Uganda Through my Lens

By: Thomas Coldwell

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I returned home from Uganda about a week ago. For two weeks, I traveled and visited and learned with nine youth and two other coordinators. This MCC learning tour was a partnership with the Alberta Council for Global Cooperation based in Edmonton, Alberta and the Atlantic Council for International Cooperation based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. […]

To read more: Uganda through my lens — trails and tales

Our Planting Peace Experience – 2017

By Walter Díaz Sequeira (Honduras + Bolivia) and Noemy Salvatierra Rivero (Bolivia)

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Walter and Noemy on the plane (first time for Noemy!)

We were invited to be international participants in Planting Peace 2017 in Alberta, Canada. It is a two-week intercultural educational program for peace. This program brings together young-adults from different parts of the world as well as national participants, with different beliefs, but all with a single vision and interest in exploring topics and initiatives for peace and justice. In Calgary, Canada, we had the opportunity to talk a little about the context and reality of Bolivia according to our lived experience and experiences of those we know. Our presentation was able to give participants a good sense of what Bolivia is like. We were also able to hear more about the context of other countries and to be able to better understand their realities and the current situation of each of the participating countries. The countries represented were Lebanon, Syria, Laos, India, Zimbabwe, Bolivia, and the host country, Canada. We also participated in various group activities. At Camp Valaqua we participated and enjoyed many fun activities. All of the activities had a message to reflect on and challenged us to discover that we are unique and with very different problems, however, regardless of all of the different ways of thinking we had something in common. We had the same vision and are on the same journey to build peace in each of our contexts (countries).

Planting Peace Group 2017

Planting Peace group representing 7 countries

Edmonton: This was a learning tour to explore the issues of resource extraction and listen to Northern Alberta perspectives. During this time, we were in workshops on issues of peace and conflict of various cultures and perspectives of faith.

Fort McMurray: We had an oil sands tour (Suncor Company) and the opportunity to tour Fort McMurray & Oil Sands by plane.

Suncor Oil Sands

Visiting the Suncor Oil Sands

Blue Quills: We visited an Indigenous University where we were able to meet with the indigenous elders who talked a little about their stories about the mistreatment that the indigenous people suffered in Canada in the so-called residential schools. There were many years of mistreatment that included taking them from a young age far from their homes where they could not speak in their languages and forcing them to learn another language and cultural customs. These schools no longer exist and the last one closed in 1996. Now Canada is in dialogue about forgiveness with the indigenous peoples and helping to rectify all the damages that happened during the time of existence of the schools.

After learning about all that has happened with Indigenous peoples, we think that it will take time to reach reconciliation. Since there are consequences that continue to hurt some indigenous people who have not been able to have a normal life and are in a slow process of healing. The country must not forget or ignore the commitment and the long journey that reconciliation can take.

Mustard Seed: We got to know a little about the current situation of homeless people in Canada and a center that works with them. We heard about how they collaborate and help those in need.

After that we visited the Drop-in Center that also works for the people who live on the streets. They have programs to rehabilitate people and integrate them into society. This can take time and that is why the Drop-in Center helps them in everything that is needed. They have a network of volunteers who contribute to the care and welfare of these people every day. There is a large space for people, but in the winter time this space may be insufficient for everyone. We collaborated with the Drop-in Center cooks and volunteers to serve lunch and it was a very rewarding experience. We were grateful because we were part of a beautiful act of love by serving our neighbours.

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump: We loved this trip where we explored and were shown how the Blackfoot people hunted buffaloes once a year. They fed on them and used their skins for clothing as well as to make their homes and work tools. It was great to be close to how they developed in their work and how they organized among themselves.

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump World Heritage Site

We experienced a lot of things, but inside this brief summary are some of the many things we experienced in our time in Alberta, Canada. We are grateful to have been part of this great experience. We were challenged and above all motivated to continue in the work of peace. We know that we received lots of blessings from God through the people who made this possible. Going forward we are convinced that we are called to make a small change in our context with our church community and friends and it gives us so much encouragement to know that in other parts of the world there are people who are also doing the same work for peace.

Camp Valaqua

Debrief time at Camp Valaqua

MCC Alberta wins a YMCA Peace Medal, An Acceptance Speech by Abe Janzen

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WATCH MCC ALBERTA’s PEACE MEDAL VIDEO

MCC works in about 60 countries mainly in three theme areas, which are Relief Work,  Development, and Peace building.   A few years ago, two gentlemen asked me why MCC works so much in peace making.  It was as if that made them a little nervous.  I replied that this is not difficult: we work in peace because people are killing each other in so many parts of the world, and also because in any community, or family, or country, when there is tension or violence, the other work that we and the communities want to do, does not work well;  often, projects get destroyed or undermined, when there is tension or violence.   There is nothing magic or mysterious about peace work; it just means that we notice each other.  It means that we problem solve endlessly … together.  We don’t stop.  It means that we walk towards each other and not away from each other.

A few years ago, I visited the 750km wall that surrounds the West Bank and separates Palestinians from Palestinians and Palestinians from Jews.  It is an amazing structure built w hundreds of twists and turns strategically creating division, in so many places.  On the Palestinian side of this 12 M high cement wall,  there is a lot of art and graffiti.  Some of it is daring, and challenging and pleading.  My favorite one is a black note, written w a smallish paint brush I assume, and it says ..” I want my ball back”.  That says everything doesn’t it.  A Palestinian child can never play ball w an Israeli child because they never see each other and they cannot even return a ball that might have gone over.  This is a cry from ordinary children and parents begging the world to allow them to grow up as people who are friends, who play ball together.  What happens now is that they only know each other as enemies … because they never see each other.

Ronnie, a former soldier in the Israeli Army, now works w Ex Combatants for Peace, a partner of MCC in the West Bank and Israel.  He used to fight the Palestinians, but after a life-changing experience when his daughter was killed by a suicide bomber,  he now visits 1200 schools a year, impatiently telling Israeli and Palestinian young people that if ever there will be peace, they have to meet each other.  “When we meet each other as people, not as palestinians nor jews, we will solve the insanity of this conflict”, he said.

Peace making is relational work and it is never finished.

Thank you for acknowledging the work of MCC.  I hope we all, always, remain relentless advocates for peace!!