The semester is over and summer begins!

I am thrilled to report that I submitted my final paper for my culture, peace, and conflict class last night!  That was *hopefully* the last class I’ll take at American University.  I wrote about cultural violence in post-conflict Sri Lanka, and I highlighted the Sarvodaya movement, which is working toward sustainable development and peace in the country.  (On a side note, if anyone’s dying to know more about this topic, I can definitely hook you up.)  Anyway, the course was one of the best I’ve taken at AU – the professor did a great job of connecting theory with practice.  It’s awesome to leave a class with a clear understanding of how the materials covered in class will help me along my professional path. 

Now to switch gears into my adventure-filled summer.  My very thoughtful employer is hosting a happy hour for me tonight after work.  With class being over and this party tonight, the horizon feels much closer.  Only two more weeks left in DC!

Earlier this week, I met with a board member of the organization I’ll be joining for the summer.  Tito gave me a background of IDDI and Bonao in addition to some great insights and guidance.  I ended up chatting with him about my final paper and Sarvodaya, whose programs remind me a bit of IDDI’s.  He suggested that while writing my paper, I look more closely at Sarvodaya’s programs to see if I could adapt some of their ideas into something to do this summer in the Dominican Republic.  I never liked the phrase “to kill two birds with one stone,” so maybe “to release two birds with one hand” could describe it better?  Yeah?  In any case, a wise man Tito turned out to be. 

This simple yet clever idea led me to look into Sarvodaya’s Shanthi Sena Peace Brigade.  The program focuses on youth leadership development, and its goals include creating a peaceful society.  Part of the program includes 4-day amity camps for youth over the age of 15 who come from diverse backgrounds.  They open up space for cross-cultural dialogue and peacebuilding, as participants begin to build relationships across societal divides.  Some of the areas of training include:

• Leadership training 
• Conflict transformation training
• Emergency disaster management training & service
• First aid & primary health care
• Environmental conservation
• Cultural & sports programs
• Community development activities
• Promotion of literary pursuits

A Shanthi Sena program in action.

Cross-cultural relationship building pictured right here!

More information can be found at http://www.shanthisena.org/.  Very cool stuff.

I'm feeling really enthusiastic about adapting this idea into a proposal to present to IDDI after the weekend.  During the summer, youngsters will be out of school, and who doesn’t want to spend a few days at an awesome peace camp?  I’ll interpret any lack of response as an awed silence. 

On a side note, another part-time international peace and conflict resolution student who is a dear friend of mine is moving to Ecuador this summer for an internship.  You should check out his far more entertaining blog here: http://mainerstrangeland.blogspot.com/.