ARROWSA presented at the Webinar: Arts, youth conscientization

 and environmental issues at COP 26: Reflections on Phone call to

 the world on 28 April 2022

The webinar was part of the Centre for Civil Society - Special Webinar Series that took place

between March and May 2022. The series is titled Reflections on COP26 and remains online

for 2022.

ARROWSA Speakers were: Mary Elizabeth Lange and Luthando Ngema and ARROWSA invited

South Roots Int.  Noluthando Shandu and Rachelle Ngalula Mukendi  to present with them. Bheki

Dlamini of ARROWSA assisted in the devising of the presentation. 

The topic of the webinar was:

ARROWSA, a registered voluntary non-profit organization based in Durban South Africa, led South Africa’s participation in an international project titled Phone Call to the World. This collaborative project with youth utilized the arts to address environmental issues. It was led by Scottish Youth Theatre, funded by the British Council and culminated in a COP26 exhibition in Glasgow of outputs from the hubs in Scotland, England, Palestine, India and South Africa. Representatives of ARROWSA and their national partner South Roots Int. in the Cape Flats will in this presentation share how ARROWSA came to be involved in a COP26 project, who the participants from Durban and Cape Flats were, what methodology was used in the project, what the project outputs were and which of these were included in the COP26 exhibition. The challenges, success and impact of the project on the participants and the organization will also be explored in the presentation.  

 

 Phone Call to the World - ripples created

As the Phone Call to the World project, led by Scottish Youth Theatre and funded by the British Council, draws to a close the ripples created by the project are felt in the South African hubs that were led by ARROWSA: ARROWSA Bechet Durban and South Roots Int. Cape Flats. 

The project came to a close with three online sessions for youth selected by each participating country. These youth were selected as Green Ambassadors. Lisa Allen of Indra at Home in Manchester, facilitated that Home ran the Phone Call to the World, Green Ambassador sessions HOME Manchester (homemcr.org) The youth that represented ARROWSA Bechet reflected on the sessions as follows:

"My Green Ambassador workshop experience was really amazing - Learning how to work with other people from around the world and how our countries are experiencing the same climate change challenges. We came together to create ideas how to help limit the increase in climate change and to create projects which was amazing and inspired me!" Monique.

"The whole week of the workshop was very informative and in my perspective a huge success. Everybody's input and ideas were amazing and I absolutely enjoyed working with everyone." Nicole.

ARROWSA and South Roots Int. (SRI) are both now involved in new projects that were inspired by our participation in the Phone Call to the World environmental project. Both organisations are also continuing the environmental work that was started during the project e.g. ARROWSA continues to nurture their vegetable and cultural garden and have plans to extend their mural. 

SRI has taken the cleaning of the dam on the doorstep into their own hands as the authorities have done nothing to clean it up despite being alerted to the negative environmental impact.

Dance movement Come Closer PCTW

ARROWSA youth, Angelique, Zainub, Sinenhlanhla and Aleze create a dance-movement to an original song 'Come closer' created in workshops with ARROWSA youth and South Roots International creatives during the Phone Call to the World October 2021 workshops in Durban. The song workshop was led by Sue-Livia van Wyk and is sung by Monique Mukendi, Noluthando Shandu, Sphelele, Sue Livia van Wyk and Intomibikile Khena. The song is a creative response to environment issues and is a song of inclusivity of all people - calls us to come together, inviting all to the table, and take note of what is happening. The project was led by Scottish Youth Theatre and funded by British Council. Filmed by Vincent Salanji of ARROWSA. Edited by Vincent Salanji of ARROWSA and Shanette Martin of South Roots International. The sound engineer was Brendan Nicholls

 

David Oddie, founder of ARROW and Indra,  and former director writes of the passing of  Archbishop Emeritus Tutu                     and how he influenced the beginnings of  ARROW.    The latest news from The Indra Congress  The Indra Collective A network of artists, educators and others sharing a commitment to use the arts as a resource for conflict transformation and to help young people navigate their way through challenging situations and settings. Dear Friends of Indra Desmond Tutu.  Died Dec 26th 2021   Desmond Tutu was the  inspiration for the  original ARROW programme (Art: a Resource for  Reconciliation Over the World) in 2003.  His courageous, deeply moral stance against apartheid  in South Africa made him a legend in his own lifetime, his voice reverberating around the world  denouncing racist injustice. He was willing to put his life on the line again and again in standing  up for what he believed was right.  He supported the BDS campaign as a non-violent means to  enable racist South Africa wake up and become aware of the self-defeating stupidity of apartheid,  as well as its immoral foundations and practice. After the collapse of the apartheid regime, President Mandela asked him to lead the Truth and  Reconciliation Committee, which involved Tutu listening day by day, sometimes in floods of tears,  to the stories of people whose lives had been cruelly devastated.  For Tutu, reconciliation was not  a simple, easy letting go, it was a profound struggle which understood that acknowledgement and  acceptance were  the first but necessary steps in moving forward. The Truth and Reconciliation hearings provided a platform for deep listening, for the sharing of  people’s stories and experiences of the apartheid years.  This initiative inspired the vision and founding  intention of ARROW; to explore how the arts could provide a non-violent resource for reconciliation  and conflict transformation.  One of the proudest days of my life was the opening of the Desmond Tutu Centre on the campus of  what is now Marjon University. Although Tutu himself was unable to attend, Mary Lange and some  of the ARROWSA group went to Cape Town to interview ‘the Arch’, a memorable experience for them  all. The management of Marjon at the time had understood the symbolic relevance of Tutu in relation  to the Marjon mission – an understanding, sadly, not shared by ensuing administrative regimes. In later years Tutu’s moral voice still echoed around the world.  He was deeply distressed on visiting  Israel and Palestine, commenting ‘that at least the white apartheid regime wanted us for our labour’.   As years earlier he had supported the BDS campaign in South Africa, he now voiced his support for  the BDS campaign in Palestine.  As he memorably put it, ‘to be neutral in a situation of injustice is to  choose the side of the oppressor.’ As well as the serious intention to provide a platform for sharing stories, celebration and fun have  been major components of various ARROW/Indra Congress events over the years; resonating with  Tutu’s infectious laughter and irrepressible humour, a trait he shared with that other icon of spiritual  and moral courage, the Dalai Lama. The world is indeed a better place for Desmond Tutu living here. David Oddie Dec 2021