Parliament of Worlds Religion 1999 Capetown SA

Author(s): Parliament of the World’s Religions
Publisher: USA Parliament of the Worlds Religions

Page 53

1999 GIFTS OF SERVICE TO TIE WORLD
Prize for Women's Creativity in Rural Life Every year since 1994, the Woman's World Summit Foundation (WWSF) honors at least 30 outstanding women and women's groups around the world who exhibit exceptional creativity and courage in improving the quality of life in rural communities and advancing development and peace. In 1999, 34 prize winners were selected from an overwhelming number of nominees The Prize awards each recipient with US $500. To learn more about the 145 awards given since 1994, please visit our web site: www.woman.ch. Women's World Summit Foundation SWITZERLAND
Encouraging Creative Engagement The St. Petersburg School of Religion and Philosophy (SRPH) was established in the early 1990s to offer educational opportunities for both Russian and foreign students in the field of liberal arts, particularly those which were not addressed by the Soviet system. SRPH encourages students to explore how personal experience affects, and is affected by, academic studies. Curricula also encourages experimenting with theoretical and systematical the ologies for knowing God and nurturing the links between experience and spirituality. The School also encourages practical activities of students and teachers which include helping the Russian Orthodox Church in the area of interfaith dialogue, hosting conferences and seminars on the most urgent themes of faith and Russian spiritual culture, and academic and popular lectures on different religious aspects of life for a wide audience of St. Petersburg citizens. St. Petersburg School of Religion and Philosophy RUSSIA
IS
Actions for Peace — Peace Games Peace Games, the largest sports tournament ever organized in the world, is taking place in the city of Rio de Janeiro, and is reconciling two long-time ene mies: adolescents and the police. Forty thousand youth, mostly from low-income neighborhoods, organized into 2,509 teams, are playing soccer, volleyball and basketball under the guidance of the city's Police Force. The tournament uses sports as a means to bring youth together in a climate of teamwork and positive competitiveness in order to overcome their aggressiveness and distrust of the police. One team is comprised solely of youth offenders, the other is comprised of native Brazilian Indians, with the police acting as referees and organizers of the matches. Restoring confidence in the police and learning to respect "the rules of the game" are essential steps in educating responsible citizens for the future. The Peace Games are coordinated by Viva Rio and sponsored by the Rio de Janeiro State Secretariat for Sports and UNESCO. In the year 2000, another tournament will be held in addition to an international mini-Olympic competition, bringing together teams from cities throughout the world where violent conflicts have erupted. Brazilian youth from the city's shanty-towns will be playing alongside adolescents from Harlem in New York, USA Sarajevo in Yugoslavia, Medellin in Colombia, and El Salvador in San Salvador, among other cities. Viva Rio BRAZIL
Action for Peace - Education and Human Rights Training for the Police Currently 650 police officers from twenty battalions in Rio de Janeiro are enrolled in the Telesala 2000 Educational Training Program which enables adults to complete their secondary level education. Part of the curriculum includes basic human rights training on issues ranging from racism to religious tolerance and women's rights. For the first time in the history of the city, the police force is debating these issues with the participation of civilian coordinators from Viva Rio. In addition to special courses for the police force, 5,000 other students are completing their basic-level education through the program in over 300 community centers throughout Rio de Janeiro Viva Rio BRAZIL
52
FOSTERING CREATIVE ENGAGEMENT
Jain Education Intemational 2010_03