A four-day Facilitator Training Workshop on the use of the Learning to Live Together Programme was organized in Guatemala from 15 to 18 October 2019.
During these days, 18 participants from different organizations members of the GNRC in Guatemala had the opportunity to get familiarized with the principles of the LTLT Programme and to reflect on how to adapt and customize the manual to address conflicts in Guatemala, mostly in non-formal education settings.
This workshop is part of the prevention pillar of the action plan set up by the Alliance of Child Protection in Central America, convened by Arigatou International. The Alliance was created in the framework of the 5th Forum of the Global Network of Religions for Children, held in Panama in 2017, by a group of faith-based organizations and religious communities concerned with the high levels of violence in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Mexico, and its impact on the lives of children and youth. These four countries are part of a united front of violence that controls drug trafficking, including the recruitment and participation of children in gang groups, and exacerbated violence due to the additions they are dragged into.
The Alliance has as an objective to maximize the potential of advocacy and mobilization of faith communities to prevent violence and protect children who are victims, through the collective work of the faith-based organizations in the sub-region. The Alliance is formed by a Regional Coordinator Committee and four national committees, one per country.
The workshop in Guatemala was the first effort to introduce ethics education for children and the manual Learning to Live Together as a concrete preventive response through education in formal and non-formal settings to support children and youth to develop critical thinking and collaborative skills, enhance their sense of belonging, help creating participatory and meaningful spaces for them to participate, and to nurture values that strengthen their identities and foster their abilities to connect with one another, and respond to situations in nonviolent ways.
The workshop was organized by GNRC-Guatemala in collaboration with Arigatou International Geneva. Our appreciation goes to the team of trainers: Mr. Larry Madrigal, Ms. Andrea Flores, Mr. Rutilio Delgado, and Mr. Raul Tula.
A regional workshop will be held in March 2020 in Guatemala city as a follow up of this initiative.