Supporting the Rowntree Charitable Trust

IFOR Joins FOR England in supporting the Rowntree Charitable Trust

In recent weeks, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust has come under increased scrutiny by and pressure from British authorities due to it’s funding of a controversial organization in the United Kingdom.  The JRCT is a Quaker organization that has a history of supporting peace and reconciliation including work supporting Conscientious Objection through IFOR and others. IFOR joined FOR England in a public letter expressing support for the Trust. 

Learn More about the JRCT

The BBC Reports on the JRCT Controversy. 

Read the letter of support for the JRCT that was published in the Times.

IFOR's Centennial Celebration

100 Years of Peace Work

Reflecting on the violence of the past and addressing the challenges of today, approximately 150 delegates from IFOR member organizations across the globe gathered in Konstanz, Germany 100 years after the outbreak of World War I. World-renowned nonviolence experts, representatives from like-minded peace organizations, and members of the general public joined IFOR in mourning, celebrating, and envisioning the future.

Photos from the Centennial

All photos by Jérôme Peraya

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FOR India's Nonviolence Education & Training Programs

Gender sensitization, mediation & youth empowerment

Dr. Suseela Mathew from the FOR India facilitated the trainings and provided the following summary:

“This training-meeting of women activists and leaders held during January and February 2015, was a part of a series of five conversations and analyses which led to a re-evaluation of bigotries and prejudices and all the demons within standing in the way of women empowering themselves. The issue of gender in the context of relationships, understanding and viewpoints articulated by participants drawing from their own life and experiences gave an insight into reality visited as a group in a safe, free, learning environment. In order to change the reality, women need to be aware of their capacity and potential. Central to the discussions was the pointed reference to violence and lawlessness which diminishes and endangers the lives. Nil tolerance to domestic violence and abuse of women is essential. Women need to discover the sadness of their silence in this age of rapid growth of literacy and digital access. This silence must be decoded and the message and the nuances of this silence has to be interpreted to make known that women can contribute to their own well-being and growth and to their family well-being and growth. Women can contribute to every field where visible and invisible barriers exclude their inclusion. ”

The following are a few photos from the trainings. The first was a program conducted for adolescent children in life skills and nonviolent peer mediation. About fifty girls and boys participated.

The second program was for physically challenged  adolescent children to empower them to use the possibilities and opportunities  available to them. Gender sensitization was another component of the training.