One way to make the world live as one

Caux Artists Program 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Caux Artists Program 2019

 

When I first took part in the Caux Artists Program (CAP) in 2013, its director, Bev Appleton, told us, ‘Be the best you can be, so we can teach you more’. This year I came back for the third time. The main reason was a powerful desire to become a better version of myself.

 

Svitlana Gordijenko

 

The Caux Artists Program is an interdisciplinary course in drama, musical theatre, music and the humanities: an opportunity to experience two weeks of an artist’s routine of daily practice and rehearsals, culminating in performances for an audience from all over the world. Our schedule was intense. It included ensemble work with musicians from different countries and cultural backgrounds. I've met artists from the US, the UK, India, Sri Lanka, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Armenia, Lebanon, Germany.... It seems like the whole world is located there on the mountain in Caux! It was a great experience to meet people from different corners of the world, with a similar desire to create something valuable.

I started singing at the age of 17 when I was studying journalism at university. I had been too shy to sing in public before. Today I still struggle with my fear of performing, but I want my life to be dedicated to music as I understand its influence on people's lives. As I had no chance to study music in my childhood, I seize every opportunity now.

Ukraine has an ancient ethnical and cultural heritage. Unfortunately, we have no efficient facilities to develop musical theatre in our country, so I am grateful to Bev Appleton for giving me a better understanding of the genre.

 

Bev Appleton

 

This year was my most valuable CAP experience yet, because I was more involved in activities and workshops within the Caux Forum. I was deeply impressed by Carl Stauffer’s workshop on ‘Art as a peacebuilding tool’. The breathing techniques and physical exercises which I learnt at the workshop on ’Being ourselves: beyond individual and collective trauma’, led by Daya Bhagwandas and Dida Guigan, were very helpful both for personal and musical development.

My main conclusions from CAP are that the boundaries are just in our heads and that art is one way to make the world live as one.

 

Text: Svitlana Gordiienko, Kyiv, Ukraine 

Photos: CAUX-IofC - Paula Mariane

Event Categories
Caux Forum Caux Artist Program

related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


Forgiveness, listening and dialogue at the heart of peace circles in Mali

Just Governance for Human Security 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Just Governance for Human Security 2019

 

On Thursday 4 July at the Caux Forum I met a group of four women involved in the peace circles in Mali: Boye Diallo, Mamou Soucko, Kadidia Djenepo and Kadidiatou Mint Hanka. Peace circles is a project based on Creators of Peace, started by the organization Women in Law and Development in Africa (WILDAF) and since 2015 it has been supported by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA).

 

Femmes du Mali, JGHS 2019

 

Boye is sat next to me. She starts talking and tells me about the discussion groups that she organizes under the programme to strengthen social cohesion. She has been coordinating these groups for almost two years and bases her meetings on the model for peace circles provided by the Initiatives of Change programme, Creators of Peace. For three days a dozen women meet to explore their contribution to peace not only at the family level but also the community and national levels. This meeting model for peace circles is now used globally.

Boye, Mamou, Kadidia and Kadidiatou are at the Caux Forum for the Just Governance for Human Security conference to share their experiences and listen to other men and women committed to peace and social justice. They also hope to increase their skills and knowledge in areas such as leadership, team work, tolerance and social inclusion.

‘To learn about others.’ This is how Mamou Soucko summarises her main reason for participating. Involved in the programme to build social cohesion and peace circles since 2016, she has discovered during the conference that the problems the women face are not unique to their country. ‘By talking to the other participants, I have come to realise that it is a question of governance, violence and social peace,’ she continues.

Kadidia Djenepo also highlights the organisation of the programme and the serenity of the place. ‘It’s all natural here. I’d like to return and spend my holidays here every year!’

Kadidiatou Mint Hanka talks to us about the discussions that made an impression on her including the story of the indigenous peoples discussed in a documentary and the values expressed by India’s Minister of Happiness. During the conference she has learnt to stretch her limits in terms of forgiveness, peace, acceptance of others and commitments. This is a commitment she would like to strengthen within her community.

Boye Diallo then speaks about the situation in Mali and the insecurity which negatively impacts their actions. The example she gives of the difficulties linking the south and the north is striking. Due to security problems and roads littered with explosive devices, the women have to use internal flights provided by the United Nations Mission in Mali or pass by the neighbouring borders of Burkina Faso and Niger. These are sometimes depressing and demotivating obstacles ‘in the 21st century!’.

For Kadidia the only way to work for peace is through self-management, which is achieved through silence, forgiveness and making others aware. She therefore starts every day with a moment of silence to free her spirit and help her concentrate. She sits on her roof, listens to the birds and to the running water.

 

Text: Apolline Foedit

Photos: Apolline Foedit, Paula Mariane


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


Hope-Dealing: Father and Son

Towards an Inclusive Peace 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Towards an Inclusive Peace 2019

 

Hasan Davis and son

Hasan Davis is a self-proclaimed ‘hope-dealer’, who has dedicated his life to engendering purpose, confidence and determination in young people across the United States and the globe. His son, Malcolm, himself an aspiring young leader, took part in this year’s Caux Scholars Program. Hasan, who is a Rockerfeller Fellow, spoke at the Caux Forum’s Towards an Inclusive Peace (TIP) conference on the importance of personal and community resilience in the face of violent extremism.

As a Caux Scholar, Malcolm facilitated some of the TIP sessions and so the pair had the chance to work, learn and grow together at the Caux Forum. This cross-generational collaboration was encouraging, at a time when intergenerational disparity and disillusionment are rife.

Hasan is committed to reforming the US juvenile prison system (achieving a monumental piece of legislation in his home state of Kentucky in 2014) and to the training and education of young people and their teachers and mentors. He sees the Initiatives of Change core values of honesty, love, purity of intention and unselfishness, along with the vulnerability which accompanies their application, as the cornerstones of his work. He promotes education programmes which offer young people the space to explore their idiosyncrasies, strengths and weaknesses in a safe and accommodating environment. The values fostered throughout the Caux Forum are fundamental to constructive intergenerational dialogue, Davis says, as they are founded upon trust and openness.

As Malcolm sits cross-legged on the floor looking up at his father addressing the Forum’s plenary, you can see the gleam of admiration in his eyes. Hasan is grateful that his son has made his own choice to work towards inclusive peace in his community, and is delighted at the way the Caux Scholars Programme has reinforced his sense of confidence and purpose. The mutual trust and respect which underpin their relationship was inspiring to see.

 

Text: Emma Beuster

Photos: Paula Mariane, Emma Beuster

 

 

 


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


How storytelling can foster healing and reconciliation

Tools for Changemakers 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Tools for Changemakers 2019

 

Marc Isserles’s poignant one-man show, We Must Save the Children, comes to life when you discover that his grandparents sought shelter at the Caux Palace in 1945 as Jewish refugees. The play took place as part of the Tools for Changemakers conference. Its message is that you have to reconcile your past if you want to change the future.

Marc Isserles is not the only one person at the Caux Forum this year whose relatives lived at the Caux Palace during World War II when it acted as a house of refuge for persecuted minorities. Shoshana Faire also walks the halls where her grandparents once sought refuge.

Marc, a Genevan lawyer and musician, and Shoshana, an Australian peacebuilder and activist, lead very different lives. But their shared history left Shoshana moved and ‘inarticulate’ after seeing Marc’s play. Its stirring story of persecution was also her grandparents’ experience, she says.

People from the Middle East, Germany and further afield approached Marc after the play to tell him how moved they were by his performance. This, he says, reiterates the fact that the labels and categories we subject ourselves to should not rob us of our capacity to be human. The only way we can work towards peace and reconciliation is through meeting people at the human level, regardless of interests, faith or ethnicity. This applies not just to the so-called refugee crisis, but also within conflict-ridden societies from Syria to Tibet. Breaking down the barriers which dismantle our ability to connect with others is the first step in dissolving hate-crime, violence and discrimination.

 

Marc Isserles Andrew Stallybrass

 

Marc cites the 2002 romantic comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding as an example of the need to recognize past prejudice, labels and stereotypes in the interest of creating peace. We must understand and reconcile with those who have been labelled as ‘others’. One of the best ways of doing this, Marc and Shoshana tell me, is through storytelling.

Shoshana tells her story through training peacebuilders. Marc tells his through musical theatre. They both admire the storytelling ethos fostered at the Caux Forum and say that is essential to help emerging generations to understand their past, so that they can incite the right type of change. Learning historical facts at school and being immersed in the reality of another person’s story are two very different methods of learning, with different outcomes. Stories can equip changemakers with the compassion they need to work for positive change.

The trauma attached to Shoshana’s family history meant that their stories were not often talked about. She tells me how important it is that trauma-healing and storytelling are fostered from a young age.

Looking forward, Marc and Shoshana agree that intergenerational dialogue is essential to forming the next generation of ‘ambassadors of tolerance’. Storytelling enables empathy and openness toward others, and so the three processes of telling personal stories, breaking down stereotypes and passing on the torch are inextricably connected. The Caux Forum fosters these processes, and that is why Marc and Shoshana come back.

 

 

 

 

Text: Emma Beuster

Photos: Leela Channer

 

 


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

YAP goes online

The Young Ambassadors Programme goes online

The Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) went online for the first time this summer, after six years of continuous growth and development and a pause in 2020 for reflection and adjustment to the new real...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...


Meet the people who serve the Caux Forum

Caux Forum 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Caux Forum 2019

 

Front stage at the Caux Forum we have plenaries, workshops, tasty meals and rooms with a view. Back stage are the 22 people who run the departments which provide beds, food and beverages, clean rooms, front desk services and technical support. Without them, there would be no Caux Forum. Nicole Walther talked to some of them.

 

Khadija Hajoui from Morocco

Kadija Hajoui

Activity: You will find Khadija at reception, working at the front desk or the cash desk. She manages, supervises and trains the 14 junior managers and interns who serve in her department. 

When not at the Forum: She recently graduated as a work and organizational psychologist.

Favourite part of the day: Mentoring the participants in the Caux Peace and Leadership Programme who work with her. She loves to witness how they grow as they face the different challenges that arise at reception.

Caux story: Khadija first worked at reception five years ago, as an intern. The following year she was offered the job of front desk manager: a responsibility which took her out of her comfort zone and which she still holds.

Why does Khadija come back to Caux?: ‘Caux is a school for me,’ she says. ‘It helped me to grow into the woman I am today.’ She sees Caux as a safe space which gives her love, coaching and the opportunity to discover herself.

Her success: She managed 28 people in five different departments last year.

If she were an animal, she would be a bird because it can fly by itself but still enjoys being in a group.

 

Victor T Nyanhete from Zimbabwe

Victor T Nyanhete

Activity: Victor mostly works in the dining room, but is in touch with all departments. He manages the setting up of the dining hall, the food service and the cleaning up. He is the person who makes sure that everyone gets what they need at mealtimes. He gives management training to the junior heads of service.

When not at the Forum: Victor recently graduated with a Masters in food biology. He now works in South Africa as a chemical scientist.

His favourite part of the day: Being responsive in helping people.

Caux story: This is Victor’s fifth time at Caux. He has always worked around the dining room. He began as an intern, came back as a sponsored participant and then as a trainer for the Caux Peace and Leadership Programme. Last year he was the buffet manager and now he is Head of Service in the hospitality department.

Why does Victor come back to Caux?: ‘Caux means to create and recreate,’ he says. ‘You create friendships and internal peace. However you can also recreate yourself by fixing the things that have gone wrong.’

His success: Last year he served 30,000 meals.

If he were an animal, he would be a koala because he likes to raise himself out of his comfort zone.

Watch a video about how Caux has inspired Victor

 

Liliana Neciu from Romania

Liliana Neciu

Activity: During the Caux Forum conferences, Lilana Neciu sits behind a big desk covered with switches, buttons and cables. She manages the light, sound and room display as part of the technical team.

When not at the Forum: Lilana is a professional opera singer. This makes her appreciate her work in Caux even more. Here she is not on stage under the spotlight but doing the work that others normally do for her.

Favourite part of the day: Having talks with people.

Caux story: This is Liliana’s third time at the Caux Forum. She first came in 2017 for the Week of International Community which prepares the Caux Palace before the conferences begin. Last year she participated in the Caux Peace and Leadership Programme and she is now Head of Service Junior of the Technical team.

Why does Liliana come back to Caux?: She loves the energy, the view and the Caux Palace. She first came to Caux at a difficult time in her life: ‘It came into my life when I needed it.’

Her success: She gave an opera concert at last year’s Addressing Europe’s Unfinished Business conference.

If she were an animal, Liliana would be a dog, as she is a faithful person who keeps her friends for life.

 

Wanda Iwan from Poland

Wanda Iwan

Activity: Wanda is a Head of Service Junior in the dining hall. She prepares the food and tables, and makes sure that everyone knows what to do before the big rush starts. She enjoys her work and the running around it involves.

When not at the Forum: Wanda is studying Economics with an interest in International law. She has set herself the goal of visiting every country in the world.

Favourite part of the day: She likes giving out the tokens that indicate participants’ diets. At breakfast she gives the participants a big smile, because ‘we are the first people they are seeing today’.

Caux story: Wanda came to the Caux Forum for the first time in 2018, as a participant in the Caux Peace and Leadership Programme. She was an intern in the dining hall.

Why does Wanda come back to Caux?: Her face lights up: ‘It is hard not to come back: partly for the people, partly for the place. Here you can give 200 per cent of yourself.’ She likes the way people support the ideas and projects that emerge during her time of silent reflection.

Her success: For her every day is a success, as she knows that people love to come for food and are happy afterwards.

If she were an animal, Wanda would be a black Robin.

 

Text & Photos: Nicole Walther

Topics
Caux Forum
Event Categories
Caux Forum

related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


Jens Wilhelmsen: IofC values as a practical tool for change

Tools for Changemakers 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Tools for Changemakers 2019

 

After fighting against the German occupation of his country, Norway, Jens Wilhelmsen worked with Initiatives of Change (IofC) in Germany and Japan. In over 70 years of fulltime work for IofC on three continents, his focus has been on trustbuilding and reconciliation. Nicole Walther met him at the Caux Forum 2019, where he spoke at the opening of the Tools for Changemakers conference.

 

Image

 

Jens Wilhelmsen was not the only person to feel a strong sense of hopelessness and dissatisfaction after the end of World War II and as the cold war began. He was losing hope that Europe would reconcile. But instead of slipping into political and personal lethargy, he came across the IofC standards of living: honesty, unselfishness, love and purity of intention. Because he could not change society around him, he used them as a tool to change himself. This gave him energy: ‘At least there is something I can do!’

Jens sat on his bed with four sheets of paper, one for every value, and started to write down all the situations where he had failed to be honest, unselfish, loving or pure. ‘As the list grew longer I had alarming thoughts: I had fooled my stepfather, stolen money and told lies to my friends in order to put myself in a good light.’ Even though it was terrifying to tell the truth to all these people, he decided to do so: ‘I had to come off my pedestal.’ As a result, his friendships got more real and he was able to reconcile with members of his family.

Jens says these standards are not a panacea and cannot instantaneously solve everything, but they ‘stir up the pieces and cause the patterns to change’. He sees such change as essential in the current social and political context, where Europe is seeing a rise in nationalism and time is running out to address the climate crisis.

‘The European Union was built on reconciliation as a promise of a pattern of nations against nationalism,’ he says. ‘At the moment economics has taken the upper hand over reconciliation. This is due to a demand for increased living standards.’ With prosperity as the focus of Europe’s society and actions, unity has been lost and nationalism rises. This pattern has to be broken, and Jens believes the four IofC values can be a powerful tool in that process.

The values of honesty, unselfishness, love and purity should not to be seen as a dogma, he says, but as a tool to frame actions related, for example, to the future of Europe and the environmental crisis. ‘They are an attempt at summing up ethics and a practical searchlight to find a better path.’

 

Text: Nicole Walter

Photos : Nicole Walther and Leela Channer


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

YAP goes online

The Young Ambassadors Programme goes online

The Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) went online for the first time this summer, after six years of continuous growth and development and a pause in 2020 for reflection and adjustment to the new real...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...


Grampari: An inspiring development programme in India

Caux Dialogue on Land and Security 2019

30/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Caux Dialogue on Land and Security 2019

 

The Grampari association was presented on Thursday 27 June 2019 during the first plenary session of the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security. Deepak Jadav who has been working with the association since 2012 spoke about several successful projects: the inclusion of women in village decision-making, the improvement of water systems and the development of agriculture. I met him the next day together with Jayashree Rao, Founder of Grampari and Archana Rao, his daughter and member of the association who simultaneously interpreted Deepak’s story from Hindi into English.

 

Grampari Deepek Jadav, Jayashree and Archano Rao CDLS 2019

 

Founded in 2007 by Jayashree Rao, Grampari is an Initiatives of Change India programme based in the Asia Plateau conference centre. Trans Asia, Arghyam and the Child Health Foundation are also partners of the association. Three themes are at the centre of the different programmes: improving quality of life through drinking water access, strengthening local institutions and the promotion of entrepreneurship.

Local communities are at the heart of the Grampari approach. The problems are initially identified by the communities who then organize village meetings. At this stage Grampari is represented by different people including farmers, engineers and scientists who contribute their expertise. The programmes are then implemented by the communities with attention paid to them taking ownership of the projects. These meetings and the resulting programmes are now an important source of inspiration. The idea of listening to everyone takes shape while the populations feel increasingly concerned by environmental problems such as fires and waste water.

For the last two years, quiet time has been a regular feature of the meetings. This practice, which is encouraged within IofC, allows important changes to come about as Deepak and Jayashree attest.

Deepak Jadav speaks about a new work ethic that he developed following quiet time. He realised that his fight against corruption had to start with him. He therefore tackled his relationship with his parents who had cut family ties because he had married a woman from Erreur ! Référence de lien hypertexte non valide.another cast. Deepak meditated and thought for a long time about his emotions. He moved from anger to understanding to forgiveness. ‘I put myself in my father’s shoes,’ he explains. Almost nine years after his marriage, his parents finally agreed to meet his wife.

Now Deepak is the coordinator for water systems and for a community capacity building programme in a village which he is passionate about. In 2014 he participated in the International Farmers’ Dialogue in India organised by Initiatives of Change India, where in particular he learnt about sustainable agricultural techniques and the role of women in agricultural development.

 

Grampari Jayashree and Archano Rao CDLS 2019

 

Jayashree Rao attended the Caux Forum for the first time when she was 18. She remembered the positive energy, the meetings with other people and the inspiration that she drew from those moments. She passed on the format of the meetings to Grampari. The meetings have proven an efficient way of bringing the villagers together. Sharing experiences and stories followed by quiet time let the villagers call into question the traditional roles and participate in reconciliation talks between themselves.

Jayashree’s daughter, Archana, has grown up with the Caux Forum experience. After studying abroad and travelling overseas for work, she participated in a women’s meeting on water problems organised by Grampari. This moment in time profoundly changed her relationship with the world and began a radical change. She left her job to take charge of the Grampari’s water project. She is now convinced by the idea that spirituality and development go hand in hand, ‘if there is any sort of change, it has to come from within’.

 

Report: Apolline Foedit

Photos:  Paula Mariane and Leela Channer

 

 


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


Journey of self-discovery

Just Governance for Human Security 2019

25/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Just Governance for Human Security 2019

 

Londoner Jonas Truneh (25) and I are sitting on a bench, watching participants in the Caux Scholars and Caux Peace and Leadership (CPLP) programmes playing something resembling football. As he deflects the ball from crushing my laptop (thank you Jonas), he describes what his experiences at Caux over the last three years have meant to him.

 

CPLP 2019 Jonah Truneh



This year, Jonas was one of the organizing team members of the Just Governance for Human Security conference (JGHS) and took part in the CPLP. His parents and grandparents have been involved in the work of IofC (then Moral Re-Armament) in Ethiopia and around the world since the 1960s. So the ideas of IofC have been a recurring motif throughout his upbringing, though his own interest was only sparked in his later school years, when he began to engage with issues of politics and social justice.

He first came to Caux in 2017, to attend JGHS, a five-day intensive conference on the fundamental pillars of human security. This coincided with his choice to study religion and politics at Kings College, London, in what he describes as a ‘culmination’ of his desire to becoming a more active global citizen.

Jonas’s curiosity was sparked by the topics covered, the speakers’ presentations and the Forum’s participatory and self-reflective ethos. He returned in 2018 as a Caux Scholar. He found the experience ‘humbling’ and ‘inspiring’; a journey of self-discovery, as part of a global network of bright and diverse young leaders. Constructive introspection and self-analysis are even more embedded in the CPLP programme, he says.

Both the CPLP and the Caux Scholars Programme (CSP) are rooted in IofC’s core values and offer the space for self-development within a framework of leadership and peacebuilding. As the names suggests, the CSP is more academic, and the CPLP more leadership-focused. Both put you in touch with yourself as well as an extensive group of intelligent young people. Jonas has maintained contact with the CSP alumni network, which he describes as a ‘base of support’ for reintegrating back into normal life after the month is out. His one regret is that the programmes are too short.

Jonas is adamant that the directors of both programmes do not get a fraction of the credit they deserve, for the effort they put in and the programmes they offer. They give support to each individual’s personal journey above and beyond what is expected. The confidence participants take away from Caux is due to the tone and ethos set by the programme directors and their teams. It is the people that make the experience, he says, and he is eternally grateful to be part of the Caux family.

I leave him in peace to finally join in the football fun.

 

Report: Emma Beuster

Photos: Paula Mariane


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


A discussion with Lisa Yasko about the importance of youth at the Caux Forum

Caux Dialogue on Land and Security 2019

25/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Caux Dialogue on Land and Security 2019

 

June 2019. It’s the fourth time that Lisa Yelyzaveta Yasko has participated in the Caux Forum. Before joining the organising team for the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security in 2018, Lisa took part in the Caux Artists Program in 2015 and the Caux Scholars Program the following year. This year she is also the Emerging Leaders Programme Coordinator which runs in parallel to the conference and aims to bring together young people who would like to be involved in promoting peace, the environment and the restoration of ecosystems.

 

Bremley Lyngdoh Tom Duncan CDLS 2019

 

‘Caux could play a big role in the future of Europe where a common goal, a raison d’être, is currently lacking,’ says Lisa. Passionate about leadership, conflict resolution and diplomacy, Lisa is convinced that the Caux Forum has great potential to develop creative solutions for Europe and the world. However, she thinks it is critical to increase the involvement of young people.

The idea of including young people in the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security is at the heart of the Emerging Leaders Programme. It aims to create a safe space where young entrepreneurs, passionate students and engaged advocates regularly come together over the course of a few days. Music, storysharing and other activities are all used to strengthen the participants’ communication and team work skills. Participants also attend the plenaries and workshops organised as part of the main conference where they can interact first-hand with the speakers.

Born in Ukraine, Lisa met John Bond, who was working for Initiatives of Change (IofC) during a security forum in Kiev in 2014. This sparked the desire to discover the Caux Forum.

After participating in the Caux Artists Program the following year, she decided to return for the Caux Scholars Program. ‘These programmes have changed my life. I’ve made many important decisions here,’ she tells me. The meetings and discussion she had during the programmes with other young people who shared her passions combined with the activities and quiet times all changed Lisa on a personal level. She has also increased her knowledge in the areas of the environment and international relations.

 

CDLS 2019 painting

 

Lisa has sought out the best education possible as can be seen in a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in political sciences from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kiev. She also has a master’s degree from Oxford and another one from Moscow. ‘I wanted to understand the world and take that knowledge back to Ukraine,’ she explains.

This year she will undoubtedly become one of the youngest members of the Ukrainian Parliament. During the Caux Forum she took the opportunity to check her knowledge of global issues and to nourish the links that she had created in previous years. For Lisa, Caux is a unique place to recharge your batteries, to take the time to understand your decisions and prepare for the next steps in your life.

 

Report: Apolline Foedit

Photos: Leela Channer


related stories

Caux IDG Forum Call workshops website square green EN

Caux Inner Development Goals Forum 2025: Call for Workshops

Call for workshops! You would like to give share your inspiration, ideas and skills with other participants at the Caux IDG Forum this summer? We look forward to your application! Applications will be...

Geneva Democracy Dialogue square EN

Democracy: a matter of choice and voice

"In a democracy, each of us carries the responsibility to engage, listen and to contribute. It is more than a political system. It is about choice and voice. How does this resonate with you?" With the...

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

Polina and Katya square faces EN

What is the meaning of home?

Amid escalating conflicts worldwide, the arts emerge as a potent force to challenge misconceptions and foster positive perspectives. The pivotal role of artists in creatively raising awareness has nev...

Ignacio India blog

Walking the Talk in Business

On 25 - 28 January, some 60 CEOs and other senior staff came together under Chatham House Rules to share personal experiences on how to balance a sustainable business with integrity and trust. Executi...

Save the date Caux Forum 2024 EN

Caux Forum 2024: Save the Date!

Save the date for the Caux Forum 2024! This summer Caux Initiatives of Change, in partnership with Initiatives of Change International and supported by other civil society networks, UN agencies, phila...

Caux Forum opening square website EN

Filling the gap in global efforts for peace and democracy

The Caux Forum 2023 Opening Ceremony set the tone for the conference with the theme, ‘Strengthening Democracy: The Journey from Trauma to Trust.’. Discover the report and relive the highlights of this...

Tsvetana 13 Sept 2023

Finding purpose and harmony through music and the Caux Palace

In a world filled with diverse cultures and languages, the journey of musician Tsvetana Petrushina is an inspiring tale of how she discovered her purpose. Her remarkable story led her to the Caux Pala...

Save the date 2023 square no date

Caux Forum 2023: Save the Date

We are excited to announce the Caux Forum will be back in Caux next summer! Find out more and save the date! ...

Arpan Yagnik

Arpan Yagnik: Mountains to climb

Arpan Yagnik, a participant of last year's Creative Leadership conference and team member of the IofC Hub 2021, talks to Mary Lean about creativity, fear and vocation. ...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

Zero waste square for social media

Sofia Syodorenko: A zero waste lifestyle is a mindful lifestyle

How did Sofia Syodorenko become involved in the zero waste movement, and what does it mean to her? Now Chair of Foundations for Freedom, she is also a representative of the Zero Waste Alliance Ukraine...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Summer Academy 2021 screenshot square

Forging a network of problem-solvers to build a secure and sustainable future

The Summer Academy on Climate, Land and Security 2021 brought together 29 participants from 20 countries. From Egypt and Senegal to the United States and Thailand, zoom windows opened for six hours ev...

Salima Mahamoudou 21 July 2021 FDFA workshop CDES 2021

Remaking a world in peril

The Caux Dialogue on Environment and Security (CDES) 2021 ran online from 20 July until 30 July, for the second consecutive year, comprising three open plenaries and seven workshops. This year’s discu...


Rebuilding Trust in Europe: An Overview

Tools for Changemakers 2019

20/07/2019
Featured Story
Off
Tools for Changemakers 2019

Caux is a place where we put the people at the center, and that is what is necessary for Europe.

Barbara Hintermann, 14 July 2019

The first edition of the ‘Tools for Changemakers’ conference took place from 14-18 July 2019 at the Caux Forum. It was based on the conclusions from the conference ‘Addressing Europe’s Unfinished Business’ and marked the beginning of a new three-year conference cycle on Europe. This year the focus was on the links between personal and collective identity from a human-centred approach. The aim was to show how to jointly rewrite a collective history based on justice and facts in order to confront rising populism and nationalism in Europe.

 

T4C sunset Caux Terrace

 

Deconstructing our personal identity            

The first two days of the conference tackled the topic of identity as a factor of inclusion and exclusion. Whilst it gives certain groups a feeling of belonging, it is also used as justification for xenophobia and rejection of others. Senator Bogdan Klich, Leader of the Opposition in the Polish Senate and Vice-President of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, also highlighted the link between the rise in nationalism, the exclusion of certain groups and the erosion of democratic systems. 

‘We must begin to go towards the people we disagree with, mistrust or fear,’ said Jens J. Wilhelmsen, who works for the Initiatives of Change movement. The process must involve all the generations, notably young leaders, and all cultures and religions to strengthen transnational movements for democracy and human rights. These ideas were at the heart of two parallel conference programmes: ‘Learning to be a Peacemaker’ and the Young Ambassadors Programme 2019.   

Sharing stories was used as a tool to encourage participants to think about their own journey and to deepen their connections with others. Mounir Beltaifa, Vice-President of Initiatives of Change International and Founder of Bridgers One, Agnes Otzelberger, trainer and facilitator, and Louie Gardiner, Director of Presence In Action (PIA) CIC Collective and Potent 6 addressed the topic of identity from the point of view of their own personal change. Understanding that we are dependent on others and our environment, is a first step towards humility and honesty but also towards a more liberated and fulfilling life. 

 

Jens Wilhelmsen

 

I’ve learnt for the first time that to heal I need the other; to heal I need my enemy.

Arshalouys Tenbelian, 16 July 2019

 

Exploring our relationships with others – our shared story

The second conference theme focused on how our feelings develop and our identity in relation to others.

‘No one is born hating, you learn how to hate; and as you learn how to hate, you can learn how to un-hate’ said Arshalouys Tenbelian, who is Armenian, a communications specialist and Co-President of the Armenian-Kurdish-Turkish peace initiative. At the Caux Forum in 2017 she met Burak Han Çevik, a Turkish immigration lawyer who works for the Consular Office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Netherlands. Their meeting and discussions let her transform her hate and for the first time ever make friends with a Turk, ‘an enemy’. This year they have worked together on the Armenian-Kurdish-Turkish Dialogue, a programme which seeks to question our prejudices in order to build peace. 

Art was also used throughout the conference to address our relationship with our past and with others. The British artist Lynne Barker explored the concept of identity and traditions through dolls as the expression of a community’s myths and values (‘National Costume Dolls Project’) while Mark Isserles explored the topic of memory in his show ‘We must save the children.’ Through songs, testimony and photos, the show tells the story of his Hungarian Jewish grand-parents journey up until their arrival in Caux in 1944. 

 

Marc Isserle

 

Re-writing a collective story 

‘We need to develop and tell a new story’ said John Bond, Secretary of Initiatives of Change International and writer, when introducing the conference’s third theme. 
After showing the impact that our personal identity has on our experiences as well as the influence others have on it, the plenary on Wednesday 17 July focused on the importance of rewriting a collective story.

‘The world lives through our stories, coming together to form a dominant narrative’ explained Jean Brown, Founder of Creators of Peace. Together with Anne-Claire Frank-Seisay, also from Creators of Peace, she led ‘Advocating for a new story,’ one of the five training tracks. They highlighted the potential of every individual in the creation of a new story. By practising deep listening and exchanging perspectives, it becomes possible to promote integrity and honesty about the past and defend peace. The values at the heart of this rewriting process are forgiveness, justice and listening.

The other training tracks focused on theatre with Olena Rosstalna and Olha Boiko, ‘Presence in Action’ with Louie Gardiner and Su Riddell, 'Sustaining your spark' with Agnes Otzelberger and 'Working with difference' with Neil Oliver to equip participants with new tools for building trust and social cohesion in their communities.

 

Jean Brown

 

History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.

Maya Angelou

 

‘Change begins with me.’ 

The first edition of the ‘Tools for Changemakers’ conference shone a spotlight on the potential of every individual to promote peace. ‘Change begins with me’: change begins with working on our own identity and our past; how we tell it, how we live with it as well as pursuing it. Change is also intrinsically linked to our relationships with others. ‘Rewriting a common story’ is therefore necessary to develop solidarity at the local, national and international levels. The second edition of the conference will continue to look at this theme whilst concentrating on dialogue. 

 

 

 

Report: Apolline Foedit
Photos: Leela Channer


related stories

Viki square EN no logo.png

Europe: A Mindset of Diversity

Spanish journalist Victoria Martín de la Torre is passionate about Europe, diversity and interfaith relations. Here she reflects on different aspects of Europe, based on her PhD research which led her...

YAP 2021 article square

Young Ambassadors Programme 2021: Learning to listen

When Indonesian law student Agustina Zahrotul Jannah discovered the Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) on Google she felt both excited and hopeless: excited because she hoped it might give her the skil...

YAP goes online

The Young Ambassadors Programme goes online

The Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) went online for the first time this summer, after six years of continuous growth and development and a pause in 2020 for reflection and adjustment to the new real...

Patrick Magee 600x600

‘Where Grieving Begins – Building Bridges after the Brighton Bomb’: a live interview with Patrick Magee

The second in Tools for Changemakers’ series of Stories for Changemakers took place on 25 August 2021, with an interview with Patrick Magee, who planted a bomb at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, in 1984, w...

Books for changemakers

Books for Changemakers

A bi-monthly drop-in book club to resource you and fellow change-makers. Dive or dip into important and inspiring resources and ideas, connect with kindred spirits and explore your inner wisdom. ...

Geneva Peace Week T4C square teaser

The Courageous Listener: Bearing Our Own Discomfort

Listening is a powerful tool that can have powerful effects on its recipient. It is also a difficult one to master. On 5 November 2020, Initiatives of Change Switzerland led an online workshop on the ...

Mohammed Abu-Nimer

Mohammed Abu-Nimer: Dialogue – Weaving peace into the fabric of society

Mohammed Abu-Nimer is Professor at the American University’s School of International Service in International Peace and Conflict Resolution in Washington DC and a Senior Advisor to the International D...

Sabica Pardesi

Learning to be a Peacemaker 2020

"I am really thankful to the person who introduced me to the Initiatives for Change programme "Learning to be a Peacemaker". It was life-changing in so many ways. It opened my eyes to things we know i...

SCreenshot keywords T4C 2020

Tools for Changemakers 2020 – Shaping the future together through dialogue

Can you truly listen? What if we all had the power to make our communities more cohesive and inclusive by starting to deeply listen to each other? The Tools for Changemakers conference was a three-day...

YAP 2019 congratulations

Fresh air for Young Ambassadors

This year’s Young Ambassadors Programme (YAP) brought 39 young people from across Europe to Caux for four intensive days of training in how to work for change in their communities. They then took part...

Armenian-Kurdish-Turkish Dialogue 2019

It takes more courage to love than to hate

The Armenian-Kurdish-Turkish Dialogue 2019 took place during the Tools for Changemakers conference, bringing together people of Armenian, Kurdish and Turkish backgrounds to explore sensitive issues th...

Jens Wilhelmsen

Jens Wilhelmsen: IofC values as a practical tool for change

After fighting against the German occupation of his country, Norway, Jens Wilhelmsen worked with Initiatives of Change (IofC) in Germany and Japan. In over 70 years of fulltime work for IofC on three ...

LPM 2019

Healing the alienation of young European Muslims

How can the alienation felt by so many young Muslims be healed? Imam Ajmal Masroor believes that the alienation stems largely from the inner conflict generated by feeling caught between two value-syst...

Marc Isserles

How storytelling can foster healing and reconciliation

Marc Isserles’s poignant one-man show, We Must Save the Children, comes to life when you discover that his grandparents sought shelter at the Caux Palace in 1945 as Jewish refugees. The play took plac...


Subscribe to