The vision of Seeds of Peace issimple: Equip young people with
the technical skills and relationship-
building capacities they need to
disengage from politically-charged
stereotypes that promote violence in
conflict zones. Most Seeds of Peace
participants begin the process by
attending a summer camp in Maine,
in the northeastern US.
After a competitive process, onlyfour to six percent of applicants are
selected. All selected individuals must
be citizens of a country in conflict.
Upon graduating from the camp,
attendees acquire alumni “Seed”
status and become well-positioned,
adult changemakers in their
communities and cultural spaces.
“The programme at the Seeds
of Peace camp is centred around
daily dialogue encounters that are
organised by conflict region,” explains
Eric Kapenga, a camp counsellor at
Seeds of Peace. “For 110 minutes
each day, they engage each otherdirectly, tackling the most painful and
divisive issues defining their conflict,
sharing their personal experiences,
reflecting on competing narratives, and
challenging each other’s prejudices.”
By providing a space for people to
meet in a neutral environment, they
have an opportunity to generate ideas
that can catalyse change. No subject is
off-limits. They discuss topics ranging
from war and military occupation to
suicide bombings, gender, refugees,
the Holocaust and immigration.