CURRENT PROJECT

Peace Days

Peace education workshops at schools

Beispiele für Friedensmacher*innen sind beim Peace-Day-Workshop "Frieden machen, Was bedeutet Frieden?" auf einem Tisch ausgelegt.

With our workshops, we give pupils the chance to discuss the topics of peace, conflict, war and violence from different perspectives.

Timeframe: 2022 - 2025

The need for peace education in schools is great. Since 2022, the Berghof Foundation has been offering peace education workshops as Peace Days for schools in cooperation with Rotary International.

At Peace Day, selected groups of pupils are familiarised with approaches to peacemaking and participate in a constructive culture of debate. Among other things, the workshops deal with a critical approach to hate and agitation on the internet and conspiracy theories.

In everyday school life there is little time to deal with the fundamental questions surrounding the complex issues of peace, conflict, war and violence: What is conflict? How does it arise and how do I deal with it? What does peace actually mean to me and how can I work for it? This is where the Peace Days come in, by creating space and time for exchange and reflection on values, attitudes, skills and competences, as well as strategies for peacemaking action in everyday life around the world.

For this purpose, 4 workshops are offered on the following topics:

Workshop 1: Peace: Think, Feel, Act
Workshop 2: Argument culture in everyday (school) life
Workshop 3: Against hate and incitement on the internet
Workshop 4: No chance for conspiracy

Background

The Peace Days are carried out in three phases. In an online introductory event (lecture, exchange) prepared and conducted by the Berghof Foundation, teachers are first given an insight into the approach and workshop modules of the Peace Days (phase 1). Students can also be involved in the preparations. Afterwards, the Peace Day takes place in close consultation with the school administration and Rotary (phase 2). Finally, the experiences of the Peace Day are evaluated together with the students on site and further steps towards sustainable peacebuilding at the school are agreed upon (phase 3).

The Peace Days are the result of an initiative by representatives of various Rotary clubs and districts, who set themselves the goal of getting involved in the topic of peace, especially in Germany. This idea gave rise to the Peace Days concept, which was implemented for the first time in 2022.

Partners and Funders

The Peace Days are sponsored by Rotary and take place in close cooperation with the responsible Rotary clubs and districts. The trustful interaction between the Berghof Foundation, Rotary International and the respective schools enables students to gain valuable learning experiences regarding their own opinion formation and peace engagement.