Our Radio Silence Is Soon To Be Over...
Good Afternoon (or Irye Maber in Luo),
We’ve been absolutely terrible at posting information about what has been happening here.
There has been a ton of amazing things that have gone on here and we want to share all of it with you. There is also some exciting news about some of our films and we’ve had a healthy surge of volunteers organizing Play Soccer So They Can events in the US and Canada.
In the coming days, we will properly end our Radio Silence and start to bring you all back in the loop.
Until then, enjoy the start of the World Cup!
Apwoyo matek
Gavin
Progress with Soccer Camps for Peace in ...
By Erin Hunt,
Since as they say here the Internet was disturbing me yesterday, I was unable to tweet or post anything to keep you updated on what went on during our trip to Amuru and Anaka yesterday. So here we go.
We were able to squeeze in a half meeting with the Amuru District Sport Officer which was great and we hope to finish the meeting another day when he is in town. It was only a half meeting because he had to go meet with a Minister from the national government.
As we were driving around the countryside, I couldn’t help but remember what everything looked like in 2006. There were huge expanses of nothingness, empty but fertile land and then IDP camps where thousands of people were crowded into an amount of land probably the same size as the UVic campus with no real infrastructure. Yesterday was much different, it’s still a really remote and rural area but all along the drive you could see homesteads and villages surrounded by cultivated or at least cleared fields. It’s really amazing to see the rebuilding and resettlement process with your own eyes.
The meetings in Anaka were great. The Local Council III (LCIII) Chairman was super supportive of the project and he even stressed the importance of activities like ours to the resettlement process because an event like the soccer camp for peace will get youth out of their homes and new villages and bring them together. Bringing people together in a fun and peaceful manner can help strengthen the community. I wish I had been quicker on the draw because I would have loved to get his comments on video for you all. I was able to grab a photo, though. It’s so crucial to the project that we have local government and community support - if they don’t agree with what we are doing then there is no point in doing it.
Meeting with Anaka LC 3 Chairman
We also found a venue for the children’s soccer camp for peace, in Anaka and I’ve put a photo on twitter - we’ll try to keep the cows off the field during the camp!
Ok that’s it for now. It’s time to try to have another conversation with Gulu District’s Sport Officer and get some venues booked for activities in Gulu Town.
Week 1 in Gulu — Gum Marom phase I...
By Erin Hunt
It’s been almost a week since I arrived in Gulu for the second phase of Gum Marom so it’s time for an update. This week has been mostly about meetings and planning. I’ve met with members of the Youth Coalition for Peace (YCFP) everyday I’ve been here to devise work plans, plan for activities, divide up tasks, clarify any issues that didn’t come through well over e-mail and the phone and to see how things have gone so far.
We’ve also met with the Head Referee for Gulu District and invited him to come to speak to the coaches and answer their technical questions about the laws of soccer and ref’ing. It should be a really interesting discussion.
On Thursday, three members of the YCFP and I traveled to Amuru District because we had invited government officials from that district to a stakeholder meeting. Stakeholder meetings are a chance to introduce the project to the community and to get their feedback. Alas, the stakeholder meeting did not happen. When we arrived in Amuru, all the local officials were missing! Turns out the President of Uganda was visiting the district the next day so everyone who was anyone was off preparing for his visit. We did manage to meet with the District Education Officer though and he was supportive of the project. He said we should reschedule the meeting but that he would share what the YCFP told him with his colleagues. We will be traveling back to Amuru next week to chat with the officials we missed.
Friday morning and part of the afternoon was spent meeting with the coaches trained in the 2009 pilot project discussing their experiences as coaches and the plans for the project over the next few months. They had a lot of interesting things to say and some really good suggestions so it’s now a matter of incorporating those thoughts into the plan (more to come on this).
All in all it’s been a good week, very busy and dusty but good. Keep your eye on our Twitter feed www.twitter.com/OAProjects to get the “as they happen” updates.
1 for 1 tees in Sitka on 4th ave in Vanc...
Sitka Surfboards, a Victoria based company, is being sweet enough to stock some of our 1 for 1 tees. They are the third company to support us by holding our stuff (HtO and Second Wave are the others) and we are stoked to have the tees in a store with amazing people and mission.
The shirts go for $34 (same as our online store) and the store is located here (1864 West 4th Ave in Van). It’s one of the coolest stores we’ve ever been in and we recommend going in just to see their layout and to meet the awesome staff.
Huge thanks to the Sitka team for their support.
Stay tuned for pics of the balls, from previously purchased shirts, in action during the upcoming phase II in northern Uganda.
Fair Trade Soccer Balls in Canada —...
A few months back, we received a note from James Milligan of Social Conscience, who wanted to know how we could work together to support more soccer-based peacebuilding activities in northern Uganda. Since then, his network has raised almost $2,000 to buy soccer balls, and other soccer equipment, for our project with the Youth Coalition for Peace, in Gulu and Amuru.
James had this to say about working with us:
“Our aim in working with OA Projects is to support their framework whereby youth who have been negatively impacted by conflict are helped to reintegrate into society using soccer as a platform to connect. Social Conscience is excited about this first partnership with OA Projects and working with them more in the future.”
A Fair Trade Soccer Ball from Social Conscience
We are proud to work with James and Social Conscience and would like to give a huge thanks to all of those who donated through their campaign. Stay tuned, here, for updates with the balls in action.
Info on Social Conscience:
Social Conscience is a social entrepreneurial business that is using the Fair Trade concept applied to sports balls to connect with impoverished workers and people, ideally youth, in developing nations and here at home. Through the making of Fair Trade soccer balls, Social Conscience is helping workers earn more money to support their families and thereby send their kids to school instead of the factories, while encouraging awareness locally in Canada.
More 1 for 1 tees available in North Van...
Over the weekend, we re-supplied Second Wave (located on Lonsdale) with a ton of our new 1 for 1 tees. (click here for the map to the shop).
For every shirt they sell, we buy a soccer ball for a local peacebuilding program in northern Uganda. Whenever possible, we buy the ball from a local retailer or wholesaler in the area in order to support the local economy.
If we get to the point when the local peacebuiding programs have too many soccer balls (or other needs), we will use the exact same amount of funds to purchase other (and locally-procured) soccer related equipment — such as, first aid kits, training pinnies, and practice cones.
If you are around North Van, stop by and see what you think of the shirts. And, email us (oa@oaprojects.org) what you think is good, or needs improving, about them.
Big thanks to Neil and the Second Wave team for supporting locally-driven and soccer-based peacebuilding in northern Uganda.
French speaking volunteer needed...
1 for 1 tees available!...
Our 1 for 1 organic tee stock has finally been temporarily filled. We are sorry for the delay but things have been busy for our small team.
The shirts are available only online for the next 3 weeks and we have a limited number (140 or so). The popular fire tree design is available in the usual colors as well as in a new purple (or ultraviolet) shade and in women’s sizes. The polaroid design is also back and in the popular black version of it.
Last year, during our pilot project in Gulu, we purchased 210 balls (see below for pics) for the local soccer-based peacebuilding framework that we are supporting. This was partly due to the fact that 160 1 for 1 tees were purchased before the project started (The Charity Pot of LUSH Cosmetics made up the rest!). We are hoping to sell all of the 140 shirts before the end of the 3 weeks to guarantee the minimum amount of balls that we need to buy in Uganda this year. If you guys blow us away with your efforts and it gets to the point where we don’t need any more soccer balls for this year, then the funds will be used to buy other important equipment (e.g., local first aid kits for each team).
Shirts are available here: 1 FOR 1 and we get enough interest we will order more. Thanks for your continued support of the youth in northern Uganda.
New balls bought in Gulu, Uganda - June 09 — with funds from sales of 1 for 1 tees
YCFP member Anthony, distributing balls to a partner primary school in Gulu, UgandaRichmond Play Soccer So They Can - recap...
On January 9th, two soccer players from Richmond put on a Play Soccer So They Can event in their hometown. The game was a a mix of international level players and first-timers, and everyone had a good time and their share of shinning moments. Team Sari ended up defeating Team Masumi by one goal, but the final score wasn’t what truly matter as people came together for a common cause and new friendships were built — all through a simple game of soccer. In total, the group raised over $800 to support soccer-based peacebuilding in northern Uganda.
Group shot after the game. Masumi Turnbull
OA, The Buried Life and MTV...
Some of you may know, or are just finding out now, that we are the social project partner of The Buried Life (which premiers tonight on MTV at 10pm). As a result of this, MTV has offered to help support OA’s project expansion in northern Uganda this year. If 75,000 or more sign up for The Buried Life’s Facebook Fan Page (click here), then they will provide the funds needed to run a Soccer Camp for Peace for at least 80 youth who have been affected by the recent conflict. In addition to the five-days of activities, the support also includes costs for training local leaders on soccer coaching, leadership and peacebuilding, and to equip these coaches (and the community groups that they are from) with the required soccer resources to carry on with the activities. For more information on the project, click here.
If you want to want to get more involved with what OA is doing, and help increase our expansion of activities in northern Uganda, here are some ways to do so (easiest to hardest):
1. Send around the OA website to your friends.
2. Join our Facebook Group or become a Fan of OA on Facebook.
3. Watch our video journals from northern Uganda and send us your feedback. Click here.
4. Host a soccer game or tournament in your community as part of our Play Soccer So They Can community, bringing people together to play soccer so that war affected youth can as well.
or
5. Think of something much bigger and send us an email about it: (oa@oaprojects.org)
We are excited to partner with The Buried Life and MTV and we hope that you get involved and support the war-affected youth as they rebuild their community and culture after the devastating 22-year conflict.
