YEPW In Atlanta Begins Youth Support Project In Cooperation With Local Governments In Georgia

Youth Engagement & Peacebuilding Working Group(YEPW) in Atlanta launched a project to support local youth and citizens in cooperation with IPYG, ARROW International Youth Leadership Council, and local governments in Georgia. Planned by the Working group, the “Play4Peace” project is a regular program to spread a culture of peace, harmony, and nonviolence and to strengthen youth participation and leadership.

On January 28, the first event of the project was a “Critical Community Conversions,” where youth and local leaders communicated in person and found ways to cooperate. Mayors and local government officials from each city attended and heard the voices of youth and discussed cooperation and support for the community peacebuilding projects. In particular, the event drew active support from local governments by introducing detailed plans for the “Play4Peace” project, which will run from January to June.

The programs include holding an e-sports tournament with Morehouse University Game Club in March to help youth learn the value of cooperation and sportsmanship and experience positive competition, and participating in job fairs supported by Microsoft and more at Georgia State University and Emory University in April to support local young people’s career exploration and job opportunities. Then, in June, we will hold a peace walk event with families and local citizens to spread the culture of peace.

During the conversations, the mayors of each city expressed their willingness to work together on the “Play4Peace” project. The mayor of Union City and the mayor of Jonesboro City promised to support the participation of youth through the city’s youth committee, and the mayor of Fairburn City announced his plan to provide the park and recreational facilities needed to run the program. In addition, the mayors and local government representatives shared the problems faced by several cities in the Atlanta area, and agreed with the opinions from youth that the “Play4Peace” project could contribute to solving these problems.

This event was a place to confirm that positive changes are possible when youth take the lead in striving for peace and security in the community and local governments actively cooperate. We hope YEPW in Atlanta will continue to make the foundation for cooperation to build sustainable peace in Georgia