Alumni

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) starts from the ground-up. This is why community-based research is vital in working toward these 2030 goals, as outlined by the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement has teamed up with the Centre for Community-Based Research (CCBR) to create resources on localizing the SDGs for grassroots communities, small start-ups, and community-based organizations.

As part of a thriving innovation ecosystem, the Grebel Peace Incubator at the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement provides students with opportunities to apply their knowledge beyond academia. Access to Mitacs funding and a diverse, collaborative network of innovators allows participants like Majid Mirza, Sean Campbell, and Brendan Wylie-Toal to pursue entrepreneurship and education at the same time, helping them bring their initiatives to market more efficiently and effectively. 

On Thursday, April 7th, 2022, the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement hosted the University of Waterloo’s Map the System campus finals for the fourth time, welcoming undergraduate and graduate students from all faculties to explore some of the world’s most pressing issues using systems-thinking methodologies.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine commenced on February 24, 2022, the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement community has watched the devastating conflict unfold with concern. In response, Centre community members have engaged in peacebuilding efforts through advocacy, relief efforts, scholarship and dialogue.  

On March 14, 2022 Voices Together: A Celebration of Art and Music officially opened at the Grebel Gallery. After travelling from Bethel College to Eastern Mennonite University, the original art found in the Voices Together Mennonite hymnal reached Conrad Grebel University College for its only Canadian stop along its tour of Mennonite colleges in North America.

Co-founded in 2015 by Jessica Reesor-Rempel and Chris Brnjas, Pastors in Exile (PiE) was one of the Grebel Peace Incubator’s first participants. Seven years later, PiE continues to bring young adults from across Waterloo Region together through candid conversations about peacebuilding and spirituality in modern contexts. What started as a safe space for young adults to explore their faith has presented Reesor-Rempel with a wealth of experiences that guide her approach to connecting with others as Grebel’s Interim Chaplain.

Since last Spring, the 2021-2022 cohort of Peace Innovators have been hard at work identifying challenges in their community, learning about the context surrounding these problems, and designing solutions to cultivate positive change. On a snowy Saturday in January, the high school students gathered virtually to participate in the first ever Peace Innovators Pitching Panel to request start-up funding for their projects.

In the Fall of 2019, artist Yasmeen Nematt Alla was finalizing preparations to install Not Traumatic Enough for a Shock Blanket onto the crisp white walls of the Grebel Gallery. The bright orange blankets with words stitched onto them would surely stand out in the thorough-fare space, a stark contrast from the drones and weapons of warfare exhibit that covered the walls for months prior.

Since 2014, The Grebel Peace Incubator has supported two dozen peace start-ups as they innovate solutions to address local and global community challenges. During the fall term, the Centre for Peace Advancement was overjoyed to welcome two new ventures: Green Care Farms Inc. and BeBlended.

Since the launch of the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement in 2014, our staff, participants, and partners marked the United Nations International C by celebrating innovative solutions to complex problems, advocacy to press decision-makers to work for justice, and efforts to bring communities together around the world. While the Centre encountered unanticipated challenges along the way, we never wavered in our mission to catalyze collaboration.