By Jason Bowles | Community Development Manager
Thank you so much for your support for Encompass - The Daniel Braden Reconciliation Trust. Welcome to the latest update on our work.
As a reminder, we run international and UK programmes with the following aims:
You probably already know about the success of our programmes, but may not know about the Encompass 'ripple effect'. Programme alumni are encouraged, supported and mentored to use what they have learnt by developing their own projects and workshops, thus making sure that the good work doesn't end once the initial programme has finished.
We thought you may be interested to hear about what some of our alumni have been up to:
Sharing knowledge in Indonesia
Four members of the Encompass Youth Board embarked on a three-week trip volunteering with Encompass Indonesia. They ran a summer programme of workshops and activities for young people from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds in Malang. They fundraised for the trip themselves making and selling salads, cakes and curries, organising events and doing a sponsored 10k run. They also received a grant from the young people’s funding charity, the Jack Petchey Foundation. One of the group, Aisha, said:
“We ran a combination of workshops, lengthy discussions and team building activities; focused on conflict resolution, peer mediation, identity and belonging, diversity, community awareness and confidence. The project challenged the prejudices that the young people held against each other, and through the training the young people received they become peer mediators and facilitators in their communities.”
Israelis and Palestinians combine for peace
A group of Encompass alumni from Israel and a group from the Palestinian Territories have come up with an excellent project to build bridges between communities and religions. Both groups are made up of alumni who first met on the Encompass November 2013 international programme.
The Israeli plan is for British Muslims to visit Israel to meet and share with 30-40 young people recruited through youth projects and centres in Israel.
Activities will involve tackling the theme of prejudice, a talk about Islam and life around it. Project participants will be encouraged to ask challenging questions.
At the same time the Palestinian group are planning to bring together at least 15 young people aged 15-17 from the West Bank to take part in activities that promote solidarity and cross cultural/inter-religious dialogue. The group will be made up of five Christians from Bethlehem and Ramallah areas, five Muslims from Tulkarem and Nablus, and five Samaritans from Gerazim.
UK success
Some of the young people who came on the October 2013 UK programme took part in a programme of inter-cultural activities as part of Interfaith Week in November 2013, including an intercultural evening with people from a variety of diverse communities, making and sharing something traditional from their community. There was also an additional opportunity to express what their community meant to them through drama, then listening to other communities doing the same.
We ran a session for the young people on how to apply for funding for their own inter-community activities through O2 Think Big and we organised a session for our Youth Board on presentation skills. One of our young people has gone on to volunteer on an additional Encompass programme sharing her own experience and skills, one has volunteered at a multi-cultural youth project, and two now peer train.
The benefits of young people getting involved in Encompass and subsequent activities has been enhanced during the year by our successful registration with AQA as a body able to award accreditation for efforts in taking forward the Encompass message. Those efforts and experiences of our alumni are increasingly now being made accessible via blogs written by them. These can be found at http://theencompassdiaries.wordpress.com/ and speak much more eloquently than any staff reports of the transformations that take place as a result of our programmes.
Thank you once again for your support for Encompass. Our successes wouldn't be possible without the support of people like you. But of course our work costs money. If you do feel able to support us again at this time you will be helping to continue the Encompass ripple effect of understanding and tolerance amongst diverse communities and cultures.
Please support us again if you can.
Best wishes,
The Encompass Team
By Jason Bowles | Fundraising and Community Development Manager
By Jason Bowles | Community Development Manager
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