Asian_Geographic_Issue_4_2017

(John Hannent) #1
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
Free download pdf