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Stitching our Stories with the Women Weavers of Mampuján

October 11, 2023/in News /by admin

CDPB is delighted to partner with the Colombian Embassy in the UK, Ulster University and Conflict Textiles to host a workshop on the occasion of the Women Weavers of Mampuján visit to Belfast this November. The new Colombian Ambassador to the UK HE Roy Barreras Montealegre will also be visiting NI to meet with the political, community and business representatives and to deliver a lecture at Ulster University.

New Belfast/Good Friday Agreement online course launched

September 21, 2023/in News /by admin

To mark the International Day of Peace, CDPB has launched a brand-new online interactive course on the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. Designed for educating a global audience on Northern Ireland’s peace process, the course is open to anyone interested in British-Irish history and the Good Friday Agreement.

Stitching our Stories with the Women Weavers of Mampuján

October 11, 2023/in News /by admin

New Belfast/Good Friday Agreement online course launched

September 21, 2023/in News /by admin

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Stitching our Stories with the Women Weavers of Mampuján

October 11, 2023/in News /by admin

At the heart of the workshop are the Women Weavers of Dreams and Flavours of Peace of Mampuján. Hailing from the war-torn region of Montes de Maria in Colombia, this group of displaced women turned to the art of tapestry as a means of healing and storytelling. Rather than conventional quilts, they sewed their stories onto large tapestries drawing on Afro-Caribbean storytelling and local textile art traditions, vividly depicting the atrocities they endured as a community and their displacement experiences. The women credit the process with being central to their process of healing and re-building, enabling them to come together and to share their pain, to commemorate and to start looking forward.

The Stitching our Stories: Displacement, Healing, New Possibilities workshop, facilitated by Breege Doherty and Eva Gonzalez of Conflict Textiles, will take place on Thursday, 23rd November at Ulster University’s Belfast Campus.

The event organised in partnership with Conflict Textiles and Ulster Presents promises to be a celebration of resilience, creativity, and shared narratives. It is free of charge, and you can sign up via the Eventbrite link below. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

The workshop aims to facilitate the sharing of stories, emphasising themes of conflict, displacement, healing, individual and collective navigation of these challenges, and the opportunities they now pursue in a rapidly changing world. Additionally, attendees will have the privilege of hearing the Women Weavers of Mampuján recount their journey of establishing the Museum of Art and Memory in Mampuján, shedding light on the power of art and memory in reconciliation. Participants will also engage in a creative exercise, crafting arpillera dolls representing elements of these shared stories, with the final creations set to be presented at the Colombian Ambassador to the UK’s lecture at Ulster University.

Overall, the workshop promises to be a poignant exploration of art, memory, and the resilience of women from diverse corners of the world.

Stitching our Stories: Displacement, Healing, New Possibilities

Thursday, 23rd November | 10am to 5pm
Room BA-00-21, Ulster University, Belfast Campus
Register at: https://tinyurl.com/womenweavers

New Belfast/Good Friday Agreement online course launched

September 21, 2023/in News /by admin

With support from Dormant Accounts NI and developed by renowned journalist and broadcaster Mark Devenport, photographer Frankie Quinn, and with academic input from Professor Peter Shirlow of the Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool, the interactive course takes participants on a journey through Northern Ireland’s peace process, exploring the Agreement’s historical context, with particular focus on the Troubles, the negotiation process from which it emerged as well as the successes, failures, and lessons of the Agreement, twenty-five years on from this landmark moment in British-Irish history.

The course will also be offered for free to the Asian University for Women, representing 17 different nationalities and including a cohort of Afghani women.

The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement online course aims to enlighten and inspire peacebuilders from across the world as a notable example for political and social progress.

More information about the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement online course can be found here: https://gfa.democracyandpeace.org/

Mark Devenport, broadcaster and political commentator, said:

“The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement is not just a historical document to be studied, it is a living testament to the power of diplomacy and conflict resolution, and its lessons remain profoundly relevant for today’s world. Looking back over the 25 years since the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement was signed, I am reminded of the beacon of peace and reconciliation that it is in British-Irish history. I trust that this online course, curated for the benefit of a diverse range of people from all walks of life, will be accessible and helpful in explaining the complexities of the history of this place and the dynamics of peacebuilding”.

Kamal Ahmad, Founder, Asian University for Women, added:

“I am so pleased that this course is being offered to our students at the Asian University for Women. Our institution’s mission is to educate and empower a diverse community of women, welcoming students from all backgrounds. Given that many of our students can relate to the experiences of conflict in Northern Ireland, offering them the opportunity to study a successful peace process, despite its challenges and imperfections, is truly inspiring. I am certain that learning about the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement will imbue our future leaders with optimism and hope for a bright future”.

Baroness Margaret Ritchie, Chair, Centre for Democracy and Peace Building, said:

“With the launch of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement online course, the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building has opened a gateway to history for many individuals across the world, offering a transformative educational journey which transcends borders. By extending knowledge and fostering understanding, it is my hope that this course will empower a global community of peacemakers by drawing on Northern Ireland’s experience as a prime example of progress and reconciliation”.

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