Peacebuilding Youth Ambassadors Program
Roxburgh College and the Victorian Arabic Social Services (VASS)
Thursday 10th November 2011
Attorney-General Department, Branka Gajic visits VASS led program, Peacebuilding Youth Ambassadors program at Roxburgh College as part of the Curbing Radicalisation through Youth Resilience and Community Partnerships program.
Victorian Arabic Social Services (VASS) worked in partnership with Roxburgh College in the delivery of Peacebuilding Youth Ambassador Program on 10th November in celebration of the United Nations International Day of Tolerance.
The project is a part of the VASS Curbing Radicalisation through Youth Resilience and Community Partnerships program funded by the Attorney-General’s Department which aims to provide avenues for positive expression and mutual understanding of diversity by giving young people from Arabic Speaking Backgrounds (ASB) opportunities to engage in activities which allow them to express themselves and think of peace building in their community.
The Peacebuilding Youth Ambassador Program is one of the activities of the VASS Curbing Radicalisation through Youth Resilience and Community Partnerships program. The need for this program arose through the need to have culturally relevant programs in a school whereby the students come from 32 language groups and have links with international affairs within their own family and community and within their own identity. The need to have multicultural education in schools is in line with the Multicultural Education Unit, Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD), which notes that “the school community contributes to Victoria’s cultural and linguistic diversity. Schools assist all students to develop the understanding, knowledge and skills to contribute to, and benefit from the diversity that characterises our globalised world.”
The aim of the program was to:
- Give young people opportunities to feel heard and learn about other cultures and values, their own values and how their values shape their views on global issues
- Increase students’ knowledge and understanding of the United Nations and its member states
- Deepen students’ awareness and understanding of humanitarian and other key global issues
- Promote a global outlook, tolerance and respect for diversity and difference of opinion
- Foster a greater interest in international affairs
-Highlight the importance of dialogue, diplomacy, negotiation, participatory democracy and empathy for conflict resolution through the theme “fighting battles through knowledge”.
-Equip students with knowledge that can be applied on a local level to create positive social change and peace building in their local community
-An increase in knowledge by students on how to create positive social change and peace building in their local community
- An increase in awareness from students and school staff about Multicultural, anti-racism and human rights perspectives highlighted through the guest speakers and UN material which is referenced on the day of the conference.
- An enhancement of both students and teacher inter cultural understanding and cross cultural communication skills as they strive to be persuasive on the world stage and speak to those from different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.
The objectives of the Peacebuilding Youth Ambassadors Program were to:
To run a 5 week leadership and ambassador program to the Year 10 students at Roxburgh College involving;
Research on the topic to be debated in the UN Model Conference
Public Speaking, debating and diplomacy training
Students will be required to find the best possible solution to the problem at hand through multilateral diplomacy. Students will be trained to reach a compromise based upon their own country’s national interests, international responsibilities and humanitarian obligations. The outcome will be formalised in the adoption of a sound resolution during the Model UN Conference.
The running of a Model UN Conference at the end of the 5 week program involving guest speakers from the UNAA
The program also involves teacher training will aims to explore a global context to curriculum development and planning and training on how to deliver public speaking training to students.
The program aims to be sustainable by incorporating a similar model into the Year 10 curriculum as part of the history subject.
For more information contact Victorian Arabic Social Services (VASS) on (03) 9359 2861, mail@vass.org.au or visit www.vass.org.au