The History of "Are We Together?"
The original curriculum was spearheaded by the late Canadian peace educator, Marg Huber. With war orphans from Uganda, Marg incorporated Ugandan folk stories, the African concept of Ubuntu, with universal values, communication, and conflict resolution skills. Together, they taught over 7,500 secondary students how to collaborate and resolve conflicts peacefully, at a time when Uganda was reeling from the effects of the Lord's Resistance Army. The impact was transformative. As schools became safe havens, the students adopted the motto, "the real heroes are the peacebuilders." Marg passed the "torch" to CryPeace, and we collaborated on updating the "Are We Together?" curriculum. Unfortunately, Marg passed away before she saw it relaunched in her beloved Uganda in 2024.
The real heroes are the peacebuilders.
The "Are We Together?" Peaceful Relationships Curriculum
“Are We Together?” teaches universal values and conflict resolution skills in a fun an engaging way, using dialogue, drama, games and sharing circles. Its twelve units provide practical experience expressing self-confidence, respect, and empathy, equipping participants to resolve life’s problems cooperatively and peacefully.
Course Units
1: Peace, the Self and Relationships
2: The Values of Love and Respect
3: Listening Skills
4: Assertiveness and the Value of Humility
5: Dialogue and the Values of Responsibility and Honesty
6: Conflict Resolution
7: Dealing with Anger
8: Non-Violence and the Value of Tolerance
9: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
10: Living in Community and the Value of Cooperation
11: Decision-Making and the Value of Unity
12: Living in Harmony with the Environment
The course includes 72 hours of interactive activities. It can be taught one to two hours per school week over two years, 90 minutes per week for 48 weeks, or more intensively during school breaks.
Peace Education is a Global Priority
Peace is more than the absence of conflict; it is the presence of conditions that enable everyone to thrive. The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) defines “positive peace” as the attitudes, institutions and structures that sustain peaceful societies. Peace is essential for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and enabling a harmonious society.
Peace education is a cornerstone of the UN’s Vision 2030, expressed in Sustainable Development Goal 4, Target 4.7: that all learners acquire knowledge and skills for sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, and a culture of peace and non-violence. UNESCO’s 2024 Recommendation on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Sustainable Development outlines the educational changes needed to meet these goals.
Why teach Peace?
Peace education is an essential, feasible, and cost-effective investment in the future, especially in countries like Uganda, where youth comprise the majority of the population. Teaching children the values and aptitudes of peaceful co-existence will equip them to become productive members of society, contributing to a more peaceful, prosperous future for us all. "Are We Together?" can make a positive contribution to this goal.
Future Vision
Our resource is a curriculum; we depend on local partners to use it to teach the children they already reach the attitudes and aptitudes of peaceful relationships. These include non-governmental organizations (NGOs), schools, churches and mosques.
As we develop evidence of its impact, the long-term vision is to encourage educational curriculum partners to integrate peace education into formal curricula, and encourage the Ministry of Education to roll out curricula like "Are We Together?" to all schools. In Uganda, almost 50% of the population is under the age of 15. In 20 years, if peace education is mainstreamed, half of Ugandan's population would have practical peacebuilding skills. Imagine the impact that could make! And it is feasible, affordable, scalable, and possible.
It will take the one global family to accomplish this dream, but that is how peacebuilding has always worked. If you are inspired to help, there are many ways to get involved:
- Are you a headmaster or youth leader? Adopt the curriculum in your organization.
- Are you a teacher? Facilitate the curriculum with your students, or see how peace education could be taught or mainstreamed in your context.
- Are you a peace and conflict studies student? Become a facilitator, or research the impact of the program as your major project.
- Gifted in adminstration? Help us manage and grow the project.
- Believe in peace education? Help us raise funds, or send a one-time or monthly donation to sustain and expand the program.
- $20 will get the curriculum in the hands of one facilitator.
- $350 will fund online meetings for a year.
- $1,000 will fund one day of a "train the trainers" workshop. So far, we have held 2-3 days' training, and when funding allows, hope to expand this to a 5-day workshop.
- In the Greater Toronto Area or Uganda? Donate a smart phone or tablet for a facilitator in Uganda.
- Any amount helps. Our programs will grow as funds allow.
It takes a village to raise a child...in the ways of peace. And it pays life-long dividends.
Request the Curriculum
We would love you to use Are We Together? in your context. It is free, and we can help you plan the rollout and join a peer support network of facilitators. We are interested in contextualizing it for new regions, starting in Canada. Please contact CryPeace to get started.
Learn more:
- Review the "Are We Together?" Facilitator's Manual
- How CryPeace is Raising a Generation for Peace
- Email CryPeace to become a partner in the program