The brave women and men of our Interfaith Peacemaker Teams stand up to forces that destroy peace in their communites. OMNIA’s training teaches them how to create interfaith relationships, speak truth to power, and organize collaborative actions. We’ve trained more than 3,000 leaders who have launched 138 Interfaith Peacemaker Teams across three countries.
Will you join our leaders as they…
STAND UP TO ENTRENCHED PATRIARCHY
In Shibaloy, Bangladesh, the women of the Interfaith Peacemaker Team stood up to the male-dominated justice system. They spoke up when a man entered into a fraudulent marriage with a 16 year-old girl. When the courts would not provide a remedy, they applied heavy social pressure, forcing him to annul the marriage and return her dowry.
STAND UP TO RELIGIOUS BIGOTRY
In Valachchinai Sri Lanka, Tayyib Mohamed, a teacher, politician, and IP Team leader, stood up to religious bigotry in his community. His IP Team organized dialogues with Buddhists and Muslims. When language barriers got in the way, he organized language lessons.
STAND UP TO COVID-19
In Nigeria, eighteen nursing students in the Gombe School of Nursing, all trained as Interfaith Peacemakers, stood up to Covid-19. They visited IP Teams in 26 villages and engaged Team leaders, pastors, and imams in speaking forthrightly to their congregations about the virus.
…and so much more. With 124 Teams, the array of forces they stand up to is as diverse as they are.
This movement is growing! Demand for our trainings spreads steadily through word of mouth. Neighboring villages and community leaders hear about our Teams and ask us to train them too.
Bangladesh has just added 14 new IP Teams. Sri Lanka reports that 6 new Teams are forming – all despite the Covid-19 slowdown. We’ve been invited to build teams in India, Kenya, and Uganda.
You can stand with them
by providing the financial support that brings training for new teams and ongoing support for our current leaders. Our goal is to raise $85,000 by December 31, 2020. We are already at $25,592 as of October 26. With your support we will:
Increase capacity to train Peacemakers
We’re adjusting to new realities of Covid-19. Our local trainers in the three countries are receiving refresher courses via Zoom. They are training new leaders in their communities and requiring masks and social distancing at all in-person trainings.
Maintain vital communication with and support for every IP Team
Volunteers on each Team and new National Impact Reporters will get the stories and data we need to scale up and understand what our Teams need to have an even greater impact.
Maximize the potential for peace through ongoing support
We’ll hire National Organizers in each country to help our Teams collaborate on joint projects, overcome obstacles, and access local, national, and international resources on critical issues. In Nigeria, for example, we’re bringing together resources to train a cohort of six Teams in managing the construction, administration, and upkeep of a deep-well that will provide clean water to the people in their villages.