Children and their way to communicate are the future of Ghana.
After participating in the Ruhpolding workshops for three times and including NVC more and more in his life, Mubarak Alhassan, Ibrahim Zukpeni and their team decided to offer workshops with the focus on NVC at different schools.
- Workshop 1:
International Youth Day — 12th August 2019
International Youth Day Celebration Workshop with the topic: “Building and Sustaining a Culture of Peace in the School Community” with 70 children.
The participants were selected from six Junior High Schools, ages between 11 and 18 years. The goal of the training was to engage children to have fun and at the same time to empower them to cultivate peaceful attitudes and to learn how to speak non-violently and resolve conflicts peacefully. - Workshop 2:
International Day of Peace — 21st September 2019
International Day of Peace Cleanup exercise, Tree planting and a Donation at the Little Way R/C Junior High School with the topic: “Climate Action for Peace”, engaging 130 children in the cleanup and tree planting exercises. - Workshop 3:
International Day of Nonviolence — 2nd October 2019
International Day of Nonviolence with the topic: “Youth at the Centre of Conflict Resolution” with 30 children selected from five Junior High Schools, ages between 11 and 18 years.
The goal of the training was to encourage children to cope with conflicts and think of ways of resolving them so that everybody is satisfied (win-win solutions). It was also a day for the children to have fun and socialize with their peers from other schools.
In 2018, they started planning a center for children of low income households or orphans in the North of Ghana. They called it “Panko” which means: “I am not alone!”. In June 2020, the center was launched. It provides learning areas, a playground and football field, recreation areas and a vegetable garden. A water tank was installed in 2021.
Now, more than 60 boys and girls plant and harvest their own food, cook, learn and play together. In Panko Center, the children will discover their talents and their creativity, and they will develop self-confidence and awareness for their responsibility towards life and nature.
The center is based on the principles of “Eco-Village” and “Nonviolent Communication (NVC)”. That means to be self-sustainable through environmental sustainability, social responsibility, self-sufficiency — combined with a progressive lifestyle. The center basically adopts and applies the use of Nonviolent Communication (NVC) to foster connection, compassion and peace among the inhabitants and with the environment. The center is running life skill sessions, literacy and numeracy sessions, Nonviolent Communication (NVC) sessions, indoor and outdoor educational games, recreational activities and sports.