Asian Geographic2017

build empathy and respect in order to

shift deeply ingrained attitudes and

perceptions in countries in conflict.

The key to the organisation’s success

is, in part, owing to their approach:

They remove young adults from social

constructions of their reality, before

concrete ideologies take root.

Young people from opposing

nations often experience political

conflict for the first time through

class instruction that is riddled with

historical inaccuracies. Ayyaz Ahmed

is a Pakistani youth who attended

the Seeds of Peace programme as a

teenager. His early experiences with

Seeds of Peace allowed him to meet

people from India for the first time.

“The Seeds of Peace experience wasn’t an

overnight shift in perspective, but more along

the lines of expanding one’s vision and showing

possibilities that perhaps weren’t clear earlier”

Ayyaz Ahmed, Seeds of Peace alumnus

Much like the Israeli-Palestinian

conflict, the Indo-Pakistani conflicts

have created hostile relations between

both countries, and citizens of each

country are almost expected to harbour

contempt for one another.

Now working in the publishing

industry, Ahmed credits Seeds of

Peace for giving him the confidence

to work amicably amongst other

cultures as an adult. “The Seeds of

Peace experience wasn’t an overnight

shift in perspective, but more along

the lines of expanding one’s vision

and showing possibilities that perhaps

weren’t clear earlier,” Ahmed says.

“Suddenly, the world was far bigger

than I had ever realised.”

The Seeds of Peace conflict resolution

programme started at a summer camp in

Maine in the US. Every year, hundreds of

teenagers from regions of conflict meet

Seeds of Peace operates more than

100 local leadership initiatives, such

as facilitator training and negotiation

seminars. Over 40 peace-building

initiatives are staffed by alumni

The Seeds of Peace network consists of

6,389 alumni throughout South Asia, the

Middle East, North America and Europe.

Alumni currently work in 27 countries

http://www.seedsofpeace.org

Seeds of Peace launched two new

fellowships in 2015 that are designed

to connect alumni with the resources,

technical support, and training needed

for them to continue to make an impact

More than 500 Seeds have graduated in South

Asia alone, and thousands have benefitted

from the local outreach work being done

About SEEdS of PEACE

maine