Ghada Abdel-Kader introduces iEARN Held simultaneously for the first time in Egypt this year, the 14th conference of the International Education and Resource Network (better known as iEARN) and the 11th Youth Summit boasted 350 participants representing 55 countries. It included 150 sessions as well as presentations, performances and other displays of enthusiasm. An ambitious non-profit network aimed at empowering students and teachers to undertake projects beneficial to the welfare of both humans and the planet, iEARN started out as a state school exchange programme between New York and Russia in 1988. Currently active in 120 countries with over a million students participating as part of their education, it is now headquartered in Spain. Both week-long events were undertaken in collaboration with the Egyptian Educational Resources Association(E- era) and held at the vast, well-equipped Mubarak Educational City outside Cairo. Positing "a global dialogue for development and sustainability, connecting cultures and respecting differences", the idea is to enliven interaction between the mentors of today and the leaders of tomorrow and, by making a difference in the lives of individuals, address the root causes of global violence, intolerance and injustice. Dalia Khalil, iEARN country coordinator for Egypt, elaborated, "our message to the world is: look at modern Egypt. They know our monuments but they don't know that we have a smart village or that we teach English in first grade. The world simply doesn't know enough about us. As Egyptian citizens it is our responsibility to provide information on our country." According to Claudia Hassan, who's been teaching English in iEARN Lebanon for six years, "This is the first time iEARN has been held in an Arab country. We have 11 students and five teachers participating, presenting the project United Beyond Our Diversity, whereby groups of students with their teachers wrote about the challenges they faced as young people, and after comparing notes, wrote essays about their visions for a better future. Though they come from different countries, the challenges and visions are remarkably similar." Khalil added, "We have many NGOs committed to youth and cross-cultural understanding and they all share the same mission. Our promise to the world is that the present summit will be a landmark in the history of iEARN." Several iEARN Egypt partners like SIFE, INJAZ, IIE, My Hero, UNICEF and UNAIDS, participated in the event. SIFE, or Students in Free Enterprise, is a global NGO founded in 1975 with the aim of promoting the principles and skills of free enterprise among students on university campuses, 1,600 of which in 40 countries are now part of the project. In many cases learning, teaching and practice have palpably improved prospects as a result, raising the standard of living of millions, a process further encouraged by the globally oriented SIFE competitions. SIFE Ain Shams University, with 250 members the largest team in Africa, was launched in December 2003; its projects include Juniors in Free Enterprise. Its defining feature is dedication, with members believing in the power of the will beyond all else as they work to build leadership skills and develop team work. Side by side with NGO presentations -- Dance4Life's Sara El-Demerdash, for example, explained her organisation's efforts to counter HIV-AIDS with the help of young people in Egypt while the E-era, founded in 2005, presented its work in promoting professional development and scientific thinking. Companies like 3E Technology exhibited their educational labs and electronic games for children. For its part, the General Department for Computer Education and Technology Development Centre has been training teachers and contributing to curricula. According to Wahid Abdel-Aziz, computer instructor and supervisor on the Technical Education Programming Unit in Sayeda Zeinab, "there are 40 programming units all over Cairo. One of our achievements was creating new software for grade III curriculum in secondary commercial education, which will be distributed on CD with the textbooks in the future, testing it and training both teachers and students to use it." Among the more exciting projects was the one described by Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport student Ali Ahmed. "We used cardboard to test things out. Have you ever bought a cardboard table and chairs? That way we could play with geometric figures as much as we liked, and we used only geometric instruments and a cutter -- not a drop of glue!" Awtar wa Alwan For Laila Tawfiq, a lower middle-class divorcee, going to work while bringing up two children whose father seldom helped in any way was no piece of cake. It was her 11-year-old son, Mohamed, who gave her the most trouble. "After school he would be on the street till long after nightfall, playing football or just hanging out there. At home he would pick a fight with his sister to beat her up." It was Awtar wa Alwan NGO (Chords and Colours) that changed him. "After he joined its activities, he became another person altogether. He would come home after school and treat everyone with respect." The NGO was founded in 2005 for the benefit of seven 25-year-old residents of the Hadaba Wusta in the Muqattam Hills -- mostly relocated victims of the 1992 earthquake -- with the mandate of improving learning and thinking skills and broadening cultural horizons. According to Niveen Radi, project coordinator, "there is a new trend in Egyptian society focussing on the cultural dimension of young people's lives through exposure to art, workshops and field trips to museums, concerts and exchange programmes. We're trying to help the participants embark on a learning journey that both inspires and informs them, to provide new tools towards better living conditions, both socially and economically. Children and the young spend their spare time learning useful things rather than on the street acquiring bad habits like violence and drugs." Nor can it have been easy approaching such a community from the direction of culture. For Azza Kamel, founding director of Awtar wa Alwan, parental attitudes were an obstacle, while inducing a sense of commitment in participants was the greatest challenge. It took dedication and cleverness to use a whole range of activities -- candle, accessory and pottery making, English and computer lessons, drama, storytelling, puppet theatre, guitar and violin lessons, photography and painting -- not only to raise awareness but to improve economic prospects. Visits to, among other arts venues, Fagnoun, the Sun Bird Farm, the Townhouse Gallery and the Wadi Environmental Science Centre, helped put the activities in context. According to Omneya Mustafa, 12, one of the first children to participate, the programme was fun. "I learned many skills and made many friends. I participated in several activities like painting, needlework, pottery, computer, mosaic and photography. I love all the teachers here; they treated us very well. My parents are very proud of me. My older sister Shaimaa teaches needlework." The 11- year-old twins Heba and Mohamed Hossam found the puppet theatre a joyful experience. "We produced a play about the importance of water in our life. Before coming here, it was so boring. We either stayed at home or played on the street. Now it makes us very happy to see people laughing during our performance." Among Awtar wa Alwan's more successful projects, undertaken in collaboration with NASEEJ and Save the Children, was the Theatre of the Oppressed. Elaborated by the Brazilian director Augusto Boal, who was influenced in turn by the work of Paulo Freire, the idea is to use theatre as a means of channelling inner realities into the social and relational fields, making the public active by inviting the audience to analyse and transform the reality in which they are living. Thus it is not only about a group of young people thinking creatively about self- expression, but equally about intellectual empowerment for the whole community. According to Kamel, "the aim is to go deep inside the children and see light through their eyes. It is experimental because it is still primitive. Until now we don't know how to hold a civilised dialogue between parents and children." The theatre also serves as a platform for workshops in drama, music, painting, creative writing, storytelling and photography and facilitates productions the young people undertake all by themselves which, though characterised by simplicity, help bring awareness to the community at large, the first step on the way to resolving a given problem. Theatre of the Oppressed project coordinator Nora Saudi, 28, recounted her own experience with this form of expression. "I'd always had a problem making any kind of public statement or giving a Powerpoint presentation, for example. I used to tremble and lose the ability to speak. Now I'm far more self-confident." Since joining the project a year ago, both Dina Abdallah and Medhat Sabri, 14 and 12 respectively, now want to make a career of acting, while for Sherif, 14, the experience has effected an even deeper transformation. "I have been here for one year. I used to play on the street, something for which my older brother always beat me. Now I see his point. I am a good actor. I play the student. I've encouraged many of my friends to participate." According to Spanish theatre instructor Diana Calro Salvauès, first, one concentrates on playing in order to gain self- confidence, then working together because they are too shy to act; they don't have much flexibility. Afterwards, they are taught the principles of theatre. The third step is to work on extempore situations. Awtar wa Alwan is now working on a production of a play called Daily Life which is divided into three acts that take place in school, in the house and on the street. Problems like being beaten by teachers, private lessons and having no place to play except the street, will be highlighted. The opening will take place on 29 September in the presence of parents.
