History of International Working Group on Peace Building with Young Children

The World Forum's IWGPB has been actively engaged in promoting peace building with young children since 2004 with the following key events:

Working Forum Belfast 2004: Belfast, Northern Ireland

In November 2004, the World Forum Foundation partnered with NIPPA - the early years organisation to host the first-ever Working Forum (the idea is to conduct regional, interactive forums focusing on a single topic). Working Forum Belfast - entitled, "Building Bridges: Healing Communities through Early Childhood Education" - focused on the power of early childhood education to bring communities together after conflict.

Early childhood leaders from organizations involved in reconciliation efforts in Northern Ireland, Croatia, Albania, Rwanda, Mali, South Africa, Israel, the Philippines, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Colombia, and the United States gathered in Belfast to learn from each other's experiences and to share their lessons learned with the European early childhood community. Working Forum Belfast also served as the launching pad for the World Forum Global Leaders for Young Children project.

IWGPB at 2005 World Forum in Montreal

The members of the leadership team of IWGPB convened again at World Forum 2005 in Montreal. At this meeting the team discussed ways to promote peace building with young children. A plan of action was developed with the first activity being the development a book summarizing peace building stories from around the world. Members of the leadership team also presented their work to the entire World Forum through a report, "The Power of Early Childhood as a Force for Reconciliation," as well as in two sessions on "Early Childhood Programs as a Force for Reconciliation."

IWGPB 2006 Meeting in Manizales, Colombia

The International Working Group on Peace Building with Young Children met in Manizales, Colombia in May of 2007. Sixteen team members from Albania, Australia, Mali, Nepal, Northern Ireland, and the U.S. were hosted by CINDE, Fundacion Centro International de Educacion y Desarrollo Humano (The International Center of Education and Human Development Foundation).

In the meetings, the group finalized the timeline, content, and structure of the Working Group's first publication, "From Conflict to Peace Building", a presentation of the stories and strategies of the group. An additional outcome for this meeting was that by convening in Manizales, the group was able to experience what life is like in an area of the world that not long ago was steeped in turmoil and violence, but has worked hard to restore peace and beauty to their country.

Publication of From Conflict to Peace Building

Shortly before the 2007 World Forum in Kuala Lumpur, the IWGPB leadership team announced the publication of its resource, From Conflict to Peace Building: The Power of Early Childhood Initiatives - Lessons from around the World. The publication contains stories of hope and encouragement and of just what early childhood practitioners can do and achieve in the face of adversity. From Conflict to Peace Building shows us that it is possible to make a real difference in the lives of children and families in societies affected by conflict.

Moreover, the stories illustrate the power of the early years sector, not only as a foundation stone upon which to re-build communities, but also as a vehicle for peace building because of it's ability to reach across political divides and to encourage the differing sides in conflict to develop alternative visions of the future based around the needs of children. From Conflict to Peace Building can be downloaded for free at the World Forum web site.

IWGPB at 2007 World Forum in Kuala Lumpur

The IWGPB leadership team met prior to the 2007 World Forum to plan future activities. A highlight for the group was the launch of From Conflict to Peace Building at the plenary on Wednesday, May 17. All delegates received a free copy of the publication and the authors signed hundreds of autographs for appreciative delegates. Once again the leadership team presented several sessions at the World Forum on their continuing work.

IWGPB 2008 Leadership Team Meeting

The Executive Team of the IWGPB leadership team met in March in Boston, Massachusetts, and the Leadership Team met in November in Budapest, Hungary, prior to the 9th International Step by Step Conference. At these meetings, the team discussed the relationship between the work of the IWGPB and the Joint Learning Initiative on Children and Ethnic Diversity.