The Program
At a time of increasing fragmentation, trust is diminishing around the world. Communities face racial and religious divides, intergenerational conflict, the rise of extremist attitudes, social divisions and the legacy of war. IofC’s Trustbuilding Program (TP) builds on decades of trustbuilding work around the world, to mobilize IofC’s resources to address global divides.
Three national teams, Kenya, Canada and France, have taken part in the first year of the Trustbuilding Program, each with their own project. The internationally based Program supports these teams with project management, fundraising, communications, evaluation and training. Each project is building counter-narratives to hate and segregation in their local contexts. The programme is also helping to develop IofC’s capacity internationally and locally.
Canada
The project in Canada focuses on Quebec and aims to create safe spaces for honest conversations between Quebecois from diverse origins, faith and backgrounds. It provides methodologies to address polarizing subjects and build joint action through understanding the historical and socio-political realities which have shaped the Province. The project was launched in 2019 with a roundtable on racial discrimination attended by 47 people.
France
OUI ACT is a response to the deep unease among young people living in low-income suburbs of Paris. They do not feel accepted and respected by French society, and this can lead to a fracture with it. OUI ACT holds weekly workshops in their schools, discussing discrimination, critical thinking, violence, civic engagement. Over 750 students have taken part, and have been encouraged to speak for themselves, think about their values, understand the society they live in and become more active and responsible citizens.
Kenya
The project addresses the causes of tension and mistrust between faiths and communities in a country which has witnessed multiple terror attacks and inter-ethnic clashes. It focuses on the coastal city of Mombasa and the north-eastern city of Garissa, where 148 students were killed by the terrorist group Al Shabaab in April 2015. The team is conducting interfaith dialogues and workshops in the two cities and their regions.
