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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Laura Ingalls (laura.ingalls@worldlearning.org) in Washington, 1.202.464.6973
CONTACT Announces New South Asia Program
BRATTLEBORO, VT (October 5, 2009) -- SIT Graduate Institute's Conflict Transformation Across Cultures (CONTACT) program, a program of World Learning, is opening a satellite course in South Asia. This course is a response to the many requests from South Asian CONTACT participants in our US program. Its goal is to increase the capacity of South Asians in social, economic, and political peacebuilding, thereby establishing collaborative cross-border relationships that will contribute to sustainable peace and increased development. Some of the outstanding professors from CONTACT will join the CONTACT South Asia faculty, supplemented by experts from the region.
Forty South Asian students will be selected annually by application, based on their position, work experience, educational background, English skills, reference, and geographic location. We will seek a balance of men and women representing all eight South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries. Internationals who live and work in SAARC are also invited to apply.
The new South Asian CONTACT course, entitled Peacebuilding Training and Education for SAARC Emerging Leaders, will take place on February 7-17, 2010 in Kathmandu, Nepal.
In keeping with the years of successful experiences in Vermont, the format of the courses will be experiential and interactive, with an emphasis on community-building and multicultural sensitivity across all the critical divisions of religion, ethnicity, nationality, gender, and other salient identities.
Students who complete the program will be awarded a certificate of completion from the accredited SIT Graduate Institute, and will be networked online with more than 1,000 CONTACT graduates worldwide.
CONTACT is a short-term, concentrated training program for emerging leaders from around the world who are engaged in responding to conflict, promoting social change, and building sustainable peace. Founded in 1997, the CONTACT Summer Peacebuilding Institute is offered annually in June in Vermont, USA, on the World Learning-Brattleboro campus. With more than 1000 graduates spanning the globe, CONTACT is of proven effectiveness in educating leaders for conflict transformation, peace, and meaningful international exchange.
Application deadline for the New South Asia CONTACT program is December 1, 2009. For more information, please visit the CONTACT Web site or the South East Asia CONTACT program page.
World Learning works globally to enhance the capacity and commitment of individuals, institutions, and communities to create a more peaceful and just world through education, training and exchange programs.
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