The Slifka Program, Coexistence International, and Theatre Without Borders present:

Acting Together on the World Stage:Setting the Scene for Peace
Actuando Juntos: Trabajando Por la Paz en el Escenario Mundial

On Sunday, October 7th, from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm, six problem-solving workshops will be convened in which theatre artists, coexistence/peacebuilding practitioners, policymakers, and sustainable development workers will meet together to think creatively about a problem in a particular community or conflict region, bringing the theoretical and practical perspectives of their various disciplines. Graduate students in Coexistence and Conflict, Cultural Productions, Sustainable International Development, and the Arts Programs will be invited to participate in these problem-solving laboratories. Participation is by invitation only. Lunch will be provided.

The objectives of these workshops, in general, are:

• to provide an opportunity for theatre artists (particularly those involved in the theatre/peacebuilding anthology project), coexistence/peacebuilding practitioners, and sustainable development workers to explore the possibilities and challenges of collaboration across their disciplines by engaging them in focused conversation around a particular problem.
• to generate ideas, action plans, and/or recommendations and facilitate relationships that, where feasible, will be of use to parties working to improve conditions in a particular region or in relation to a particular problem.
• to generate material for documents that would be of use in CI's efforts to promote complementarity in the coexistence field, such as exercises and curricula for classes and training programs.

Action plans and recommendations will be developed in relation to:

• Inter-ethnic relations in post-war Serbia
  This workshop will focus on the role of civil society and, in particular, cultural organizations and artists, in strengthening inter-ethnic relations in Serbia. It is animated by the experiences and the on-going commitments of Dah Teatar Research Centre in Belgrade - whose motto is “In the contemporary world, destruction and violence can only be opposed by the creation of sense” -  and the Project on Ethnic Relations, an NGO dedicated to reducing inter-ethnic conflict in Central and Eastern Europe and in the former Soviet Union.  The workshop will focus on complementary and creative approaches that can effectively engage theatre artists and coexistence practitioners in Serbia and their colleagues in the United States in an effort to improve inter-ethnic relations in Serbia.
• Safety among immigrant communities in Waltham, MA
  Leaders of Waltham immigrant communities have framed this workshop to explore creative ways to address pressing concerns about safety and security, particularly among women. The workshop builds on a growing relationship between Brandeis University and Waltham communities; conversation will also draw on the expertise of theatre artists who have worked with immigrant communities in other parts of the world. This conversation will generate ideas for effective action that can be taken to increase the safety of people in local immigrant communities and also strengthen the relationship between members of the Brandeis community and the university’s neighbors.
• Improving understanding between Tamil and Sinhalese artists in Sri Lanka
  As the level of violence in Sri Lanka has escalated over the past months, many people in the peacebuilding field ask themselves about points of entry: where is it possible to engage with this conflict in such a way that the level of violence might be reduced or that the prospects for peace might improve? This workshop takes as a starting point a proposal emerging from CI’s theatre and peacebuilding project, namely that collaboration between the increasingly isolated and targeted theatre artists from the Tamil and Sinhalese communities in Sri Lanka might provide such a starting point.  A number of significant and influential theatre initiatives have been produced on this divided island, but very few Sinhalese and Tamil performance artists are able to find ways to collaborate or to have a collective impact on intercommunal coexistence issues.  In fact, even pro-peace theatre artists on both sides are unaware of how those in the other community interpret theatrical works. Workshop participants will consider whether or not creative and complementary approaches can be used to reduce the current escalation of violence and empower constituencies for peace in Sri Lanka. If they agree that theatre artists might be able to play a more positive role, participants will be asked to brainstorm the design of such a project and to develop action steps to be developed into proposals for funding and support. Preliminary discussions indicate that a gathering of Tamil and Singhalese theatre artists (possibly outside of Sri Lanka) would be useful. Such a project could include working with Diaspora communities.
• Iranian-US-Israeli relations (Diaspora focus)
  A play, Benedictus, is a joint production of Iranian, Israeli, and American theatre artists who share concerns about the escalating tensions as evidenced by the harsh rhetoric coming from the government officials in Iran, Israel, and the U.S.  The theatre artists involved in this production welcome interaction with coexistence practitioners and others with expertise in relevant history, culture, and politics, to assist them in assessing their work and its potential as a resource for re-humanizing members of these adversary communities in each others’ eyes and for influencing policy (U.S. policies in particular) in order to minimize the possibility of a violent encounter between their countries.  They also invite coexistence practitioners and peacebuilders to examine the possibilities of artistic expression in relation to peacebuilding in the region.
• Transitional justice efforts in West Africa
  The workshop will build on experiences and challenges of transitional justice practitioners in West Africa.  We will generate ideas for maximizing the impact of creative and complementary approaches among those involved in transitional justice, human rights, and coexistence and cultural work in several countries in West Africa that have recently emerged from violent conflict.  We will explore and imagine how culture and the arts can strengthen transitional justice processes and make them more sensitive to cultural differences.
• Creativity, Social Development, and Peacebuilding in East Africa
  This workshop will focus on projects already underway or currently being envisioned by several of the participants. These include an international school in Kenya, a performance festival in Uganda, an Interdisciplinary Genocide Studies Center in Rwanda, and a women’s economic development and conflict transformation project in Tanzania. Participants will briefly share experiences, ideas, and plans.  The group will focus creative thinking on each project, and explore common themes such as issues of gender, the need for partnerships, and possibilities for collaboration.