Gerson Florez is a man committed to peace and the Founder of the Cop Colombia International, a social football club located in Usme, a vulnerable district of Bogota.
“When I was a child, I became the spokeperson of children affected by anti-personnel mines. I was nominated to several high distinctions such as the Youth Prize for Peace and Tolerance. During a trip to Norway, I met the President of the Norwegian Football Federation and discovered the Norway Cup; an international youth football tournament held in Oslo.”
“The story of COP Colombia and the story of our beneficiaries demonstrates that global efforts towards the achievement of the sustainable development goals will not be achieved without peace education programs and the meaningful participation of the youth. In the aftermath of a conflict, such as Colombia’s conflict, peace-oriented education and sport activities are essential to foster resilience and help young people to manage conflicts in a non-violent manner.”
Cristian Saénz is one of the peace animators of the PeacemakersProject in Colombia, alongside the NGO Cop Colombia International. Cristian has been playing football for as long as he can remember, and his passion for football goes above all else. He said that “we need to believe in ourselves to achieve our dreams, and this is something that I want to teach to children. When I was younger, I wanted to become a professional soccer player. Today, my dream is to continue working as a sport trainer, and to help children to achieve their dreams through sport.” He also added “Usme, my hometown, needs more sports facilities. For all sports, and not only for soccer. Over the last few years, Colombian institutions have made efforts to provide more sports trainings in all sports disciplines. I believe that it is a good way to help build a better future for our country.”
Julieth Alejandra Fuquene Alarcón, peace animator of the Peacemakers Project alongside Cop Colombia International, shared with us her passion for sports and how she wants to support children in her community. She practices taekwondo since the age of 10 and she started to practice football at 16 years old. In her free time, she likes to practice other sports such as tennis, volleyball, basketball, and sometimes archery. In the future, she would like to keep teaching football to kids. Working with children inspires her. With them, she feels that she is growing and learning new things every day.
Since December 2021, the #PeacemakersProject is implemented in 4 schools in Rwanda in partnership with AKWOS – the Organization of Kigali Women in Sports. Clementine Kagarama is a teacher and peace animator in Ape Rugunga School, in Kigali.
Thacien Uwagirinshuti is a teacher at Sainte Famille School, a primary and secondary school located in Kigali, Rwanda. He explains how children’s behavior can change thanks to the peace-through-sport sessions of the Peace and Sport Methodology.
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