Peace Embassy

Our Dream

PEACE EMBASSY

In addition to current and ongoing programs, CIM has plans for growth and expansion in the coming years, which center primarily around the development of a Peace Embassy. The Peace Embassy will provide a much-needed secular gathering space for members of the community where tolerance and dialogue can be fostered. Once operational, the Peace Embassy will be a self-sustaining enterprise. It will house CIM’s current and ongoing programs, which will continue to be offered to the community free of charge, as well as peace-oriented business ventures designed to cover the Peace Embassy’s overhead expenses. Profits earned through these ventures will ensure CIM’s financial independence and strengthen our capacity to expand programming in the future without additional external funding. The Peace Embassy’s income-earning programs are detailed below:

OUR VISION ONE

OUR VISION TWO

Hostel and International Volunteer Placement

Kindergarden

The Peace Embassy will be Sanski Most’s first and only hostel. Currently, Sanski Most and the surrounding villages are sorely unfit to host international volunteers and tourists due to a lack of affordable accommodations. In order to address this need, one floor of the Peace Embassy will serve as a working hostel; fit with private and semi-private rooms, bathrooms, and a kitchen. The hostel will not only increase tourism and general commerce within Sanski Most, but will also ensure a steady income and influx of volunteer support to CIM. Despite growing international interest in CIM’s activities and volunteerism, without adequate affordable housing, we have been unable to accommodate this vital tourist population to date.

This represents a serious loss to the region, as valuable tourist dollars are being redirected towards cosmopolitan areas and neighbouring countries with better tourist infrastructure. Once established, the hostel will have the potential to make a large contribution to local tourism and cultural exchange/integration. Hostel guests will have the opportunity to volunteer with CIM while visiting Sanski Most. The hostel will provide set rates for accommodation and secondary rates for accommodation plus volunteering. Volunteers will pay an additional sum to cover training, cultural exchanges, and local travel.

We plan to develop a full-time private kindergarden that emphasizes teamwork and peaceful communication between students by implementing proven teaching methods and specialized curriculum. Traditional Bosnian kindergardens are geared entirely toward ‘play’ and do not have clearly defined teaching objectives. Children for Peace will translate leadership, team work, peaceful communication, and the pursuit of communal goals into games and activities. Students will absorb critical problem-solving and conflict resolution tools within the context of fun and engaging games.

CIM will hire a team of experts to research and outline the kindergarden’s curriculum to ensure the implementation of comprehensive and effective teaching methods. This team will include individuals holding degrees in education, international relations and post-conflict peacebuilding, and elementary education. They will draw upon both academic and practical experience in formulating a fundamentally sound curriculum that can be replicated in other kindergardens and youth centers throughout the country. The kindergarden will provide a fundamental shift in early education, by encouraging children to explore their own identities and by promoting conflict resolution and constructive communication methods in order to help equip Bosnian youth with valuable life skills.

OUR VISION THREE

OUR VISION FOUR

Peace Cafe, Restaurant and Internet Cafe

Tourism Center

Coffee and dialogue have a symbiotic relationship, especially in Bosnia. Coffee is so ingrained in Bosnian culture that it borders on ritual. Building off this community cornerstone and the success of our Coffee for Peace program, the Peace Embassy will also be home to a Restaurant and Internet Cafe. Located beneath the hostel, Peace Cafe will be a meeting space for cultural and language exchange.

Guests at the hostel will eat in the restaurant and have the opportunity to volunteer in the kitchen or as a language tutor. It will open the Peace Embassy’s doors to a broad cross-section of local and international patrons and will provide a welcoming space to all members of the Sanski Most community.

Currently, Sanski Most is devoid of a fully functioning tourist center or tourist information agency. Thus, the Peace Embassy will also provide local tourism information and organized tours. The Tourism Center will have a webpage that highlights natural, cultural and historic attractions and will offer transportation and guided travel throughout the region. The primary reason tourism in the region lags behind other travel hubs is a lack of information and infrastructure.
Through the Tourism Center, the Peace Embassy will offer a link between international travelers and the region. By filling this gap, the Peace Embassy will increase volunteerism, international travel, cultural exchange, local commerce and historical preservation.

How can you get involved? There are many ways!

Raise awareness of our project, share this idea with people in your circles, forward the email to a friend, a group, or organisation.
Make a small donation (information provided below)
Contact us, and tell us what you think.
Give us pieces of advice on how to succeed.
Come and volunteer for a while to develop the project. Or volunteer from home. We’d love to hear from you.
Organise a fundraiser: do a sponsored run, organise a dinner, coffee afternoon, a fun games night, or bake some goods!