and specific. The universality of the
curriculum refers to the universal principles of peace - the common
heritage of humanity, the diverse expression of this common heritage
and the absolute necessity to create a unified and peaceful world
within this framework of oneness and diversity without resort to
conflict and violence. While the principles of peace and unity are
universal, it is essential that the program be tailored to the specific
needs of every community in which EFP operates. For each distinct
society, the EFP program is therefore carefully designed with the full
participation of the educators and experts from that community so that
it is context-appropriate.
It is through this all-inclusive
approach that participating communities are given ownership of the EFP
program. This process creates an environment conducive to sustainable
socio-cultural development between participating schools through the
active involvement of men, women, boys and girls, as equal partners in
the process of repairing the fabric of war-torn societies. It also
creates the necessary mechanisms for the sustainability of the program
by training a large number of educators from participating schools as
EFP Specialists and through the integration of EFP principles in the
curriculum of these schools.
Over the past few years of program
implementation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a range of EFP educational
materials have been developed. The materials have been modified for
each study subject and adapted to represent the social realities and
historical context of BiH. A number of key research projects are also
in the process of implemented.
Education for Peace Programs
EFP–INTENSIVE
Is based on the classical EFP pilot project, a two year community-based
Education for Peace program in which all teachers, staff and students
of a given school are trained in EFP. A tailor-made curriculum is
developed based on EFP-International’s universal model, for use in
every subject (history, science, arts, social studies, etc). To ensure
that the curriculum is specified to the needs of the participating
schools and communities, educators and teachers from each region assist
in its development. This program is particularly suited to assist
ethnically segregated schools, those with displaced and refugee
populations, schools situated in zones of intense conflict or in
economically deprived regions, to overcome the barriers of ethnic
hatred and the traumas of war. The two-year program focuses on the
development of 1) a culture of peace, and 2) a culture of healing in
the participating school communities. Through a carefully monitored and
sustained implementation process, EFP-INTENSIVE facilitates the forging
of bonds of trust, open communication and sensitivity, which take time
to develop and which are essential for genuine and lasting
socio-psychological recovery.
EFP–WORLD is a comprehensive
IT-based version of the Education for Peace Program. Initially designed
for implementation in secondary school, it will also be adapted for use
in primary schools.
EFP-WORLD aims to empower local communities
by building a brighter future through: increased local knowledge on how
to prevent conflicts; strengthening inter-ethnic understanding and
cooperation; and applying the principles of gender equality, human
rights and justice within sustainable community building processes.
Through on-line and CD-ROM delivery, EFP-WORLD can be offered free of
charge to any school, in any country in the world at a relatively low
cost for initial production and materials. The program not only bridges
the digital divide by introducing students and teachers to the world of
information and communication technologies, but also creates an
international forum for young people of all backgrounds, modes of
thought and interest, to have dialogue within the parameters of the
principles of peace.
Youth PeaceBuilders Network: The Youth
Peacebuilder Network (YPN) is an emerging network of youth mobilized as
leaders in the effort to create a global culture of peace.
Trained in cutting edge concepts of peacemaking, conflict
transformation, and violence prevention, YPN participants lead their
peers in exploring the fundamental ideas, worldviews, and actions which
characterize a culture of peace. YPN has had its origins at a few
schools in North America. The current plan is to systematically
create YPN groups in various parts of the world and strengthen their
connections through linking the National YPN groups at a world-wide
level through a Global Youth Peacebuilders Network.
EFP–PROFESSIONAL
DIPLOMA: The introduction of EFP-WORLD and EFP-INTENSIVE to schools
across Bosnia and Herzegovina will be facilitated by Bosnian educators
trained as EFP Specialists. Through a professional training program, a
select number of teachers in each school are trained in all aspects of
the EFP curriculum and implementation methodologies. The Specialists
then facilitate and monitor the process of EFP program implementation
in participating schools and assist in developing integrated curricula
for the Ministries of Education to adopt as models in the long run.
They are also able to provide on-going expert assistance to their
colleagues for the sustained implementation of Education for Peace.
EFP–LEADERSHIP
is a parallel program designed to equip municipal leaders in the
communities where schools are participating in Education for Peace,
with a review of the principles and practices of a culture of peace.
EFP–LEADERSHIP builds the capacities of municipal leaders to respond
effectively to the challenges of governing multi-ethnic communities so
that they can foster, in practical terms, increased interethnic harmony
and cooperation, regard for the human rights of all citizens, the
equality of women and men and the practice of conflict-free methods of
conflict resolution. The program also gives particular attention to the
emergence of a new generation of women as leaders and decision makers,
thus alleviating the current imbalance that exists in the leadership of
many societies. EFP–LEADERSHIP complements and reinforces the efforts
of school communities that are engaged in EFP-INTENSIVE, EFP-WORLD, and
YPN.
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ADVICE: What advice would you like to
give to the Secretary-General and the General Assembly to promote a
culture of peace and nonviolence during the second half of the Decade? |
Along
with needed support and promotion of the Millennium Goals, peaceful
development should also be prioritized, promoted, and financially
supported. It is only upon the foundations of a peaceful society that
the Millennium Goals are attainable.
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PARTNERSHIPS: What partnerships and
networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the
global movement for a culture of peace? |
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC); Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA); Japanese Embassy in Sarajevo; Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Rotary International Clubs in Switzerland and other European countries Government of Luxembourg United States Institute for Peace (Research grant) Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH); Federal and Regional Ministries of Education of Bosnia and Herzegovina; Pedagogical Institutes of Federation BiH and Republika Srpska; Local schools in Federation of BiH and Republika Srpska; Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina; Small businesses in BiH. Columbia University, NY (Research)
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PLANS: What new engagements are
planned by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence in the second half of the Decade (2005-2010)? |
The
ultimate long-term objective of EFP is to offer peace education to any
and all schools in the world, particularly those in regions where the
ravages of war, terrorism, prejudice, rapid socio-economic and cultural
change and the demands of modern life have created conditions of
insecurity and conflict in families, schools and communities. The core
curriculum will be supplemented with additional EFP lesson samples
developed by participating schools which reflect regional and cultural
specificities and will be delivered in the appropriate mother tongues.
Upon
recommendations from various national and international organizations
and peace education specialists, the EFP program is currently being
considered for introduction to schools in the Middle East, the
Subcontinent, and South and Central America. EFP-International has
received a number of requests to bring their programs to a few African
countries. EFP-International is now in consultation with the officials
in those countries to consider expansion and application. Another
version of the EFP program, “Violence-Free Schools” (VFS) has been
developed and is being introduced to schools in the United States and
Canada, where plans for a pilot project are now being considered.
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Postal address of organization
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EFP-International 101-1001 W. Broadway, Suite 900 Vancouver, B.C., V6H 4E4 Canada
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E-mail address of organization
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info@efpinternational.org
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Website address of organization
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www.efpinternational.org
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Highest priority action domain of a culture of peace
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EFP-International
has the twin priorities of Creating a Culture of Healing to enable the
development of a Culture of Peace at the centre of our programs
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Second priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Education Reform
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Highest priority country of action (or international)
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International
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Second priority country of action (or international)
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African countries, North America
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