This year we plan to work with 6,845 people, supporting them to build a better future.

One of the ways we do this is through our Belfast and the World course, a 26 hour programme exploring the events which led up to the partition of the island of Ireland and the birth of Northern Ireland 100 years ago. Gathering more than 170 people from a truly cross–community cohort across Belfast, the course provides opportunities for people to engage in often difficult conversations about how borders impact a sense of identity and belonging.

Watch this film produced by Belfast City Council and hear the real stories behind our Belfast and the World course. 

One of the people who completed our course is ‘Lisa’—she had been evicted from her home in North Belfast on three different occasions due to her religion and her husband’s job. Lisa was one of 170 people from communities around Belfast, who completed our ‘Belfast and the World’ course. During the pandemic, the group met online, but before and after restrictions were lifted they met face–to–face in workshops with our facilitators and guest speakers. The programme also facilitated group visits to historical sites including Parliament Buildings and Glasnevin cemetery.

 
Lisa has said that our course had ‘helped her more fully understand the story of the community which had hurt her’, helping her to build more respectful relationships. Despite her own sense of loss, the course has strengthened her belief that ‘her children and grandchildren should live in a society where there are opportunities for all of us’. Lisa is committed to a better future for everyone.

Lisa’s experience is echoed by fellow participant Anne who said participating in the project helped her develop a lot more empathy for other communities. Another participant, Tom said he loved taking part as ‘hearing different people’s stories helps me understand how the issues brought up in the course affects them personally’.

This year, we plan to support 6,845 people like Lisa, Anne and Tom to explore difference together and discover ways in which we can all live well together. Most of the people we work with are from communities which have been disproportionately impacted by inequality.  

We also plan to work with 225 leaders, supporting them to work in creative and cohesive ways to build a better future for everyone. And we plan to inspire and equip up to 40,000 people to live together better in their everyday lives, through our digital communications and by supporting the ongoing work of our community of members.

While we are incredibly grateful to large funders who support our programmes, your support is critical in enabling us to deliver our plans and play a part in building a better future for everyone.

Could you help us build a better future for everyone? A one–off donation of:
• £30 could provide a day of renewal and support for a community leader from an interface area 
• £65 could enable one person to take part in a residential to explore difference with others
• £100 could pay for a facilitator to host a conversation with a group of up to 15 people to discover ways to live well together

Or become a Regular Giver to help us build a better future on an ongoing basis. 

Use the buttons below to donate now: 

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Please give what you can as your support can help us build a better future for everyone. Thanks for all you do to support us during these challenging times.

The Belfast and the World Programme was delivered on behalf of Belfast City Council as part of their PEACE IV plan, which is funded by the European Union and manged by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB). Funding for this programme has now come to an end.