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Stewarding, Peacelines
Two new pamphlets from the Community Development Centre in North Belfast are valuable updates in relation to stewarding and to work in interface areas in Northern Ireland. The one on stewarding is entitled ‘Stewarding crowds and managing public safety: developing a co-ordinated policy for Northern Ireland’ by Neil Jarman and Dominic Bryan. This 28-page pamphlet looks at stewarding in a variety of contexts (e.g. football, door stewarding) and country (South Africa, Britain, Northern Ireland) and at recent developments (Apprentice Boys stewarding, Patten report) and recommendations. The other pamphlet, also 28 pages and co-authored this time by Neil Jarman and Chris O'Halloran, is ‘Peacelines or battlefields: Responding to Violence in Interface Areas’. It gives a good summary on the characteristics of, and problems affecting, interface areas and some of the approaches which have been developed, including phone networks across the divide; there are also conclusions and recommendations. Both pamphlets have bibliographies and are available from: Community Development Centre, 22 Cliftonville Road, Belfast BT14 6JX, phone 028 - 9028 4400, Fax: 9028 4401, email: info@cdcnb.org and their website is at www.cdcnb.org

ICJP: Responding To Racism
The Irish Commission for Justice and Peace is organising a conference on 'Responding to Racism: A challenge and a task for the Catholic Community' on Thursday 8th February at Gort Muire Conference Centre, Ballinteer, Dublin. Speakers include Kieran O'Mahony and Fr Kevin Doran. The purpose is to explore the scriptural and doctrinal basis for the Catholic Church's opposition to racism and to work towards a definition of 'good practice' in the everyday life of the Catholic community in welcoming the stranger and opposing racism. This newsletter may be out too late for anyone hearing about it anew to participate but this item is included for your information. Contact: Irish Commission for Justice and Peace, 169 Booterstown Avenue, Blackrock, Co Dublin. Tel: 01 - 288 5021 / 288 3866, Fax: 283 4161, email: peaceeducation@eircom.net

Peace Process, War Process: The Arms Trade And Local Involvement
The spotlight on local involvement in the arms trade comes to Belfast on Saturday 24th March when INNATE is organising a seminar with this title from 10 am - 4.15 pm at Friends Meeting House, Frederick Street. Speakers include Joe Murray of AFrI, Peter Doran of Foyle Ethical Investment Campaign, and Kevin Mullen of CAAT/Campaign Against Arms Trade in Britain. There will be a choice of workshops which will look at general campaigning on the issue, alternatives to arms, Iraq, and Belfast's biggest bomb factory (Shorts Missile Systems). The fee for the day is £5 or £3 unwaged; anyone interested welcome. Details from INNATE (leaflet giving further detailsand booking form available on request) - addresses at end or Tel/Fax: 028 (048 from Republic) - 90 64 71 06.

AVP goes North, North goes AVP
There are plans to get AVP/Alternatives to Violence Project going in Northern Ireland - it has been running community and prison workshops in the Republic for years (see e.g. NN82) to help individuals discover nonviolent solutions within themselves. If you'd like more details, or to be kept in touch with dates for training workshops, contact Christy Bischoff, 028 - 90 71 45 00 or email: christybischoff@hotmail.com or Karen Watton, phone 028 - 90 20 19 95 or email: w1574999@qub.ac.uk

EMU Promoting School Project
EMU PSP's Biennial Review for 1998 - 2000 (48 pages, A4) gives a detailed account of work which this project has been doing over the last couple of years with pieces written by twenty different people - project members, teachers and others. Contact the office about copies. EMU PSP ('a quare name but great stuff' as the radio ad for a veterinary medicine used to say - Ed) has four programme areas it has been working on since 1998;

1. Primary Values, a literacy based resource for primary schools using Circle Time
2. School in the Community, a partnership approach to looking at the school as community and then how it relates more widely
3. Peer Mediation, in primary schools, and currently trying to build a more strategic approach to this, and;
4. Time to Listen, working to improve community relations in post primary schools in Craigavon. EMU PSP, Magee College, Northland Road, Londonderry BT48 7JL, Tel: 028 - 7137 5225, Fax: 7137 5550, email: emu@ulst.ac.uk web http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/emu/

INCORE, Centre for the Study of Conflict
INCORE has a new Local-International Learning Project with Helena RalTel: as project officer (tel: 028 - 7137 5516, email: helena@incore.ulst.ac.uk); this in its pilot phase (to September) will facilitate collaborative practice by organisations and communities in Northern Ireland and will include up to six workshops, international study visits and conferences aimed at a wide variety of NGO, state and para-state workers. The project will develop an agenda of learning needs to further enhance good practice in conflict resolution. INCORE also has available the remaining publications from the Centre for the Study of Conflict at Coleraine (see below); these are available from Lyn Moffett for the cost of postage (they aim to put them on their CAIN website as they go out of print). INCORE, Aberfoyle House, Northland Road, Derry/Londonderry BT48 7JA, Tel: 028 - 7137 5500, Fax: 7137 5510, web http://www.incore.ulst.ac.uk

Peace People
The Peace People held their AGM on 20th January and the following are the newly elected Executive officers: Gerry Grehan, Chairperson; Michael Woods, Secretary; Frances Brady, Treasurer; Heinz Titsmar and Gerry Millar were also co-opted to serve on the Executive Committee. Individuals are reminded to renew their annual membership as soon as possible and are invited to attend the monthly meeting of the Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence Campaign at 6.30pm on the first Monday of the month, followed by the Meditation Group meeting at 7.30pm. We welcome anyone interested in volunteering opportunities. For further information, please contact Peace People at 028 - 9066 34365 or email: info@peacepeople.com

Stairway - Transformation Consultants
Stairway - Transformation Consultants is the new consultancy and mediation service for local, international, public, private and voluntary organisations headed up by Michael Doherty. Its mediation service offers help with disputes in relation to work, neighbours/landlords/tenants, community, commercial, cultural areas and relationships. Stairway (to Heaven? - Ed!) also provides accredited training programmes in relation to a wide range of topics concerning conflict, mediation, prejudice and diversity, leadership and facilitation, trauma etc. For further details contact; Michael Doherty, Stairway - Transformation Consultants, 10 Bishop Street, Derry/Londonderry BT48 6PW, Tel: 028 - 71 261941, Fax: 71 269332, mobile 0771 - 4982546. email: stairwayconsultancy@hotmail.com

VSI/IVS/SCI/VSO/RSVP/ASAP - Programme home & abroad, World Voices
VSI and IVS, respectively the Southern and Northern branches of SCI/Service Civil International have a variety of programme opportunities coming up in the spring and summer. Both are currently taking applications for their Africa/Asia/Latin America Exchange Programme for 2-month practical work, summer or winter; there is comprehensive preparation and participants need to be 21+ with voluntary/community experience etc. Both are also seeking suitable projects for inclusion in their International Volunteer Projects in Ireland 2001 programme - last year this helped a wide range of voluntary and community groups to get projects completed. Ideas? Could a team of international volunteers help? Contact; VSI (Deirdre Healy), 30 Mountjoy Square, Dublin 1, Tel: 01 - 855 1011, Fax: 855 1012, email: vsi@iol.ie and IVS (Colin McKinty), 122 Great Victoria Street, Belfast BT2 7BG, Tel: 028 - 9023 8147, Fax: 9024 4356, email: colin@ivsni.co.uk

Meanwhile IVS and the VSO (Voluntary Service Overseas) local group in Belfast are organising a World Voices Film Festival in Belfast from 26 - 31 March at various venues with music, films, photos, workshops etc; contact Miresi Busana/Paula McIlwaine for info, Tel/Fax: 028 - 9032 8872, email: paula@vsonthnireland.demon.co.uk

Teaching Shared History; Meath Peace Group
'Teaching our shared history' is the topic of a public talk (all invited) on Monday 12th February at 8pm in St Columban's College, Dalgan Park, Navan. Speakers are Ruairi Quinn TD, Dr Kenneth Milne, Dr Michael Farry, John Lowry, and chaired by David Robertson. Dalgan Park is on the Dublin/Navan road (N3) about 3 miles before Navan coming from Dublin. Further info; Julitta Clancy, Batterstown, Co Meath, Tel: 01 - 8259438, or Pauline Ryan at 046 - 21159.

Big International Conference For Ireland
The War Resisters International/WRI Triennial conference in July 2002, on the theme 'Stories and Strategies: nonviolent resistance and peacebuilding' will take place in the Dublin area with up to 400 participants, perhaps 300 from outside Ireland. A home stay programme will maximise interaction between international and Irish activists. Information and updates will appear on this website (check the home page) or contact INNATE.