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Since the inception of the Centre for Peace Advancement in 2014, student engagement has been a critical part of the Centre’s mission to advance collaborative and innovative understandings and practices of peace. The Kindred Peace Innovators Scholarship and Mentoring Program, in collaboration with Kindred Credit Union and The Ripple Effect Education (TREE), a Core Collaborator, gives high school students across Ontario the opportunity to bring their peacebuilding ideas into reality and provide a starting point for making positive change in their communities.  

Hair is an essential part of self-identity for people across the world. Whether it is through length, style, or colour, hair choices are an extension of one's self-identity. This makes places such as barber shops and salons sacred places where people put their hair in the trusted hands of professionals. Unfortunately, not everyone has this luxury, as Black women suffer from the lack of access to who know how to work with afro-curly hair. “I walked into 15 different hair salons and all of them turned me away,” explained Aileen Agada, Co-Founder and CEO of BeBlended. “From my own experience, I could not find a hairstylist because they did not know how to work on Afro curly hair texture.”

“I believe that human beings connect with one another through story” said Anandi Carroll-Woolery, a former X Page participant and this year’s co-ordinator of the program. Stories written in the X Page Workshop begin with a word or a phrase to elicit memory. The images become a space everyone can enter using all their senses, in keeping with the teaching and philosophy of cartoonist Lynda Barry. Detailed memories are written down and form the basis of the story, which eventually becomes a live performance. The X Page Workshop opens a space for refugee and immigrant women to come together and empower one another through narratives. Newcomer women are invited to register for the next workshop by February 28, and all are welcome to see their powerful performances this summer. 

Rapid technology innovations impact all areas of international affairs, making good governance and effective policies more important than ever before. The Balsillie School of International Affairs, with support from the Balsillie Family Foundation, has established the Technology Governance Initiative (TGI) to prepare students to address these rapid changes in the modern world. The Balsillie School’s focus on global governance and international public policy aligns with the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement’s mission to advance peace through collaboration, creating a connection for individuals looking to contribute to positive change. 

“The world of work today is defined by disruptive business models, flattened hierarchies, integrated networks of teams, and global hiring practices. As a result, the workplace is more diverse than ever before,” explained Grebel alum Wali Muhammad, who studied in the Master of Peace and Conflict Studies program at Grebel. "When people from diverse backgrounds try to work together as teams, it creates a huge potential for conflict. Simple misunderstandings often result in wasted potential and depleted team performance.” For more than 10 years, Wali has worked to fix this persistent problem of cultural incompatibility.

Later this month the Tamarack Institute will be welcoming the 2024 cohort of the Changemaker Experience program—a seven-part workshop series designed to enhance the leadership skills of individuals making a positive impact in their communities. As a Core Collaborator of the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement, Tamarack aligns with Centre's mission, emphasizing collaborative strategies to address community issues in Canada and globally. The Centre for Peace Advancement serves as a collaborative space for organizations and innovators committed to advancing peace. 

As the Kindred Centre for Peace Advancement community embarks on a new term, there are many new interns and co-op students joining the effort. The ideas, insights, and energy provided by these students will contribute to the innovative spirit of organizations affiliated with the Centre and enable them to grow their impact.  

As 2024 begins, the sixth annual Map the System competition is in full swing at the University of Waterloo. The Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement team is facilitating events for students to learn more about the competition with the help of Jordan Li, this year’s Map the System Campus Lead.