International Work and Study Camp – 2010 Report
The 2010 International Work and Study Camp was held July 5-12, 2010. Thirty-three young adults between the ages of 19 and 35 participated in the event with the group split rather evenly along gender-lines. The 2010 camp was rich with a diverse group of participants: from Cambodia in the East, to Denmark in the West; and from Norway in the North, to Saudi Arabia in the South. Most were from Middle Eastern Countries (Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon). This was the first time to have participants from Cambodia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. The participants from East Asia and Eastern Europe added a lot of value to the dynamics and diversity in the group. The goal was to bring together participants from all over the world to create a group as diverse as possible. There was interest from an African delegation but it was too late to work on their visas. Hopefully they will be able to participate in 2011. However, there were no participants from the Americas. The facilitators, trainers, and organizers brought a variety of gifts and came from Lebanon, Syria, and Denmark, which helped different participants relate in different ways to them.
“Dialogue: Its Role in Peace-building and Human Rights”
Forum for Development, Culture & Dialogue and
The Arab Group of Muslim-Christian Dialogue
The 2010 International Work and Study Camp was held July 5-12, 2010. Thirty-three young adults between the ages of 19 and 35 participated in the event with the group split rather evenly along gender-lines. The 2010 camp was rich with a diverse group of participants: from Cambodia in the East, to Denmark in the West; and from Norway in the North, to Saudi Arabia in the South. Most were from Middle Eastern Countries (Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon). This was the first time to have participants from Cambodia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. The participants from East Asia and Eastern Europe added a lot of value to the dynamics and diversity in the group. The goal was to bring together participants from all over the world to create a group as diverse as possible. There was interest from an African delegation but it was too late to work on their visas. Hopefully they will be able to participate in 2011. However, there were no participants from the Americas. The facilitators, trainers, and organizers brought a variety of gifts and came from Lebanon, Syria, and Denmark, which helped different participants relate in different ways to them.
The week’s program included a focus on dialogue as well as world religions and human rights. Lectures were accompanied by group activities and discussion sessions. In small groups, participants shared their stories, practiced listening skills by observing others in dialogue, being aware of body language and responses, and by employing sensitivity and empathetic listening. The groups were divided in such a way to ensure diversity in gender, nationality, and religion in each group. All activities were followed by debriefing sessions where participants were given the space and opportunity to reflect and express how they felt and experienced the activity, to learn from one another, to voice their reflections, and to share commonalities and divergences in experience. The exercises on dialogue allowed the participants to experience alternative ways of behaving, interacting, resolving conflicts, and being oneself. They provided the participants with real and practical tools that they can use in diverse aspects of their lives.
Workshops on human rights included an introduction to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations. The activities also sought a common and deep understanding of human rights based on key concepts such as justice, equality, human dignity, non-discrimination, rights, and responsibilities, along with the main social, religious, and historical events leading to the international recognition of human rights. A diverse range of methods were used for learning about human rights including theater, working groups, drawing and art, role play, case studies, etc.
The camp included a component of “work.” Participants actively worked together on enhancing the Evangelical Conference Centre at which they were hosted. They collaborated on gardening and clearing a field. This allowed them to break from the routine of lecture/workshop, to do physical labor, work in teams, and experience the dynamics of dialogue in practice while helping others.
The participants also visited religious and community centers, such as Monastery Yasou Al Fadi, and met with religious leaders. A group from Uganda shared about their inter-faith work in Africa and how they focus on youth. The talk was empowering as it revealed how religious leaders in Uganda pushed for dialogue with the government, the militias and rebel leaders, and the different ethnic groups in conflict.
Tourist visits also added value to bonds that were created as they provided new spaces for sharing, recreation, fun, and genuinely getting to know one another.
Evenings presented a variety of options. An intercultural evening allowed participants to share their cultural, culinary, and musical heritage and identity. The evening witnessed native dances, songs, sketches, slideshows, and much more. This created an attitude of appreciation and respect for diversity and varieties in heritage, thereby breaking the ice among the participants. Social evenings were filled with dialogue and discussions that carried on throughout the night and that led to the formation of long lasting bonds of friendship.
During the last evening, the participants were asked to select an art-form through which they would create a symbol or manifestation that characterized human rights. Participants worked in several groups based on artistic preference: music, theatre, poetry, and drawing.
One group composed music along with accompanying lyrics for a song on human rights. The lyrics follow:
Everyone has the right to life
You and I, we’re in this world
to respect each other
If you have no rights, no, no, no
You have the right, the right to live
Give us the pen so we can write
express our feelings inside
If you share good thoughts
you can change the world
Oh please, give us the pen
There are many religions in this world
you have a choice to make
so choose what you love
No matter what you believe in
We all belong to the same world Yea!
You have the right, the right to live.
In addition to all of the programmed activities of the week, it is important to note that living together in a remote region and sharing three meals a day is also a large part of the impact and transformation that occurred throughout the camp. This is the model of the ultimate goal – living together engaged in the dialogue of life to live more fully and abundantly.
The event created a safe space where assumptions and prejudices were challenged and transcended through self-expression and shared experiences among the participants. The friendly and safe environment allowed the participants to open up to each other, be safely vulnerable, and share their stories and struggles. Participants had the opportunity to experience dialogue in training and in practice, and work to understand everyone’s human rights as an alternative to violent confrontation and animosity, and as a vital tool for peace. The participants that were selected to participate in the 2010 summer camp are indeed agents of change and have the interest and motivation to learn, grow and spread a culture of peace and dialogue.
2011 International Work and Study Camp Plans:
The 2011 event is scheduled for July 3-10, 2011, with the theme “Dialogue: Its Role in Peace-Building and Conflict Resolution.” The week will include many of the same elements as 2010 with the added conflict resolution component. The topics for the week include:
- Dialogue as means for better understanding
- Peace building in a pluralistic society
- Dynamic of conflict resolution
- What is conflict?
- Religions’ role in peace and violence
For more information on the International Work and Study Camp for 2011 and a way to give to support the camp, click here: http://globalministries.org/mee/projects/international-work-and-study-1.html
The brochure on the 2011 International Work and Study Camp gives contact information for applications which are due May 1, 2011.Click here.