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Huda Zainab, an activist, is challenging the ill-defined culture/norms against “Autism” in our society. She is spreading the awareness and creating the spaces for autistic children and their mothers specifically and also for community members to understand the phenomenon. Her strong story and course of actions is what makes her a Peace Agent in true manner. Watch this documentary to know more about Huda’s initiative and the work she is doing in her community.

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SPECIAL OP FOR SALAMTI FELLOWSHIP

Part-I

MEDITATION HOUR

Requirements:

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5 or 10 participants

Time duration: 45 minutes-1 hour

Explanation:

The self-development peace course in my experience was designed in a way that highlighted the importance of inner peace and channeling it to attain peace in your surroundings and environment. Since this will be a non-tech fellowship, I believe that it would provide an excellent platform to practice what we learned on the online course. Hence, this activity is designed around meditation and giving your mind a break from the fast-paced life that we have become accustomed to.

As we grow up, we begin to associate certain activities to be for kids only. However, these small activities have the potential to put our mind at ease and help us relax.

So the first activity that I want to propose is giving participants coloring sheets of intricate and detailed art. They would also be required to form a key to tell what these colors represent. The main aim is to help people become more self-aware and mindful of their emotions.

The participants would also be required to fill this pie-chart before and after the activity in order to attain their feedback. They can decide the color of each box and fill the pie-chart and add additional boxes according to their liking.

PART-II

EMPATHY CARDS

Requirements:

10 participants

Time duration: 1.5 hours

Explanation:

This activity is based on something that we are hearing a lot these days but do not understand its essence in the true sense. This activity focuses on taking the first step to create a positive change. We need to build a community where people do not feel helpless in their struggles rather have the emotional support to carry on. Hence, through this activity I want to encourage the participants to talk about one thing that they really wish people around them would be empathetic about. For example, it is my biggest desire that people would not use harsh words or frown upon children with special needs, autism in particular since my brother has it. I hope that having a fruitful discussion with individuals who aspire to be advocates of peace can really provide the strength and emotional support to carry on.

In the end, we can form an empathy tower through these steps:

• Listen to each participant carefully.
• Reflect upon your actions, have I done anything that might’ve hurt someone in the past? Or am I actively playing a role in making life easier for others around me?

Note: actively playing a part in my opinion doesn’t have to be something huge. Being active simply means that you do not ignore if something wrong is happening in front of you (for instance someone being bullied and your turning a blind eye to it) and not taking part in conversations that are insensitive and would hurt an individual/community.

• Write down what you’ve learned through this session on the card provided. Like a note to yourself based upon the discussion. For example “I didn’t think about the gravity of this (particular issue), I feel like I might’ve made different decisions if I had witnessed these emotions so closely……”

I also want to share this video that reinforced my belief that we need to become more open to sharing problems of individuals around us and build an inclusive society.