The PEACE Programmes Learning Platform Level 1

Celebrating Diversity Project will be based at The Stephenstown Pond Project, Knockbridge, Dundalk. Two groups of second level students have requested to be involved with the project. They are a group of students from both sides of the border on the island of Ireland who come from disadvantaged backgrounds and communities who have lived through the Northern troubles and have experienced racism and sectarianism at first hand over the past fifty years as many of the families would have left Northern Ireland in the height of the troubles and moved to the South. The two groups of second level students who will form the Celebrating Diversity Project to be facilitated at the healthy and safe environs of The Stephenstown Pond Project are pupils from The Bush Vocational School situated in the heart of the Cooley Peninsula in North County Louth and St Joseph's High School, Newry, Co. Down. Both groups of young people will work together over a three month period from September to November, 2009 for a shared common goal. It is recognised that there will be a requirement for pre-development training in the area of Cross Border Cross Community Conflict Resolution training, Respecting Confidentiality, Agreeing of Contracts etc. Celebrating Diversity will be an educational and developmental workshops based project that will in general work through the medium of music and art (as music has transcended all cultures and diversities throughout time). The project will involve the young people who are the project participants during all levels of design, implementation and delivery. Celebrating Diversity will include the professional recording of one original song (written with a Peace theme) plus three other songs of the participants selection, this will form part of the developmental workshop process. The young people will sing on the recording of the CD. They will be learning as they go along all aspects of what they are doing. The result of the project will be that the young people will have learned how they can work and live together in peace on the island of Ireland in the long term through the Celebrating Diversity Project as they will have worked together and spent time together for a shared common goal. The project will provide added value as the end product will be a professionally recorded CD that will include original material based on a Peace theme plus other songs. The recording will be supported by International Singer and Recording Artist, Mary black compiling the sleeve notes and added her support for this Celebrating Diversity Project. This will then be available to the young people who participate in the project, their schools, their families, the greater community and on a global scale it will be a useful marketing tool to promote the positive outcomes of any EU PEACE III funds that might be awarded to this project as it will demonstrate a good model of development that creates positive outcomes at local level in the area of racism and sectarianism. The project will include weekly internal reviews and external evaluation.