Peace Education in Central America, Mexico and Colombia
The Context
Poverty is one of the main problems facing Central America. In Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador half of the population live below the poverty line. This is compounded by the serious inequality in income distribution between the poor and the rich. This makes for social tensions which persist even after the end of the long, destructive civil war. The natural disasters so typical for this area further aggravate the situation. Colombia is a special case; the land is still plagued by armed conflict, which shakes the entire state to its very roots.
One phenomenon which can be explained at least in part by this history, is the rising violence and crime in the region. The experience of violence leaves its mark on societies. Children and young people have grown up and are growing up in violent circumstances, and often unconsciously help continue and reproduce that violence. One example of this is the dramatic increase in youth gangs that are prepared to resort to violence ("maras" or "pandillas").
Objectives and Contents
In order to encourage the emergence of a culture of peaceful conflict management, the prevailing culture of violence must be overcome. Peace education aims to prevent trends towards a culture of violence. It raises the awareness of children, young people and adults to the various forms of violence, strengthens their communicative and social skills, and enables them to resolve conflicts without resorting to violence. It is one way of countering a culture of violence, and can complement broader-ranging efforts to combat the root causes of conflicts, especially poverty and the lack of any professional or occupational 
prospects. Within the framework of the program "Peace Education in Central America, Mexico and Colombia", InWEnt aims to make a contribution to developing a culture of peace. This is to take the form of incorporating concepts, methods and subject matter from the realms of peace education in school and nonformal education work. Multi-part, regional further training courses for multipliers are to be provided to this end. The major goals are to practice innovative methods of conflict management, to foster a technical exchange of experience and to network the institutions from which participants come in the long term. Every year, about 24 selected executives from the state and non-state education sectors are invited to take part. It is expected that participants will then organize further training events in their own countries with the assistance of InWEnt. The course is designed as an ongoing learning program. In between the individual program stages, assistance, a regular exchange of ideas and experience, and new ideas are available through InWEnt's learning platform, the Global Campus 21.
Publications
The publications planned within the framework of the project each tackle a certain priority topic, thus giving the specialist public documentation and an introduction to the topic.
The following works have been published to date:
InWEnt/ Las Dignas/ Pro-Búsqueda (Ed.): Educar desde la Memoria. Experiencias Pedagógicas para la Paz, la Democracia y la Equidad de Género, San Salvador 2004.
Available from:
InWEnt
Education Division 3.01
Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 40
D-53113 Bonn
Federal Republic of Germany
Another publication on the role of civil society is currently in preparation.
Educación para la paz