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Certification in Human Rights and Peace Building The South Africa Community Fund offers two levels of Certification for people who anticipate careers that involve the complexities of Human Rights and Peace Building. The Certification programs include theory, community engagement, academic study, conflict skills development, internship placements and case studies. Both programs are based in Cape Town.
Level One Certification in Human Rights and Peace Building Week 1 and 2: Participants reside near the city of Cape Town in B&B/Retreat style lodging. The schedule is dense, each day’s program approximately 10 hours long. Participants study cultural icons/institutions of the Apartheid era, engage former liberation activists, human rights specialists, community organizers, religious leaders and former Commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The itinerary includes field trips to remote Rock Art locations, hikes in the diverse fynbos habitat, and visits to key museum and art renderings of the history of social control and social transformation. Week 3 and 4: Participants relocate to the nearby city of Khayelitsha, an urban community of nearly 1 million residents. Khayelitsha was designed by the Apartheid era government as a bed community to hold cheap labour for white industry. Today Khayelitsha still bears the legacy of the Apartheid years with a debilitating poverty rate—the average per person income is under one Euro per day. Participants stay in homes for this two week segment of the program. During the day participants study the theory of Human Rights and Peace Building. The morning sessions are academic and the afternoon sessions are structured as workshops in skill development and group discussions. Participants utilise public transport to and from the study centre each day. The evenings are free (spent with host families) and the weekends are unscheduled for this segment. Week 5: Participants return to Cape Town for an integrative Capstone Seminar. The final three days are spent at a remote environmental facility for a debriefing retreat and Certification for those who successfully complete the requirements of the program. The South Africa Community Fund offers this annual Level One Certification program from late June through July. Enrolment is capped at 20 participants. Each year we also offer custom-designed Level One Certification programs for organizations or universities that want to have their own program. A minimum of 12 participants are required for custom designed programs and they can be hosted at any time of the year.
Level Two Certification in Human Rights and Peace Building Week 1 and 2: Advanced Workshop The seven month program begins with this advanced workshop in the theory and practice of building the peace in the context of human rights. Participants will have read several books and articles prior to the workshop. The workshop is designed to be rigorous and intellectually demanding, pushing participants to engage the complexities and current global conversations regarding human rights. Particular attention is given to the study of societies in transition from an era of gross human rights violation toward a socially just society. Participants live in B&B/Retreat style lodging for these first two weeks. Week 3 through 13: Community Organization Placement As part of the application process, students apply for a specific community organization placement in their field of professional/personal interest. The placement runs four days each week and is supervised jointly by SACF and the host organization. All placements are intended to provide participants an inside experience of pursuing human rights and community justice where there has been a history of gross human rights violations. Placement opportunities are diverse, available in the fields of advocacy, law, social services and education. One day of each week is scheduled as an SACF led workshop in human rights and peace building. The workshops include seminar discussions, art shows, local plays, environmental field trips and readings. Participants stay in homes during the entire placement and weekends are free except for occasional workshops that are linked to local weekend events. Week 14 through 16: Vacation Week 17 through 27: Government Organization Placement The second placement for participants is in either a South African government organization that is devoted to some form of Human Rights advocacy/implementation, or with a government agency of the participant’s country of origin (for example, working in an Embassy or Development program). The structure is similar to the first placement—four days a week spent with the agency, one day a week spent in the SACF workshop on human rights and peace building. As with the first placement, participants stay in homes, and weekends are free except for occasional workshops that are linked to local weekend events. Week 28 and 29: Integration and Certification The final two weeks of the Level Two Certification program comprises four segments:
During the final two weeks participants relocate to B&B/Retreat style lodging. |