Theme: Youth Mobilization for Inclusion, Peace, and Security

Overarching Objective: The V-EMPOWER 2020 Conference aims to build awareness, knowledge and skills related to Youth Mobilization for Inclusion, Peace, and Security under the following four thematic pillars:

• Media & Technology
• Sport & Art
• Nation Building
• Environment and Climate Change

Key Message: Building on the strengths of young people for sustainable development in the spirit of peace, inclusion, cultural diversity, and understanding.

The How: facilitate a constructive dialogue amongst youth regarding their role as peacemakers, leaders and champions of inclusion and security. In effect, it will serve as a preparatory platform for the Global Peace Conference hosted in Qatar early next year. Workshops, Webinars, Town halls.

The Who: Keynote speakers, Experts, Trainers.

The When: 15-19 July 2020

V-EMPOWER 2020: Workshops

Workshop 1: The Magic Potion of Empathy: A discussion on how empathy is associated with nation building at the human level, with the environment as well as how we apply empathy in our lives while using media, technology or during sports and through arts.

Workshop 2: Sport for Development and Peace: During this workshop, you will learn about how one of the biggest football clubs in the world lives up to its motto of being “More Than A Club” and how you, as youth activists, can incorporate sport to promote peace and social inclusion in your communities.

Workshop 3: Sport for Protection – Fostering inclusion and peace through the power of sport For children and youth uprooted by war or persecution, sport is much more than a leisure activity, it is an opportunity to be included and protected – a chance to heal, develop and grow. Sport can also be a positive catalyst for peacebuilding, helping to strengthen social cohesion and forge closer ties between refugee and host communities.

Workshop 4: Advocacy for Muslim Women in Sports: This session aims to explore the intersectionality between Muslim women, sports, and politics. Sporting events on a communal, local, or international level is a soft power tool that fosters nation building.

Workshop 5: Youth, Sustaining Peace, and Business: Lessons and Stories from the Field. The session strives to illustrate the intersection between economic empowerment of young people, and peace sustainability. The interactive session will tackle the issue of entrepreneurship as a tool for sustaining peace from 3 different angles, and perspectives. Namely, financial institutions, international organization, youth serving-organizations and young people.

Workshop 6: Football for Development: The process of Designing, Developing, and Delivering Brief: This workshop will aim to practically demonstrate what considerations are taken into account when Generation Amazing design a practical football session that is designed to achieve social outcomes (social skill development and/or social issue knowledge acquisition). Then, show the game design in the most informative way possible.

Workshop 7: Using Sport and Purposeful Play for Education Outside the Classroom, Coaches Across Continents will introduce and engage participants in Purposeful Play, give participants tools for using Purposeful Play in their work.

Workshop 8: The Power of Media and Film in Nation Building: A compelling talk that focuses on the power of media and film in Nation Building. Film and Media literacy are powerful tools for advocacy, change, building bridges, and of course youth empowerment.

Workshop 9: Designing Interplay: Using Image, Text, and Typeface to Create Messages of Inclusion, Peace, and Security This session will help the participants to explore moral values that are vital in becoming global citizens who care about global issues but also recognize local realities. Participants will be using LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® as a tool to unlock innovation.

Workshop 10: The presenters tackle climate challenges in the form of Lego models that depict a certain scenario– participants are asked to explain what they subjectively see in each case, similar to a Rorschach inkblot test. Each scenario resulted in open discussion and problem solving by identifying issues that each person sees in the models depicted. An exercise in empathy and understanding, the workshop inspired some interesting observations and aimed to put the user in a specific situation or challenge and hear their thought processes, working outward from the problem perceived to the ideas that can be implemented.

Workshop 11: How are Young People Shaping More Equal, Just, and Peaceful Societies? While more pronounced in their impact in developed nations, the youth represent a larger proportion in developing nations where justice, equality, and peace are greater challenges. Their voices have to be heard. One such way is to create institutional frameworks. Countries such as the Philippines have elected national youth parliamentarians who help represent the voices of their generation to the national parliament. Initiatives such as this are instrumental and in many cases required to drive understanding of new perspectives. It is important that educators are helping children learn from a young age about the factors that affect their communities. This can be integrated into formal education at every level. Training young hopefuls to hone their leadership skills will help them be better prepared to meet the challenges of advocating a cause as well as thinking critically and being part of the decision-making process at a higher level.

Workshop 12: PEACEFUL CLIMATE: OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH: We aim to determine how youth can be empowered to address the impacts of climate change and alleviate security challenges as a means of preventing rather than responding to conflict.