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Action forLife 5
a 5 month programme developing a generation of change-makers
1 November 2010 ~ 3 April 2011
www.af l . io fc .org
Action for Life 22
Action for Life 5
Since it began in 2001, Action for Life programmes have trained and graduated 110 ‘change-makers’ from around the
world. Through their efforts, Initiatives of Change teams have grown and been strengthened in many countries. From
Sudan to Mexico, from Indonesia to Ukraine, new ‘centres’ and ‘communities’ are working on projects addressing family
and professional relationships, cultural and ethnic reconciliation, and values-based leadership workshops. We are grateful
to everyone who has played a part in this development over the last 10 years.
Action for Life aims to develop a new generation of change-makers, equipped with integrity and faith who are committed
to bringing transformation in the world, starting with themselves.
The Action for Life story so far...
a 5 month programme developing a generation of change-makers
1 November 2010 ~ 3 April 2011
Action for Life 5
www.afl.iofc.org 33
The fifth chapter...
The fifth chapter... Action for Life 5 (AfL5) built upon this decade-long experience. The five-month
programme, budgeted at USD190,000 (see page 13), was mapped out over 12 months
by a dedicated Core Team from Fiji, India, Latvia, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand
and Canada. Using Skype calls and emails, they interviewed and selected the 18
participants, designed the content, and set up partnership programmes with IofC
teams and AfL graduates in 11 countries.
During AfL5, the programme design team took an intentional step away from a
training approach towards an ‘action focus’ - teaming up with AfL graduates and
others of their generation committed to the IofC life to work together on specific social
and human challenges in various countries.
But AfL5 still involved in an initial training period of nine weeks, which took place in
India, from 1 November 2010 to 5 January 2011 (see pages 4-5).
From there, the 32 participants and facilitators - coming from 18 countries all told (see
list below) - moved in four ‘Action Teams’ in different regions of the world. The ‘action’
was built around IofC teams who have focused issues and strategies they are pursuing
and who welcomed AfL’s support. (see reports from these four Teams, pages 6-16).
Weekly newsletters from these teams were posted on the Action for Life website
(www.afl.iofc.org) and a stream of reports on Facebook generated a following of over
1300 ‘members’ with over 150,000 ‘post views’.
Unlike previous AfL programmes, the teams did not reconvene at the end of the
programme, but had a memorable Skype conference where each could share the
high points of their experiences. Some of those brief evaluations are published
throughout this report.
Though the structured AfL programmes (like AfL5) run periodically, the development
of this network continues throughout the year: through partnerships in action, regional
meetings, spiritual fellowship and mentoring relationships. Many contribute actively to
the global movement of Initiatives of Change. (see www.iofc.org)
Action for Life aims to develop all of this growing community
of change-makers through:
renewal in life through learning to trust the inner conscience or God’s guidance;
commitment to the values of absolute honesty, purity, unselfishness and love;
confidence to speak the personal truths of a life lived for transformation; and
work with local IofC teams to take action on wider issues of concern.
Participants
*Ajay Bhat_India
*Adrian Dan Pop_Romania
*Bui Khue_Vietnam
*Dana Lazar_Romania
*Dmitriy Pritulenko(Dima)_Ukraine
*Eunbi Lee South_Korea
*Esita Seveti_Fiji
*Hee-jin Choi_South Korea
*James Elisama Tongo_South Sudan
*Jampa Dolma_Tibet / India
*Joopyin Ch'ng(Ru)_Malaysia
*Mediatrix Masava_Kenya
*Michael Muikia Kanyoi_Kenya
*Mingling Xiong_China
*Nhat Nguyen_Vietnam
*Rawad Raidan_Lebanon
*Solomon Adane_Ethiopia
*Ya-ying Yang_Taiwan
*Young-tae Kim_South Korea
Core Team and Support Team
*Alexander Birnberg_Australia
*Anna Pozogina_Latvia
*Nigel Heywood_Australia
*Jean Brown_Australia
*Killy Sanchez_Guatemala
*Leena Khatri_Fiji/India
*Mike Brown_Australia
*Min-hui NA_South Korea
*Peter Heyes_Canada
*Rob Lancaster_Australia
*Suresh Khatri_Fiji / India
*Yeonyuk Jeong_South Korea
*Yevgeniya Shymina_Ukraine
Action for Life 44
Action for Life 5
www.afl.iofc.org 55
In Action for Life 5 the first stage of equipping the
participants as potential ‘change-makers’ was conducted
during two months in India, mainly at IofC’s Asia Plateau
centre at Panchgani. The programme commenced using the
format of the ‘Life Matters’ course (as developed in Australia)
and also included the Asia Pleateau interns. The nine-day
course focused on gaining insights into our identity, developing
the discipline of inner reflection, discussing topics such as
conflict resolution, forgiveness, creating community and the
dynamics of change.
Additionally each participant was challenged to develop
themselves as a part of a multi-cultural, multi-faith and inter-
generational community. So ‘community time’ was set aside,
intentionally, to talk through the challenges of working, living
and studying in such a group. While at Asia Plateau, the AfL
community began its interaction with India’s diversity through
the many conferences which are held at the centre.
Participants also gained skills in understanding teamwork
dynamics from professional trainers, including Siddharth
Singh and Rhea D'Souza.
Four AfL groups were sent for fieldwork to different parts of
India to discover, learn and share the insights they had gained.
Fieldwork areas included the industrial city of Jamshedpur, the
university city of Pune, and two teams travelled within the state
of Gujarat (the home state of Mahatma Gandhi). Each fieldwork
team came into contact with social change-makers: some in
the educational sector, in business and public administration.
Fieldwork teams had to learn how to get their message of
change across to a wide variety of audiences; businesspeople,
academics, students as well as the general public. It was also a
time of relationship-building with local IofC teams and hosts,
understanding their visions and seeing how best to contribute
to the work already undertaken by IofC India.
On their return, AfL participants began to acquire the skill to
facilitate workshops, helped by corporate trainers, Uday
Khedkar and Atul Jog. Participants were challenged to take on
the planning and running of several sessions for some 120
post-graduate management students from Pune, using their
newly acquired skills. The workshops delivered were fully
evaluated by the conference organisers who affirmed their
quality.
The group was then split along gender lines, with the women
being trained as facilitators of the ‘Creators of Peace Circles’
programme, while the men undertook a course focusing on
the ‘Caux Call to Action’ - so that they could use such
workshops in the countries they were to visit.
The final week in India was spent preparing each team for the
'Action' phase. Teams took time to research the culture and
geography of the countries they would be visiting. Additionally
they took time to reflect on the lessons learnt about teamwork
from the fieldwork experience, and from this, to define how
they would like to make the new 'Action' teams function. The
Indian experience concluded with a certificate ceremony in a
cave on the edge of the plateau at sunset, reinforcing the fact
that each participant was now a fully fledged member of their
AfL team and no longer in training.
ASIA PLATEAU, INDIA:
Learning to be a community of change-makers
Action for Life 66
Action for Life 5
The invitation for an Action for Life team to visit Eastern Africa was anchored
around three priorities:
to assist current strategies being pursued by the on-ground IofC teams in the region;
to build on the commitment of young people available as hosts and travelling
companions - some AfL alumni, others IofC-trained in India and elsewhere;
and the belief that the African experience would be challenging and growthful for the
AfL participants themselves.
The strategies were naturally country specific. In Kenya, where the post-election
violence of 2008 caught the nation unawares, the need for reconciliation and re-
evaluation of tribal loyalties has prompted urgent use of films (such as An African
Answer) and gatherings across the divides to address
healing and nation-building. AfL was able to support
their schools programme (under the theme of ‘Kenya I
Care’), to interact with those working for reconciliation
in tension areas and to assist the first of a series of
East African Youth conferences. The AfL team made multiple school presentations,
orphanage and rural project visits. These, with home stays and a lot of travel in local
transport, gave the AfL team the chance to refine presentation skills, share their
personal journeys of transformation, live relevantly to local situations and learn from a
great variety of people what it means to ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’.
In Uganda a workshop for the IofC youth team highlighted the need for an inspired and
ethical way of living to meet the huge needs of political instability, high unemployment
and widespread HIV/AIDS. A visit to the Kingdom of Bunyoro Kitara gave an insight
into historic wounds as an audience with the King revealed the past atrocities of the
colonial period and the current realities of oil exploration in the Kingdom with all the
complexities of outside interests. Again school, college and youth group visits enabled
an interaction between AfL and locals.
Part of the team were invited to South Sudan where preparations for independence on
9 July 2011 were underway. Some of our hosts there are in government and along with
the NGOs we visited, gave a picture of a new country with huge needs for everything,
not least some movement for national reconciliation and healing after 30 years of
almost continual war. A request for IofC to be officially registered in the country is
opening up ongoing engagement for IofC teams over the next years. A workshop on
transformation, conflict resolution and forgiveness with about 20 young people
resulted in what they are calling the ‘IofC task force’.
The long hours of travel on unmade roads, walking through dusty national border
posts, the warmth of welcome and courage of people engaged in bringing change and
development, all served to inspire a realistic and deeper understanding of what is
required for social transformation and its link to personal life style choices.
EAST AFRICA:
Action for peace-buildingand reconciliation
www.afl.iofc.org 77
EASTERN EUROPE:
Supporting networks of young leaders
A new dimension was added to the Action for Life outreach,
with the addition of the Eastern European region as a centre of
activity. The Eastern European action team journeyed through
Romania, Moldova and Ukraine for three months, engaging
with local activists, providing support to the local teams and
being challenged by the reality of young democracies trying to
find their way forward.
Romania, now a part of the European Union, was the first
country visited. Here, in the north-west town of Baia Mare, a
former Action for Life 3 alumni (Diana Damsa) has reached out
to her community and started several initiatives. The AfL team
came to support her in running the ‘Club for Young Leaders’: a
group of young men and women who want to know how they
can help bring a difference to their country. Through twice
weekly meetings and a weekend camp, AfL gave training in
team-work, effective communication, inner reflection and self-
understanding. Warm friendships developed, in stark contrast
to the wintry weather outside. Additionally, the AfL women
helped with the running of Creators of Peace Circles for more
senior citizens of Baia Mare.
Moldova is ranked as the poorest country in Europe. The AfL
team however saw the most generous hospitality from the
local friends. The IofC local friends linked AfL with local
initiatives, in this way, AfL interacted with a wide variety of
people: sessions in universities, meetings with high school
students, time with Peace Corp volunteers and local NGOs. AfL
alumni, such as Liliana (AfL1-2), gave a lot of their time linking
the AfL team to the local situations. AfL was also the excuse to
bring together local friends of IofC for common times of
reflection, sharing and, of course, many delicious meals
together! This has succeeded in rekindling a weekly meeting.
Additionally, AfL prompted the formation of a Regional
Gathering of Foundations for Freedom (the IofC associated
NGO in Eastern Europe). This was the first time in several
years that this meeting has happened outside of Ukraine and
allowed for more regional connections.
Ukraine is the largest country in Europe in terms of land area,
and the AfL team had the chance to discover all sorts of
different parts: from the multicultural mix of Crimea to the
bustle of Kiev, and the rural tranquillity of Baranivka. On arrival,
AfL jumped in to help with the unveiling of the ‘Healing the
past’ project, an initiative launched by Olka Hudz (AfL3). In
Crimea, AfL helped to run training sessions for the many local
initiatives, such as the Multicultural Active of Crimea (MAC), for
the Club for Young Leaders and the projects that these young
leaders had initiated: such as multicultural festivals, volunteer
recruitment and linking with other NGOs. In the rural area
near Baranivka, the AfL team had the chance to see the
‘community house’ project, participate in the Ukrainian
national gathering as well as interact with local school
students.
In retrospect, the Eastern European team connected with the
huge diversity of work being undertaken by volunteers
through-out the region: mainly young people, eager and
devoted to making their societies more tolerant, more honest
and more caring. It was inspiring to see how many AfL alumni
were connected to this, and who took their time and effort to
care for the next generation of AfL participants.
Action for Life 88
Action for Life 5
Mediatrix Masava Shikoli, Kenya I made the best decision to participate in Action for Life 5 and I won’t ever regret it. The programme helped
me to move out of my comfort zone, to think about what the world needs and how I can contribute to bring a
difference. I have learnt to put things into action instead of just writing them down and telling others. How
important it can be when I obey the inner voice. My next action is to listen to the inner voice every morning,
and to support my country in eradicating tribalism.
Dana Lazar, RomaniaWhat have I learnt in Action for Life? First, that I have a life. I am a human being, capable of loving and caring for
others, not a robot invented to serve herself and a materialistic society. I learnt that my mistakes are precious
because, accepted and shared with others, they can create unexpected answers. We can help each other just
by opening our hearts and being honest.
I have learnt to accept guidance. I discovered that God exists and that He can help us by inspiring our
thoughts in silence. I discovered that if you want to find inner peace your mind and heart have to work
together. I learnt that if I can build a marriage, I can build a country because every change starts at home.
Nothing is impossible when it is God’s wish and you are guided by His power. (Dana gave a press conference
on her return home to launch her campaign for ‘Romania Together’- see the last newsletter).
Nhat Nguyen, VietnamAfL is like a school of life where I learned most by ‘salty experiences’ along the journey. The two biggest
lessons for me were to deal with my ego and my habit of being passive. Living in a multicultural community
was not always easy but taught me to respect other’s needs, accept the differences and truly listen,
especially when disagreements happened. During the hard times with my action team, I found myself
putting in no effort but blaming others. The reflection time made me realise that I was responsible for the
team performance and nothing would change until I took initiative. When I took action, even though the
results were not as I expected, I had no regrets as I did my best. I discovered happiness comes from
selflessly serving, not the desire to be recognised. Those experiences have helped me to put right my
relationships with family, and have consolidated my commitment to the IofC team in Vietnam, and to a
greater purpose in life.
MingLing Xiong, China Before I joined AfL5, I had a lot of doubts about myself. I didn’t really understand myself. I was challenged by
the sentence: ‘You can only find yourself by losing yourself.’ Now I understand that if I only focus on myself, I
won’t find the meaning of life. It lies in serving others. AfL opened the door for more exploring and finding. I just
had to pass through and enter into another period of my life. I will keep seeking as I move forward.
Most important was progress in my spiritual life. Born in a communist country I was told religions are
superstition. During AfL, I found three levels of myself:
The divine self - connected with the Divine, the Universal, and the Creator of each one of us;
The temporal self - the one we see now, which lives in this world;
The shadow self - the one hidden inside, stuck with all the hurting experiences.
These three selves interact with each other. I understand now, but I still have a long way to go. Action for Life
has helped me open my mind to bigger issues, to think beyond me.
Participant Evaluations
www.afl.iofc.org 99
The fifth chapter...
Eunbi Lee, Korea For a long time I have had a dream to help children who are in difficulties. From the moment I arrived in
Africa, this feeling increased extremely. African children touched my heart always. My destination in life is
service for such children across the world. But I still don’t know the specific way in which God wants me to
do this service. Sometimes I became emotional, because I felt I was stifling my vision. I wanted God to tell
me immediately what that calling is, specifically. Now I am ready to wait to listen patiently to reflect more on
the way to improve my calling into an unconditional offering. (Eunbi is studying law with a focus on rights of
children.)
Yang Ya Ying, TaiwanThis journey helped me discover my passion, which is in education and environmental issues. I found that
service is a part of my life. My faith has grown strongly and I have started to pray. While we were travelling in
Fiji, my brother passed away. This made me start to think about what is the meaning of life and death. I try to
accept the things that happen in my life, even if it is quite difficult. Now, I want to share what I have learnt
with others and live with the IofC ideas.
Bui Khue, VietnamAfL has been an eye-opening experience to new knowledge, people, cultures and way of living. Even beyond
that, it has been an inner journey that has brought me awareness of who and where I am. I always felt
burdened when someone told me that it was hard to work with me. I used to think that it was their problem
or, even if I might be wrong, they were wrong too. There are so many precious lessons from this journey with
AfL5: lessons on living simply, teamwork, sharing and how the world is struggling for integrity and peace.
But the most challenging and fruitful is the lesson of surrendering. When I surrender, I let go of my ego, I
become aware of my part in a situation and begin to see the whole picture, and to know how to treat people
better. Through surrender, I begin to find my vision and calling.
Mike Muikia Kanyoi, KenyaPersonal growth through deep introspection, honest sharing and using my story to inspire change is an
experience of a lifetime that I will always value. Apologising to a friend from whom I had stolen a thousand
(Kenya) shillings was a big struggle but, as my first action to put things right, I felt relieved of the burden that
I had dragged for more than a year. This gave me a clear way to mend my relationships, to say sorry and
forgive, and to let go of the pride in me. I now feel that in this troubled world, it is possible to give, listen,
engage others in doing the right thing and finally, to create answers.
I have understood how my life can be used to make a difference - by simply living the example of absolute
values, with prayer and daily inner listening as the way to continuous transformation. Action for Life has
given me a feeling of love towards my country, unique in my experience. I want to support the IofC work in
Kenya. Giving hope will be my first priority.
Hee-Jin Choi, KoreaI have found new values during my AfL journey which I needed to build into my life. These values were
always close to me, but there was no real action to apply them. I used to try to be perfect even though I
already knew that I could never reach such a level. I was afraid to fail.
Through my time in Eastern Europe I could see how local IofC teams have taken risks to keep their action
going, trying many different ways. Now I feel that I have been waiting too long before taking action. When I
was in India, I met the concept that ‘my life is given by God’. I decided to follow this idea and would like to
continue to search what God’s will is for me.
Action for Life 1100
Action for Life 5
The AfL team in the Pacific also broke new ground - or rather, made fresh waves.
In New Zealand we were hosted in Auckland by Roshan and Tui Tuivavalagi (graduates of
AfL 3 and AfL4) and in Wellington, by Alison Hayes and Tony Omar (both on AfL3). Our AfL
action team helped conduct a family camp for IofC friends, and a Life Matters Workshop
in a Maori Marae. We met with city council members, the Anglican Archbishop, social
welfare organisations and visited many people who have been involved with IofC over the
years - connecting with their friends, sharing stories and singing songs.
In Fiji, Suresh Khatri (AfL coordinator) graciously hosted AfL in his home, one minute’s
walk from glorious Suva Bay. Watching people fishing at sunset, it was hard to imagine
trouble in paradise. Yet Fiji struggles with the legacy of a coup culture over 25 years,
colonisation and the return to independence, racial
tensions and strained relations with neighbours in the
Asia-Pacific region. The team conducted workshops in
schools, churches and village groups as well as
Creators of Peace Circles (organised by Leslie Bryant
from Australia) for women in local villages and a three-day workshop in Wunivaivai
village (the home of Tui Tuivavalagi ). In these forums we met a wide range of people:
women dealing with violence in the home, youth trying to find their role, artists, activists,
social workers, and public servants. We were generously hosted by Ratu Meli Vesikula,
Jone Dakuvula and Aashil Prakash (AfL4). Fiji was a wonderful experience for AfL and a
challenge to see how we work in a country waiting for democracy to return.
In 1999 The Solomon Islands erupted into bloody violence between the people of
Guadalcanal and neighbouring Malaita Island. These tensions have continued for several
years over land and resources around Honiara. AfL was hosted by Winds Of Change
(local IofC) to help build on their reconciliation work and train volunteers. Splitting into
two groups AfL participants went by boat for many hours out to remote villages with no
roads or electricity (except generators), eating food fresh from the ocean and home
gardens. The men went to Malaita and conducted a series of workshops in different
villages, while the women travelled to the Weather Coast where they participated in
Creators of Peace Circles, helping women deal with the trauma of their experiences from
the civil war. Returning to Honiara the team held a three-day workshop for young leaders
and volunteers during which Father Sam Ata and Ratu Joni Mandraiwiwi spoke about
their work on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
In these workshops participants took action on moral challenges within their lives
seeking forgiveness in their families, limiting their drinking, finding healing after losing
loved ones in the conflict, gaining hope and new direction, and sharing painful stories
many had never told anyone before. In all three countries groups of people have
continued to meet after AfL, signalling new possibilities for IofC work in the Pacific,
particularly in partnerships and training people to have courage to find solutions for
themselves and their communities.
THE PACIFIC:
Catching the winds of change
www.afl.iofc.org 1111
Indonesia and Malaysia are neighbours, yet the dynamic of
the situations the South East Asia team entered into seemed
quite distinct, and very different to what most in our group had
experienced.
The IofC team in Indonesia is grappling with big issues-
pluralism, anti-corruption and inter-faith dialogue. The
challenge is to find a strategy that can make deeper inroads on
these key issues, and the first month in Indonesia was part of
that search. Along with crash courses in Islamic tradition and
culture, we made presentations in schools, universities and
with civil society groups. The Indonesian Education
Department has honed in on intercultural dialogue as a key
issue. So most of our sessions were framed in that way,
drawing on lessons from two months as part of the
multicultural AfL team. At the same time, on each occasion we
boiled it down to the way we build trust at an interpersonal level,
where divides can exist as much within cultures as between
them.
After the month in Indonesia, there was a welcome change of
pace in Malaysia. The group divided for two-week internships
in different local NGOs working, variously, on questions around
child abuse and human trafficking, women’s rights and
democratic participation, just governance and, for Bui Khue,
who was interning with MRA-Malaysia, preparations towards
the ‘Tools for Change’ (T4C) conference. After the internships,
all our focus shifted to T4C, a forum that brought together
around 60 people from diverse professional backgrounds to
explore the nature of change and share tools for effecting
meaningful social change. This was the third year that T4C has
been delivered in Malaysia, building on the model first
developed in Europe. The AfL team was specifically
responsible for the session introducing IofC, which we did
through a multimedia presentation combining skits, old songs
in new styles, and Powerpoint creativity.
Returning to Indonesia, the March program was focused
around two new workshops. The first targeted the alumni of
the IofC Indonesia youth camps and was themed around the
‘Caux Call to Action’ (www.cauxcalltoaction.net), linking
personal and local issues, including questions of our individual
character and integrity, to the macro challenges confronting
the global system. Abdullah Alwazin (AfL3), one of the core
team of IofC, commented that the workshop ‘allowed us to
encourage each other to work better in serving others. It
provided the momentum to bring the initiative that comes from
our personal transformation to the larger society.’
The local team in Indonesia has extensive connections through
the education sector, which inspired the concept behind the
next workshop, ‘Teachers for Change’. Miftahul Huda, the
coordinator of the workshop, described the aim of this pilot
project as equipping teachers ‘to prepare young society to be
brave, compassionate and responsible towards a civilized
society’. The ‘Teachers for Change’ model is one way of moving
toward the wider vision for Indonesia, starting at the grassroots
of the education system. Following the workshop, plans are
underway for extending the delivery of the workshop more
widely across Indonesia.
SOUTH-EAST ASIA:
Grappling with big issues
Action for Life 1122
Action for Life 5
Ajay Bhat, India I still remember my thoughts while I
watched sunrise from the plateau on
the first morning of AfL: I told myself
that whatever comes in this journey -
good, bad, pain, happiness - I will learn
from it.
Meeting people who gave everything for the sake of humanity made
an impact. I started to see where I could incorporate these values into
my being. During fieldwork in Jamshedpur (India). I got the taste of
giving unselfishly, all I have. But later in South East Asia, things
became difficult and my confidence was very low. Everything I had
learned seemed to end in a question mark. I wanted to discontinue my
AfL journey. Then in a quiet time I closed my eyes and saw that
sunrise, and I understood that this is a part of learning. I shared my
view and said ’sorry’. I decided to continue with AfL. It taught me not to
depend on anyone to tell me what to do, but to search myself how I
can contribute 100% in my team. Whenever I am in darkness of
hatred, fear, suffering or confusion, quiet time gives me light to see
beyond to what I am responsible for, where I can care. I only
discovered that knowledge in the practice of that time and situation.
Jampa Dolma, Tibetan living in India I went on AfL hoping to overcome my
fears and doubts about life, to develop
my self esteem and find what I stand for
in this world. This has been achieved to
a great extent. Being Buddhist we think being born as a human being
is the most precious gift anyone could have. But I never tried to unfold
that preciousness. Action for Life has made me realize its value.
Staying with people from different backgrounds has helped me
understand the world and its needs. When I see those needs I feel like
a tiny ant in front of a giant elephant; that I cannot do anything even to
make the elephant aware of my presence. But I now believe a small
spark can give a flame to the person next to me. There is always
someone who is in need of my help and support. I will use my life as
efficiently and effectively as I can.
Joopyin Ch’ng (Ru), Malaysia My motive for joining AfL was to break
through the difficulties in my life: to
experience a cross-cultural
environment and to reconnect to the
world. I achieved more than I expected.
AfL helped me to find a way to go back
into society, to be with people again. I used my whole heart to face the
difficulties we faced on the journey. Through a clash within the team,
and through meeting many people in different countries, I learnt the
most important lesson is to be humble. We need to keep learning to
be humble to cooperate with God, only then we can see how life works
and hear our calling. Volunteer work is not about how smart we are or
about how much experience we have, but it is all about how much we
can love. So I can say my life has experienced a “revolutionary
change” Now is the time for me to take action and commit myself to
help others. I finished this journey grateful and peaceful with God’s love.
Dmitriy Pritulenko, Ukraine The biggest discovery for me was
meeting my inner child. I was a’person
of moods’. My turning point was one
evening in Kenya. I was in a bad mood
and became easily offended. I knew I
needed to change my attitude, but
didn’t. I felt comfortable being a victim. Later that evening I decided to
speak to the person concerned and to apologise for my wrong
attitude. From our sharing together, I discovered about the inner child
inside every one of us. I understood a lot of things which have made
my character today, which come from my childhood. I also
understood I have a choice whether to be offended or not. Next
morning I shared honestly with all team. My understanding of my
leadership has become clearer to me now when I follow my
conscience. I have understood that happiness which comes from
living and enjoying the simple life. In Africa I saw how people are open
and friendly in spite of the very tough life they experience there. I have
never seen so many smiles before.
Alex Birnberg, Core TeamAustraliaMeeting people who have dedicated
their lives to making a positive
difference in this world is always
inspiring. Finding them in every corner
of the world where we visit as an AfL
team is really hope giving. The journey has been, for me, a
reaffirmation of the human spirit. Standing out among the many
encounters was an educator in Pune (India) who had been a CEO,
then lost everything. Instead of closing his life, he and his family
directed their energy towards educating the poorest of the poor. When
we were at the school, you could feel the love and commitment that
was being given. Half a world away, I found that same sense of love in
a primary school in Moldova: a principle giving everything to make her
school a place that would give the best to her students. The lesson: do
what you love for this changes the world.
Participant Evaluations
www.afl.iofc.org 1133
AfL5 amounted to a coordinated international programme with
around 30 people costing just over AUD 100,000 (Australian
dollars)* compressed into five months. But year by year since
2001, Action for Life has operated as an ongoing movement
within Initiatives of Change, to develop and support ‘a new
generation of change-makers’ in various countries. So its
budget also makes provision for follow-up ‘actions’ with people
and situations from this and earlier AfL programmes.
AfL 5 was fortunate to start with a reserve from previous AfL
programmes (AUD 51,351) but was able to dedicate even more
(AUD 56,966) for future programmes and these follow-up actions.
This was due both to savings made in travel and operating
costs, but even more to very generous ‘gifts in kind’ in the form
of accommodation and daily living costs - particularly in India,
the Pacific, SE Asia and Eastern Europe. Some of these ‘gifts in
kind’ were directly accounted for (AUD 4019), but the much larger
savings came in a multitude of ways which cannot be reckoned.
Similarly the amount contributed by Participants and Core
Team members (AUD 29,706, or 16.73%) represents only part
of the story; in fact, virtually all of them raised more than
double that amount for their return airfares to India, visas and
insurance cover.
AfL5 was well supported by IofC national associations and
IofC-related funding bodies (AUD 66,527 or 37.47% of total
income), some of which was earmarked to assist nominated
AfL5 participants. Then hundreds made personal contributions
(totalling AUD 25,921 or 14.60% of income).
For all these contributions, grants and gifts in kind we are
extremely grateful. We wish also to acknowledge the work of
Alison Hayes in New Zealand, who undertook collecting and
compiling all the accounts.
* All figures have been converted to Australian rather than US
Dollars, even though the original budget was in USD. This
procedure was adopted because most of the funds were collected
and dispersed through IofC Australia, and the AUD and USD were
on par at the commencement of the AfL5 programme.
India
Core and Support Team planning meeting 1,643.84
Training at Asia Plateau, including admin costs 21,832.26
Fieldwork 2,086.65
Post Action phase - India arrival costs 195.00
25,757.75
Action Phase
Sth East Asia - Air tickets and visas 4,054.10
Sth East Asia - Daily Expenses 5,808.05
East Africa - Air tickets 5,383.00
East Africa - Daily Expenses (includes visas) 25,188.62
Eastern Europe - Air tickets 4,218.29
Eastern Europe - Daily Costs (includes visas) 12,443.13
Sth Pacific - Air tickets 13,244.69
Sth Pacific - Daily Costs (includes final Armagh stay) 12,648.61
82,988.49
Participant Insurance costs covered by AfL 117.00
General Administration Costs 2,934.42
Follow up Phase
Core Team Follow Up (budgetted 10,000)
Follow Up Activities with participants (budgetted 20,000)
* AfL participation in Asia Pacific Regional Gathering, 6,729.76
training course in Lebanon, Indian outreach, Caux
* Gift to Baranivka IofC Centre, Ukraine -Euros1,500 2,000.00
8,729.76
TOTAL EXPENDITURE 120,527.42
Expenses during AfL 5 program in AU$
Financial overview
Action for Life 5
Esita Seveti, Fiji In Fiji I was only concerned with what’s
happening around me and not bothered
with what’s happening around the world.
Visiting countries such as India, Kenya
and Uganda and learning what they are
going through has built in me a sense of awareness of the world’s
problems around me. I believe I can play a part in helping solve
some of them, starting with myself. I had a passion for serving my
society in Fiji but I didn’t have the skills and the ideas to know how.
AfL has shown me the path to helping fulfill my passion. I will try to
do my best in anything I’m doing whether anyone is watching or not.
Solomon Adane, Ethiopia When I first heard about absolute moral
standards, I accepted them intellectually.
In India with AfL I realized I had to make
them a part of me: correcting my wrong
deeds. I realized I resented my boss
because he had insulted me in front of my colleagues. I had
gossiped about him behind his back. In my quiet time I decided to
ask for forgiveness. It wasn’t easy to write that letter. My pride faced
me like a brick wall. I prayed to God for strength. Finally, I was able
to send it to him. I met him on my return to Ethiopia. He appreciated
my courageous letter and offered me the chance to teach part time.
We had a great chat about my experiences.
Yevgenya Shymina,Support Team, Ukraine In Asia Plateau, India, when asked what
do I want to get from my time with AFL, I
wrote down ‘to find my calling’. Several
months later in Indonesia, I wrote down
my conclusion of this AFL trip: ‘I want to spend my life helping
people to overcome their difficulties using all the skills I have...
especially, those who have experienced human trafficking in Eastern
Europe, SE Asia or any other parts of the world.’ On this trip I've also
experienced ‘unconditional forgiving’ and the power of it surprised
me a lot. It's not easy... I can now say that I have a vision for my future
and power to live towards it.
Killy Sanchez, Support Team, Guatemala Being on the AfL5 support team was a
very rewarding experience. I could live
alongside both the coordinators and
participants, listen to their stories and
witness their discoveries. Just priceless! At the same time, AfL has
been for me a long retreat that my soul was needing, leaving my
daily routine and taking time to be with myself and my God, among
this bunch of seekers. AfL has awakened in my heart that "positive
restlessness", and has helped me lift my eyes once again to see a
world in need and to see that I still have a part to play. My time in
Africa brought me to face poverty so close, seeing how some people
have to work really hard to survive. I have many questions without
answers! That is where I need God's love because mine is so limited.
Min-Hui Na, Support Team, South Korea (graduate AfL2, who returned as Support Team):
This AfL I travelled with my husband. We decided
to resign our jobs and be fully available for IofC,
to learn and to give. It was not easy to leave many
things behind, but on the journey my husband
and I had time to talk over our calling and vision
for our lives. The experience brought me to an
unexpected moment of honesty over an incident way back in my life
in a completely refreshing way. It has prepared me for my role in the
IofC team in Korea.
Young Tae Kim, South Korea This journey has taught me who I am and where I
need to change. I am naturally a joyful person, but
also at times, a person controlled by negative
thoughts like anger, jealousy, self-doubt, fear and
greed. I needed to change these thoughts and to
take action based on this new direction, because
without action nothing changes. I may not be able
to change in a short time but with these new
actions, I can at least find what is my next step. So this AfL finishes
but my action for life will continue for the rest of my life.
Participant Evaluations
Action for Life 1144
www.afl.iofc.org 1155
Adrian Dan Pop, Romania The force of AfL to engage people and
bring them together is huge. During this
two months journey in Moldova and
Ukraine, I’ve deeply connected with
each local IofC team in order to create a
big picture for a common action. I want to create a network of
committed people and work with them side by side for local,
regional and worldwide projects. To me the world is very small. It is
all about relationships, not about actions. Actions are consequences
of relations. If we build relationships based on common moral
values, our actions will affect us in a positive way.
Tongo James, South SudanThe interactions we had with the
changemakers during AfL were
motivating. While in Kenya, I felt a
need to practice agriculture and to
own my personal piece of land.
Again in Uganda, we visited a changemaker using agriculture and I
felt provoked to further my education. After the programme came
to an end, I visited my village and shared my vision with my relatives.
They supported my idea and gave me two square kilometres of land
I call ‘Challenge 2011’. It will be developed into a plantation farm land.
To me, Initiatives of Change's ideas, values and philosophies are
worth living. They were deeply rooted into our cultures and traditional
values but are getting degraded. Today, a committed group of young
people in South Sudan are meeting twice a month to share, plan,
think and ‘weep’ together for change. I believe that if a few of us
commit to change and live by it, and engage others, the change we
desire for will eventually come. I am now rich with ideas and
inspiration to keep me moving in my life and to support my society.
Yeonyuk Jeong, AfL Coordinator, South Korea I have been involved with all five AfL
programnes since 2001. The action-
focused programme we had in Eastern
Europe was the most challenging. Because
we could stay longer in one place, we had an opportunity to meet
people on a regular basis and go deeper. It helped me try a more
people-oriented approach rather than projects-focused-something I
painfully realized was my tendency a couple of years back. I still have
a long way to go with this approach, but my patience to give my ears
to others has certainly improved. Finding that people wanted to talk
deeper with me on a personal level gives me hope.
Peter Heyes, Support Team, CanadaI’ve been involved in every AfL and each
one is different. I love the dynamics.
Getting to know people, finding myself
more comfortable with some than
others , but realizing that every person participating has something
to contribute. I’d never heard of my ‘comfort zone’ before I joined
AfL but it’s something I have to keep in mind all the time as I’m
challenged to get to know people, accepting our differences,
learning to appreciate each other’s contribution.
Jean Brown, Core Team,AustraliaThis was my fifth AfL journey in a
coordinating and mentoring role.
The questions I am asked are
eternal: ‘How to change? What does
the world need? What is the purpose of my life? How do I listen - to
God, to life?’ These are questions to love and live with. In eastern
Africa we heard answers through the commitment of amazing
ordinary people living with faith, humour and integrity in tackling
corruption, poverty, tribalism and so on. Our AfL action in Africa was
about learning from the people we met and adding to their
answerbanks with sharings of our own. I was especially inspired to
see threads of IofC friendships coming together in new South
Sudan. This newest of countries could take the world by surprise.
Mike Brown, Core Team,AustraliaAt dinner with the Vice President of
South Sudan, the conversation got a
bit philosophical and heavy. Dima,
our exuberant ‘young leader’ from
Ukraine, sprang to his feet saying he had an idea: why not all share
our stories around the table? Vice President Riek Machar
immediately responded, telling how he left his PhD to lead a
liberation army in the bush during Sudan’s 30 year war. Then he
relaxed and listened to others. Time and again we saw this inter-
generational, multi-cultural magic. The strength of IofC’s heritage
and message needs the spontaneity of young adults whose lives
and spirits demonstrate ‘being the change’. We emphasize training.
You can march a man around a parade ground but he only
becomes a soldier in action. Coming face to face with stark needs
and moral initiatives that others are taking generates the same response
in the beholder. AfL becomes a process of mutual ‘lives-changing’.
Action forLife5Action for Life has been a reconfirmation of the fact that
“the whole world is my family”
