SCHOOL VISITS
In the days that followed, my lectures unpacked the ways to develop these friendships and how we can build a better, more connected world by respecting each other. We talked about emotional charges of hatred and how antisemitism and Islamophobia can be explained through the same perspectives of psychology. In between work, the students and I laughed, shared meals and formed friendships. Now I can proudly say that I have over one hundred new Muslim friends and 100 Indonesian students now can say they have a Jewish friend. In this, I found something beautiful. This exchange of ideas is the glue that can hold together our alliances and build, sometimes from nothing, a relationship between people of different faiths and backgrounds.
In a world fraught with conflict, war, and discrimination, my trip to Indonesia was a reminder that, at our best, all humans are peacekeepers. We, as Jews, understand the need for a change in the status quo; the antisemitism we experience in our own lives brings us to champion the causes of peace and security, knowing that we can lead the global conversation around an end to all forms of discrimination everywhere.
Ms. Lika Torikashvili currently serves as a co-Director of the E-Learning Center in Kabul, Afghanistan, as well as a Co-Founder of the interfaith dialogue educational platform, Peace in Our Schools, which is supported by the World Jewish Congress’s NextGen incubator.
Former WJC Fellow Promotes Interfaith Dialogue in Indonesia
As I entered the room packed with young Muslim students in Indonesia, my colleague leaned over to me and said, “You are the first Jewish person they will ever meet.” - Lika Torikashvili
While leaving the United States en route to the largest Muslim country in the world, I considered who I was and where I was going. I, a young Jewish woman with a belief in peace and reconciliation, was going, completely alone, to a majority-Muslim country in which Jews have struggled to make their mark.
I knew it would not be easy to bring young people into the global conversation around multicultural understanding and peacebuilding, but I built my organization from nothing to do the hard work.
Peace in Our Schools seeks to advance interfaith dialogue at a youth level through education. Run under WJC’s NextGenInc, and the project is led by a global network of former and current UN Youth Delegates seeking peace and an end to discrimination across the world. Currently, as antisemitism continues to rage on, the conversations I conducted with young Muslim children reminded me that our world is stronger, healthier, and fuller when people of all backgrounds connect with one another. Peace in Our Schools is a rare example of this idea in action, and co-led by myself, a Jew, and my colleague, Ramiz, a Muslim.
When I arrived in Indonesia, my hosts took me to Istiqlal Mosque, the largest in Southeast Asia, as a way to introduce me to their country. When I arrived, I did not see an isolated community of worshippers; I saw two churches on either side of the massive mosque. The beauty of the buildings was only surpassed by the warmth I felt when speaking with Indonesians of all backgrounds. At that moment, I saw the potential for more good work in the country, filling me with hope and the belief that a better world is possible.
School Visits in Georgia
We brought Peace In Our Schools to Georgia twice, in 2021 and 2022. Schools visited:
98th Public School, Tbilisi
Sachkhere Public School N1, Sachkhere Village
Korbouli Public School N1, Korbouli Village
Ambrolauri Public School, Ambrolauri, Racha-Lechkhumi Kvemo Svaneti Region
Oni Public School Village, Oni, Racha-Lechkhumi Kvemo Svaneti Region
Tsageri Public School Village, Tsageri Village, Racha-Lechkhumi Kvemo Svaneti Region
Lentekhi Public School, Lentekhi Village, Lentekhi Village, Racha-Lechkhumi Kvemo Svaneti Region
School Visits in Bosnia
We introduced Peace in Our Schools to Bosnia and Herzegovina, an East European nation with a multi-religious, multi-ethnic community and a violent past, in the first quarter of 2022. 19 students from the "Silvije Strahimir Kranjevi" Elementary School in Bosnia participated in training sessions where topics such as conflict resolution, peacebuilding, emotional intelligence, positive vs. negative peace, and interfaith dialogue were covered. One of the students who was selected by the school pedagogue to participate in the PiOS workshops recounted a really upsetting and terrible story during the workshops. He talked about how his early anxiety and sadness had driven him to the point of considering suicide, but he had sought help from a pedagogue. This student participated on all three days of the workshops, stayed engaged, and appeared much friendlier and happier on the third day.
We also worked with a small group of 6 students from different universities and colleges in Sarajevo. We decided to work with university and college students in order to test the impacts of the project on younger adults.