Over two years ago after researching Peace Revolution I realized that there was no focus on the Caribbean in general and Jamaica in particular. I contacted Peace Revolution to find out if they could also look into working in the Caribbean as there was a need to advance peace building in the region. After years of discussion I was very pleased when I heard of the Peace Revolution Tour for Peace for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Every society struggles with keeping the peace at different levels and between different factions. A peaceful society is hinged on the peacefulness of its people and that is what both RADAR and Peace Revolution promotes. With inner peace, we can begin to transfer positive energy and have a more peaceful environment.

The challenges in Jamaica range from the youth in volatile communities not being exposed to various methods to deal with the conflicts they experience on a daily basis, children in school are quick to deflect and seem to become more physical in their approaches, the issues surrounding gang violence have heighted, parents are unsure how to relate to the issues their children face and the society has become crippled with callous behavior especially against our children.

This is precisely why the Peace Revolution Tour for Peace was so important to provide an alternative through meditation for persons to work on themselves in getting a meek, calmer, and more controlled spirit. The Peace Revolution Tour for Peace was facilitated in Belretiro among children and parents, representatives from Pure Potential and youngsters from the Greenvale community. These groups were specifically chosen because they could in turn pass on the learning to better help their communities.

Children are change agents so even though they were 3-4 years old the activities done with them were useful. Some of the parents in Belretiro expressed that even though meditation was new to them they appreciated learning a new approach to empowering themselves to be more peaceful individuals. Individuals from the Pure Potential group are going through or work with persons who go through very traumatic experiences. As a helper you too have to ensure that you are as wholesome as possible before you can help so this was particularly useful for them. The youngsters in Greenvale really appreciated the exposure to meditation. Greenvale is stigmatized as a volatile community and people often belittle you once they find out you are from that community. However, much good is in Greenvale – each person just deserves a chance. Since the intervention the feedback has been good about the transference of knowledge and being able to apply meditation to their daily routine.

It starts with exposure and I am grateful for the sessions conducted by Peace Revolution as this is a stepping stone to continue promoting peace building and conflict resolution in Jamaica.

Dr. Bridgette B. Barrett – Managing Director/Lead ConsultantRADAR – the Research Agency for Development and Repositioning