Lebanese NGOs encourage student dialogue

At St. George's School in the village of Achach in northern Lebanon's Zgharta district, students huddled around university student Rita al-Agha to hear what she had to say about dialogue and acceptance of others.

In other schools across Lebanon, a similar scene played out, as students learned about conflict resolution and countering violent extremism at classes run by the Dialogue for Life and Reconciliation (DLR) organisation.

Initial sessions were held November 6th to 10th, and classes will continue to be held in Lebanese schools until late December, according to DLR, a non-governmental organisation founded in 2010.

The organisation seeks "to disseminate the culture of diversity, dialogue and reconciliation", founder and Notre Dame University-Louaize professor of religions Ziad Fahed told Al-Mashareq.

"To this end, we established the Interfaith Dialogue Academy," he said. "We train university students from all parts of Lebanon and of all sects so they may disseminate this culture themselves among school students."

The academy brings a diverse group of university students together in the summer to attend workshops and lectures and spend time together, giving them an opportunity to learn about each other’s cultures and traditions, he said.

"This allows them to tackle controversial topics with dialogue, openness and acceptance of the different opinions of others," Fahed said.

These students will transfer the experience they gain "to students throughout Lebanon, from the far north to the far south, through intensive training workshops that arm them with the culture of dialogue", he said.

Dialogue fosters acceptance

During the summer training, students at the Interfaith Dialogue Academy learn "how to confront violence and extremism and accept others", Fahed said.

"We seek to encourage students to discover each other's heritage, and we accomplish this by disseminating the culture of diversity and fostering opportunities for positive communication," he added.

"We seek to create a common language among students, who are the foundation of the future, so they may live in peace away from violence, extremism and negative stereotypes," he said.

Al-Agha, a 19-year-old student at Notre Dame University-Louaize, volunteered to train students after her experience at the Interfaith Dialogue Academy.

Al-Agha hails from the mixed-sect village of al-Nakhla in Koura district. At the academy, she told Al-Mashareq, she learned that Lebanon can be a model of multi-sectarian co-existence, with respect for the particularity of each sect.

"The academy stressed to us that difference is not a cause for disagreement," she said, adding that she and other participants learned that openness to others and dialogue are effective in confronting extremism.

She has passed on this insight to students at St. George's and other schools.

"It was amazing to see their response and conviction that dialogue is the key to getting acquainted with others and putting an end to the growing violence among them," she said.

Peaceful conflict resolution

The Common Effort organisation, based in al-Barraniya, east of Sidon, also is working to promote peaceful conflict resolution among students and families.

Common Effort works in various parts of Lebanon to promote the concepts of peaceful conflict resolution by holding summer camps and training workshops at schools, executive director Tami Kozhaya told Al-Mashareq.

"We held a summer camp last September in Beiteddine, where about 200 Lebanese and Syrian youth of various religious backgrounds, aged 16 to 18, came together for a workshop titled, A Piece of Peace," she said.

Kozhaya said the camp focused on interfaith dialogue, acceptance of others and the prevention of violent extremism, especially among younger students.

Participants engaged in role-play exercises, with Lebanese students playing the part of Syrian refugees and vice versa, to help each side understand the feelings and conditions the other encounters.

"We are currently organising reciprocal visits between Lebanese and Syrian refugee students to learn about each other, and that differences do not have to lead to disagreement," she said.

Common Effort also offers programmes that educate Lebanese and Syrian students about the disadvantages of violent extremism and teach them how to tackle controversial issues with dialogue and rationality, Kozhaya said.

These included a summer programme for youth in Wadi Khaled in North Lebanon on peace building via social media, she said, as well as periodic lectures at schools that equip students with dialogue skills.

"We are working to assuage the concerns of the youth and dispel their fear, which stems from prejudices they have about others," she said.