Originally published in the Fall 2020 issue of Grebel Now.
The theme of the 2020 United Nations International Day of Peace, “Shaping Peace Together,” resonated with the mission of the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement. Essential to the spirit of the Centre is a shared understanding of collaborative peacebuilding, which has laid the groundwork for our community’s resiliency throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Through September and October, the Centre gathered more than fifteen participants, research fellows, staff members, and community partners in physically-distant Circle conversations where they spoke authentically about their journeys in peace and justice work. To share this story with a broader audience, small pieces of these conversations were captured in a three-part video series.
In response to the Centre’s desire to increase opportunities for connection among its participants in this time of physical isolation, Michelle Jackett, Centre for Peace Advancement Coordinator, drew from her restorative justice background to develop this Circle series.
“Circle is a space that I have come to love because I am invited to be all of who I am,” said Jackett. “I wanted to open a space like this up for my colleagues in the Centre for Peace Advancement and invite meaningful connection in the midst of these isolating times.”
The Centre community is a diverse group of Waterloo Region changemakers—from entrepreneurs to policy researchers to peace practitioners—who are unified by their commitment to collaborative peacebuilding. This series displays the heartbeat of the Centre, and was made possible by the support of Kindred Credit Union.