The Coalition for Work With Psychotrauma and Peace News

The CWWPP has announced its program for study for fall 2009. This year we offer an intensive course which will last for four weeks and an optional project period, which will last for another month. The Program in Post-Conflict Studies will start on the first Monday of every month, depending on the option you choose. There is also the possibility of assistance for Masters and Doctoral students. More information is available at http://www.cwwpp.org/Study.htm. You may also write to us at cwwppsummer@gmail.com

NLP COURSE

In October, 2008 Sytse and Marliese Tjallingii, a Dutch Quaker couple, gave a five day, 30-hour introductory course in Neurolinguistic Programming at the CWWPP office in Croatia . This was quite well received. An evaluation had shown that participants would like to have continuation of the course next year,

THE AVP COURSE

The Course was given by Marlies and Sytse Tjallingii on 18^th and 25^th October 2008, in the Vukovar CWWPP Office.

The aim of the course was to gain basic skills and knowledge of the Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP). The Basic idea was to improve the level of skills and/or knowledge in highly needed situations which we are witness as well as in our daily lives or as professionals.

PORTLAND CONFERENCE AND US TRIP

In the fall 2008, the CWWPP Head of Mission participated in the annual conference of the Peace and Justice Studies Association (PJSA) in Portland, Oregon. The CWWPP presented papers on Peace building in Vukovar, Children and Youth, Education for Peace building and paper on Former Soldiers. For those interested, all papers are available on our web site http://www.cwwpp.org/Documents.htm#Scientific

After the conference, the CWWPP Head of Mission spent some time in the Northwest, having meetings with Prof. Emeritus Dennis Mills from Capella University , working on a number of internal issues of the CWWPP. Charles David Tauber gave lectures at several Friends’ Meeting in the Northwest, at Reed College in Portland (his alma mater) and at the University of Washington in Seattle . Further, he went to Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania to stay with Paul Wahrhaftig, our Board member and a person who has, in the course of years, encouraged the organization substantially in word and deed and to visit our “anonymous” donors, as well as members of the faculty at University Pittsburgh. Later, he met informally with Kat and David Sohn, our Board members, after which he spent approximately two and a half weeks in Toronto , working with members of InterChange and other partners, notably meeting Board member Anne Goodman.

From Toronto , Charles David Tauber went to Remsen , New York to visit close friends. In the course of that visit, he traveled to Utica and met with representatives of Bosnian community as well as with members of the faculty of the State University of New York at Utica (Empire State College). From Remsen , New York , Charles Tauber went to Brattleboro , Vermont to visit John Wilmerding, the initiator of John Wollman College (in formation) as well as met with Jewish community of Brattleboro , the Quaker Meeting at Putney, members of the faculty of the School of International Learning (SIT) and others. Finally, Charles David Tauber went to New York City to give a talk at Columbia University .

This trip gave us further perspective on needs for Course for Workers in Areas of Regeneration (CWIAR) as well as on the need for and possibilities for university accreditation of our BA and MA Programs in Humanitarian and Developmental Studies. We are very grateful to our Board members who are personally financed the largest portion of the trip.

TRIP TO LIBERIA

From February 2009.C D Tauber traveled with Virginia Morrison from Mediators Beyond Borders to Ghana and Liberia to investigate the situation in both countries and the possibilities for cooperation between the two organizations. They were hosted by Center for Conflict Resolution (CENCOR) in Accra and National Ex-Combatant Peace Initiative (NEPI) Kofi Annan International Peace Keeping Institute at University in Liberia . We are very grateful to our host and MBB.

THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM

During 2009, the Education Program became one of the central aspects of our program. The program concentrates on the interface between theory and practice in violent and post-violent areas. The Program comprises two parts, the Course for Workers in Areas of Regeneration (CWIAR), which includes modules on communication, basic psychology and lay counseling, civil society, human responsibility and human rights, and BA and MA programs in Humanitarian and Developmental Studies, which is still in development. We are working on translating these programs into online format.

In January 2009, intern Greg Pickrel, a student in Instructional Design from Capella University , visited us with wishes to assist us in the work on translating the programs mentioned above into online format.

NUTRITION AND CHIROPRACTIC COURSES

Nutrition is critical to the health and well being of the body. All human beings are individuals and therefore the proper nutrition for each person will vary. James Rizzo, DC Chiropractic Physician from Vermont has been teaching nutrition at the college level for 12 years. He gave talks in Vukovar, and in Osijek in March, 2009 on how to approach this very important concept, and also introduced some chiropractic principles.

HELP THE CWWPP TO EXPAND ITS WORK

Funding for our basic operating costs for 2009 has been secured by our generous donor from the USA who wishes to remain anonymous. The CWWPP would like to carry out many more projects than those for which we receive funding. We believe such project would extremely benefit the community we work in.

To see how to contribute to the CWWPP, see http://www.cwwpp.org/Support.htm.

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR FINANCIAL AND MORAL SUPPORT

Charles David Tauber, M.D. Head of Mission and the Staff of the CWWPP