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The Kofi Annan Foundation is pleased to share the Evaluation Report for the “Leading the Way to Peace – Youth Together for Social Cohesion” project. This report summary presents the external evaluation findings by the Agency for Peacebuilding (AP) for the project. The “Leading the Way to Peace – Youth Together for…
Evaluation Report | Youth preventing violent extremism in urban South and Southeast Asia
The Kofi Annan Foundation is pleased to share the Evaluation Report for the “Leading the Way to Peace – Youth Together for Social Cohesion” project. This report summary presents the external evaluation findings by the Agency for Peacebuilding (AP) for the project. The “Leading the Way to Peace – Youth Together for Social Cohesion” project was funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by the Kofi Annan Foundation alongside the College of Youth Activism and Development (CYAAD) in Pakistan, the Kristiyano-Islam Peace Library (KRIS) in the Philippines, and the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF) and Rupantar in…
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Together with a diverse group of civil society and youth-led organizations across South and Southeast Asia, we have assembled learnings and advice to help guide and inspire you on your own journey to build peace in your community. Then our new guide, Building Peace Together: Youth-led initiatives to prevent violent extremism, is for…
Youth-led initiatives to prevent violent extremism: Inspiring practices from South & Southeast Asia
Together with a diverse group of civil society and youth-led organizations across South and Southeast Asia, we have assembled learnings and advice to help guide and inspire you on your own journey to build peace in your community. Then our new guide, Building Peace Together: Youth-led initiatives to prevent violent extremism, is for you! How was the guide created? Since 2020, the Kofi Annan Foundation and its Extremely Together initiative have been working with young leaders in South and Southeast Asia to prevent violent extremism in the region in the context of the “Leading the Way to Peace – Youth Together…
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A statement on the situation in Afghanistan by Extremely Together Young Leaders Arizza Nocum, Bjørn Ihler, Hajer Sharief and Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi. In the world of politicians and policymakers, diplomats and dignitaries, in the lecture halls of western universities and the offices of think tanks, it seems many have forgotten that…
We stand with the people of Afghanistan
A statement on the situation in Afghanistan by Extremely Together Young Leaders Arizza Nocum, Bjørn Ihler, Hajer Sharief and Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi. In the world of politicians and policymakers, diplomats and dignitaries, in the lecture halls of western universities and the offices of think tanks, it seems many have forgotten that terrorism is real. For far too many around the globe, terrorism is a lived reality — a daily threat to both security and dignity. Terrorism is not just another abstract concept to be analyzed, to be discussed and covered by the news. It’s not a problem of the…
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The Geneva Observer spoke to Extremely Together leader Hajer Sharief on the topic of women’s rights in Libya, where the country’s first female foreign minister Najla El-Mangoush is under pressure to leave after only seven weeks into the job. Hajer has been vocal in denouncing her country’s deeply ingrained culture of excluding…
Women’s Rights Held Hostage in Libya by The Geneva Observer
The Geneva Observer spoke to Extremely Together leader Hajer Sharief on the topic of women’s rights in Libya, where the country’s first female foreign minister Najla El-Mangoush is under pressure to leave after only seven weeks into the job. Hajer has been vocal in denouncing her country’s deeply ingrained culture of excluding women from politics, and for SUSTAINED, she analyses the future of SDG 5 in her homeland. The below is an edited version of an article that appeared in the May 13th edition of SUSTAINED – THE SDGs DECODED from The Geneva Observer. Women’s Rights Held Hostage in Libya…
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Throughout 2020 and 2021, the Kofi Annan Foundation’s youth initiative Extremely Together, alongside the Kristiyano-Islam Peace Library (KRIS) in the Philippines, the College of Youth Activism and Development (CYAAD) in Pakistan and the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF) in Bangladesh conducted extensive research among young people in urban areas across South…
RESEARCH: Urban Youth Building Peace in South & Southeast Asia
Throughout 2020 and 2021, the Kofi Annan Foundation’s youth initiative Extremely Together, alongside the Kristiyano-Islam Peace Library (KRIS) in the Philippines, the College of Youth Activism and Development (CYAAD) in Pakistan and the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF) in Bangladesh conducted extensive research among young people in urban areas across South and Southeast Asia. The analysis, funded by the European Union, identifies ways to foster youth engagement to promote peace, inclusion and social cohesion. The findings indicate the need to develop more training and activities to support youth-led action in local communities to prevent violent extremism. Why South and Southeast Asia? In 2019: Although a…
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Yesterday we received the devastating news that Almaas Elman, sister to our Extremely Together Young Leader Ilwad Elman, was killed by a bullet in her car while being driven to the airport in Mogadishu, Somalia. We are devastated to the very core at this tragic event. Devastated for the world’s youth that…
Statement | Almass Elman: A statement from Extremely Together
Yesterday we received the devastating news that Almaas Elman, sister to our Extremely Together Young Leader Ilwad Elman, was killed by a bullet in her car while being driven to the airport in Mogadishu, Somalia. We are devastated to the very core at this tragic event. Devastated for the world’s youth that has lost yet another activist engaged in overcoming divisions, violence and hatred. Devastated for Somalia, a country that has had to endure so much and that can ill afford to lose another young life that embodied the country’s hope and future. And lastly, devastated for Almaas’ family, who,…
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Geneva – Two Extremely Together Young Leaders, Libyan Hajer Sharief, 26, and Somalian Ilwad Elman, 29, are included in the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) Director, Henrik Urdal’s personal shortlist of possible contenders for the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize. President of the Kofi Annan Foundation Alan Doss states: “We are delighted to…
Hajer Sharief and Ilwad Elman proposed as Nobel Peace Prize contenders
Geneva – Two Extremely Together Young Leaders, Libyan Hajer Sharief, 26, and Somalian Ilwad Elman, 29, are included in the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) Director, Henrik Urdal’s personal shortlist of possible contenders for the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize. President of the Kofi Annan Foundation Alan Doss states: “We are delighted to see the extraordinary work of young people from around the world receiving recognition in this way. We are particularly proud that two Young Leaders from our youth initiative Extremely Together are on Mr Urdal’s personal shortlist.” Hajer and Ilwad are important catalysts for peacebuilding and combatting and preventing…
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Bjørn Ihler, Extremely Together Young Leader and survivor of the Norway terrorist attack in 2011, shares an opinion piece on the terror attacks in Christchurch. This article was first published by Project Syndicate. “Massacres like the Christchurch shootings are not, as some leaders claim, isolated attacks carried out by disturbed individuals. They are…
The Global Threat of White Terror
Bjørn Ihler, Extremely Together Young Leader and survivor of the Norway terrorist attack in 2011, shares an opinion piece on the terror attacks in Christchurch. This article was first published by Project Syndicate. “Massacres like the Christchurch shootings are not, as some leaders claim, isolated attacks carried out by disturbed individuals. They are part of a broader pattern of far-right terrorism, and they demand a response on par with all other counter-terrorism efforts” – Bjørn Ihler OLSO – Last week, a far-right extremist killed at least 50 people – including a three-year old child – worshiping at two mosques in the New…
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Again we see devastating headlines, with terrorism tearing through the fabric of yet another community. Fifty lives lost in the attacks by far-right extremists – self-declared ethnonationalists – on two mosques in Christchurch. Several members of Extremely Together know first-hand what it means to live through terrorist attacks. To say our thoughts…
Following the terror attacks in Christchurch, Extremely Together call for action
Again we see devastating headlines, with terrorism tearing through the fabric of yet another community. Fifty lives lost in the attacks by far-right extremists – self-declared ethnonationalists – on two mosques in Christchurch. Several members of Extremely Together know first-hand what it means to live through terrorist attacks. To say our thoughts and prayers are with the families, the victims, survivors and the community affected by this heinous attack is an understatement. So rather than thoughts and prayers, we call for action. We call for heads of state to band together, to stand up and to underline the importance of…
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My name is Fatima Zaman and I am a counter-extremist. I’ll tell you what that means later on, but first I’d like to tell you how I got here. On Thursday 7 July 2005, I found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time. That day, I witnessed the most devastating…
Keynote Address by Fatima Zaman at the 2018 Obama Foundation Summit
My name is Fatima Zaman and I am a counter-extremist. I’ll tell you what that means later on, but first I’d like to tell you how I got here. On Thursday 7 July 2005, I found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time. That day, I witnessed the most devastating terrorist attacks to ever face the United Kingdom. It was a normal day. I was sitting in class, when I heard the loudest roar. Then came the sirens. Repetitive, blaring and deafening. Then came the silence. Sitting less than a few hundred metres from the blast, I had…
