Jain Spirit 2003 06 No 15

Author(s): Jain Spirit UK
Publisher: UK Young Jains

Page 35

BE THE CHANGE!
all over the former Soviet Union and the United States, as well programme - all these are ideas that have been proposed and as Israel, Central America, the former Yugoslavia, Azerbaijan, carried out by young people. Peace Child assists them by Ireland and Japan. Each production was different as it helping to develop proposals, raise funds or write reports and reflected the ideas of the particular cast members and dealt evaluations. with different cultural divides: sometimes the greatest divides We are also trying to link the schools of developing and were within the same city.
developed countries. In this way both groups will broaden Peace Child then went on to write books - all written, their perspectives of the world and gain a greater awareness of illustrated and edited by young people in a very similar format their ability to have an impact on the lives of others. This is to the way we developed the musical. Following the 1992 Rio the 'Adopt a Project!' programme. For instance, pupils in Earth Summit, Peace Child was asked to create a young Michigan held an international food evening and raised money people's version of Agenda 21 - the UN blueprint for the 21st for a clean-up project in Nigeria or similarly, a Salsa party in century. This was all about sustainable development: how to Dundee helped pay for a self-help project for street children in enable and encourage young people to adjust their life-styles Cusco, Peru. to be more sustainable within the constraints of a limited and Perhaps the key to all we do is getting young people to fragile environment. Living lightly on the earth against a look at where they are now - not to fantasize about if they constant backdrop of consumerism is not easy for the average were someone else, in another situation, in another country - teenager in the western world. Fairness and rights are more and see what they themselves can do. Sheku in Sierra Leone easily understood. We have produced books on the has succeeded in planting 30,000 trees in an area where the environment and development, as well as on human and child trees had been cut down because of the war. He could do this rights.
not because he had a degree in forestry, but because when he However, although learning about the issues and was nine, his Grandad showed him how to plant and take care becoming inspired was important, it was not enough. At the of saplings. Now he is considered an expert and is being dawn of the new millennium Peace Child decided to canvass asked by the local authorities to work with them. Another boy, the opinions of its young members by organising the with no visible means of support, remembered that his Millennium Young People's Congress (MYPC) in Hawaii grandparents kept bees and has now, with help, started a honey where they identified their priorities for the 21st century. business. Education was at the top of their list, followed closely by In August 2003 in Morocco, 600 young activists will gender equality, eradication of poverty, combating HIV/AIDS come together and share their experiences on what they are - all this was included in the eight Millennium Goals agreed doing to help sustainable development and the development by the heads of State at the UN Millennium Summit. These goals. We hope this will inspire many more young people to goals, which aim to halve the number of people who live in go out and do things in their communities. We hope that extreme poverty, are all supposed to be achieved by 2015! A adults, governments and funders will see what a great resource short twelve years away! Many of the UN officials recognise we have at our disposal if we can help, advise and-above all that these goals are unlikely to be achieved unless we can - trust our young people. inspire and motivate that 50% of the world's population that is under 25. For young people will be the greatest beneficiaries of the achievement of these goals and they will be at the greatest disadvantage if these goals are not achieved.
In light of this, the "Be the Change!' programme was launched. As Mahatma Gandhi said: "You have to be the change you want to see in the world.” That is why young volunteers in some of the poorest communities of the world, in countries such as Sierra Leone, Kenya and India have been gathering other like minded young people and thinking what they could do. Most of them cannot imagine how they could ever change, let alone be the force to change things. Yet, they gradually have discussed what the problems were and together devised endless ways that they could become sustainable and not just exist on hand-outs, regardless of their lack of Rosey Simonds and David Wollcombe, founders of Peace Child education.
A bicycle courier service in Bangalore staffed by youth David Woollcombe and Rosey Simonds are the backbone of from a slum area, brick-making to keep pace with new Peace Child International, a UK-based NGO. building, a combatant carpentry training scheme for ex-child Visit www.peacechild.org and www.bethechange.info for soldiers, a soap making enterprise, a learn one/teach one further information and inspiration.
Proro: COURTESY OF PEACE CHILD
June - August 2003
Jain Spirit
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