Peace Channel conducted a session on “Peer Mediation” on 28th August 2022 with the youths of St. Joseph Church Samaguri aiming at making individuals understand the importance of resolving conflict through non-violent communication; it also aimed to make the communities and families a place of peace and promote harmonious living among all; to become a more healthy, positive, and safe learning environment by empowering students to manage conflict, transform relationships and enhance school climate. The resource person for the event was Ms. Toviholi, Coordinator Dimapur District. She spoke about Peer Mediation as a conflict resolution tool that will make Nagaland a model state for a peace in the country. She elucidated that Peer mediation is both a process and programme, where individuals of the same age-group facilitate resolving disputes between two people or small groups and how we as a youth have to play pivotal role in bringing change. She further gave a detailed explanation about Peer Mediation Forum (PMF), one of the major activities of Peace Channel with the youths. Peer Mediation Forum is a space where the members will be empowered to resolve conflict in their own lives, families and educational institutions and make them the messengers of peace in the conflict situations and prevent them in getting in to violent conflicts. The process of peer mediation will make the members to improve self-esteem, listening and critical thinking skills, and enhance the college climate for learning, as well as reduce disciplinary actions and fights. PMF should be able to intervene in issues related to social media, domestic violence, relationship difficulties/harassment, rumours and gossip, cheating and stealing, gang fight, racial and cultural confrontations, vandalism, classroom or extracurricular disputes, bullying, minor assaults and fighting. Thus, she concluded her session by saying that the ultimate objective of all the PMF is to make the educational institutions, communities and families a place of peace and promote harmonious living among all.
The program concluded with the forum vouching to become a channel of Peace, to promote and share about peace towards the achievement of 2030 vision of peace movement.
