Right to Reconciliation
“Right to Reconciliation” (Oikeus Sovintoon) is a project that KCF supported in Finland from 2020 to 2023. It is a collaborative project between the Finnish Forum for Mediation (Suomen Sovittelufoorumi), the #reconciliation (#sovinto) and KONE Centennial Foundation (KCF).
The project believes: young people have ability to promote reconciliation and peace in society; they have tacit knowledge and understanding of why conflicts arise; they also have a vision of how conflict situations can be prevented and resolved. Therefore, the project provides an opportunity for young people to demonstrate their expertise and participate in peace-building and conflict prevention.
The aim of the project is to empower young people to raise their voices about issues and solutions regarding bullying and violence, helping them develop expertise in resolving conflicts and supporting youth-based initiatives to improve cross-cultural relationships.
From August 2021 to March 2024, the project brought together a core group of young people. They worked together to share individual experiences, collect ideas, plan and implement various solutions that bring young people's voices and expertise to the public discussion on violence and bullying. At the same time, young people from diverse backgrounds received training to grow their skills in dealing with conflicts, bullying and violence. These young people have been able to apply their learnings in personal lives, facilitate peer mediation training, make a positive impact in their own communities.
As part of the Oikeus Sovintoon project, a workshop with young volunteers was held in 2023 to discuss and practice how to support children and youngsters in different kinds of group activities to manage feelings and experiences while dealing with bullying. The workshop took place in Tampere, Finland.
In addition to participating in multiple public events, and organising 60 different meetings and peer support workshops, outputs of the project also include a manual “A GUIDE TO SUPPORT YOUTH COMMUNITIES WITH BULLYING AND CONFLICT HANDLING“
Learn more:
Project webpage: https://sovittelu.com/oikeus-sovintoon-hanke/
Project Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/oikeussovintoon
Project kickoff webinar announcement: https://sovittelu.com/2021/09/21/osallistu-oikeus-sovintoon-hankkeen-kickoff-webinaariin/