Yes, but only if communities come together. Today in Iraq, there are not enough opportunities for that. Moreover, in a country where nearly 70 percent of the population is under the age of 30, young people must be a top priority of peacebuilding efforts.
In 2011, those ideas developed into a vision for an exciting new phase of EPIC’s work: youth and peacebuilding initiatives on the ground in Iraq.
While making that vision into a reality, we’ve seen a 5-fold increase in individual donations to EPIC since 2010. In addition, EPIC’s Board of Directors and I have personally donated more than $17,000.
At the end of a long day of hiking, Mohammed Q. shows off the strength of Iraqi youth. Photo by Ali Arkady of Metrography.
Those contributions allowed EPIC to implement its first on-the-ground youth and peacebuilding initiative in Iraq: the Iraqi Youth Hike. Offering a program of discovery and adventure, the Iraqi Youth Hike brought together a group of young Iraqis from the divided city of Kirkuk. The youth participants formed important friendships that helped–and will continue to–foster greater understanding and cooperation that can reverse the trends threatening to tear their city apart.
But let me be clear. This new phase of work requires a lot more resources and organizational capacity than we’ve required in the past.
That is why I am announcing an emergency year-end appeal. To continue EPIC’s mission of empowering Iraqi youth and promoting peace in Iraq, the Education for Peace in Iraq Center must raise $20,000 by the end of the year.
For the New Year, EPIC and I resolve to carry out more Iraqi Youth Hikes, reaching young people in war-torn Kirkuk and across Iraq. We are also developing a new program to empower young Iraqi women through team sports and leadership skills.
Iraqi youth need our support. And to meet the challenges of educating and supporting more than 21 million youth, Iraq needs organizations dedicated to building a lasting peace like EPIC.
You can help by making a charitable year-end contribution to EPIC today.
Erik Gustafson is the Executive Director of EPIC.
[...] In his blog post “Is a lasting peace in Iraq possible?”, Gustafson says it is if organizations like EPIC working to build peace have the resources. This new phase of work requires a lot more resources and organizational capacity than we’ve required in the past. [...]