Upcoming events
Conference, Nonviolent Civilian Protection – Building the Global Capacity
September 24 - 26, 2007 KENYA
The aim of this conference, organised by Nonviolent Peaceforce is to enlarge and reinforce the international community of organizations and experts in implementing, funding, organizing and studying unarmed civilian protection activities, to encourage greater deployment of protection missions, and to build and expand the global capacity for civilian protection and violence reduction.
A keynote address by Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire will open an international conference of leading academics, donors and policymakers. This event also aims to gather representatives of over 150 organizations from around the world to exchange best practices and build support for unarmed civilian peacekeeping.
This is the right time to call a two-day international conference to:
- Enlarge and support the coalitions of actors advocating and practicing unarmed civilian peacekeeping to mainstream their analysis and recommendations in the international debate;
- Share lessons learned and good practices useful for the respective mandates of the international actors involved;
- Directly connect donors, field implementers and beneficiaries in a strategic dialogue to develop new synergy and shared plans for new missions and capacity of civilian peacekeepers.
Regular training events
Peace Brigades International orientation training
Contact PBI Australia for next dates
A one-day orientation and training for people interested in getting involved in Peace Brigades International (PBI) in Australia or considering volunteer work on a PBI project in Indonesia, Colombia, Nepal, Mexico or Guatemala.
PBI is a grassroots, non-partisan NGO that provides a a vital international protective presence alongside local activists working for nonviolent social change or communities under threat. Working in international teams, PBI offers unarmed protective accompaniment to individuals, organisations and communities threatened with violence and human rights abuses in areas of intense political repression and conflict.
Orientations cover:
- PBI's history and its unique international structure
- Principles and mandate
- Protective accompaniment theory
- How PBI works in conflict zones
- Project outlines and updates
- Consensus decision-making
Bookings are essential. For further information contact PBI on 03 9415 6642 or email pbiaustralia
peacebrigades.org.
Alternatives to Violence Workshops
> alternatives to violence project (avp)
Contact AVP for upcoming dates
The Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP) is a network of volunteers offering experiential workshops which empower individuals to liberate themselves and others from the burden of violence.
Basic and Second level workshops cover AVP practices and principles, understanding and practising effective consensus decision-making skills and choosing as a group to work from a wide variety of focus topics. These include, among others, issues such as conflict resolution, communication, affirmation, transforming power, anger, grief, loss, forgiveness, stereotyping and man-woman relationships.
Presented by the Alternatives to Violence Project. More information: Lou 03 5629 8427 / Bev 03 9569 8684 / Ray 03 5422 3349 / avpvicavp.org.au.
Previous events
Bringing Down a Dictator
> lecture and film screening
Thursday 2 March, 2006
Trades Hall
Melbourne VIC
Srjda Popovic, a key organiser and trainer with the Serbian nonviolent resistance group Otpor! and founder of the Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS) spoke to a group of 60 people at Trades Hall in Melbourne on Thursday 2 March.
Srdja Popovic helped form the student protest group Otpor!, whose nonviolent campaign to unseat Serbian president Slobodan Milosovic met with success on October 2000 when hundreds of thousands of protestors converged upon and took over the Serbian Parliament, effectively ending Misolevic's rule.
After a screening of the documentary Bringing Down a Dictator, Srjda shared many insights from Otpor!'s campaign, from the role of mobile phones and text messages in unseating Milosovic to the pros and cons of accepting foreign assistance.
Since 2000, Popovic and other ex-Otpor! activists have played a key role in spreading the nonviolent strategies and tactics used by the Serbian pro-democracy movement to other European countries, notably during the Georgian "Rose Revolution" of 2003 and the Ukranian "Orange Revolution" of 2004-2005.
> Read more about Otpor!
> Listen to an interview with Srdja Popovic on Phillip Adams' Late Night Live.
Nonviolence Trainers' Skillshare 2006
> presented by pt'chang, the change agency and commonground
Friday 24 - Monday 27 February, 2006
Commonground
Seymour VIC
In February 2006, 27 new and experienced nonviolence trainers and activists from Australia and the Asia-Pacific region came together at Commonground near Seymour, Victoria for four days of networking and skillsharing.
The agenda featured a mixture of pre-planned workshops and Open Space exploring three themes:
1. What is nonviolence training?
2. Activist education: theory and practice
3. Building resilience to repression
Thank you to all who participated!
> Join the nonviolence-trainers e-mail list.
Training for Activists
> insights, methods and new learnings
18 May, 2005
Fitzroy VIC
How do people learn about working for social change? Is there such a thing as a "born activist", or do we need opportunities to learn along the way? On May 18, over thirty people came together at the Pt'chang office in Melbourne to explore these questions and others with assistance from four experienced activist trainers.
Participants were invited to form a "spectrum of experience", share stories of their involvement in social change and reflect on the diverse ways in which activists learn and sustain themselves along the way.
Daniel Hunter from Training For Change (USA) presented insights and learnings from around the world, including the role of activist training in building movements and transforming conflicts and training activists for working in high risk interventions in war zones. Sam La Rocca and James Whelan presented on the work of The Change Agency (QLD) and the role of training in inspiring new activists and sustaining those already engaged. Iain Murray (Pt'chang) gave an overview of nonviolence training within Australia and officially launched the new Trainers' Resource Manual.
Thanks to the organisors and all who attended for a great night!
> Listen to Daniel Hunter talk about the approach of Training for Change. (.mp3, 943k)
National Nonviolence Gathering
29 April - 2 May, 2005
Curramundi
Queensland
The 2005 National Nonviolence Gathering was held at Currimundi, Southeastern Queensland, between 29 April - 2 May, 2005. Ninety people attended, most for the entire three days. The Gathering had one day of structured presentations and discussions, followed by one and a half days of Open Space to identify the key issues and plan the actions.
"Happiness and Activism", "Whitefellas working better with indigenous people", and "Poets For Peace" are just a handful of the topics explored during the 39 Open Space sessions held during the gathering.
The gathering also heard formal presentations from Helen Bayes on "The power that quells violence", Tony Robertson on "Stories of masculinity models which are wellsprings", Erykah Kyle on "Palm Island", Jo Vallentine on "Public opposition to corporate and government behaviour", Iain Murray on "Practical nonviolence training", Jason McLeod on "Armed struggle and nonviolent solidarity in a cross-cultural context" and Chris Henderson on "A personal response to everyday violence within the Australian culture".
The National Nonviolence Gathering 2005 was organised by the Donald Groom Peace Committee.
> Download the National Nonviolence Gathering report (.pdf, 464k)
> View a slideshow of the gathering.
Skillshare for Trainers
11 - 14 February, 2005
Commonground
Seymour
Victoria
The Nonviolence Skillshare for Trainers took place at Commonground between 11 - 14 February and was attended by 36 people from across Australia and the Pacific.
Participants brought a diversity of experience as nonviolence trainers and activists working with social movements and campaigns ranging from peace, refugee and indigenous rights to international solidarity and environmental issues. Participants have been invited to join an emerging Nonviolence Trainers Network and help to organise and facilitate a series of nonviolence training workshops around the country.
> Click here for more information on the content of the Skillshare for Trainers, 2005.
> View a slideshow of the skillshare.