The project will rely on volunteers; SOS Canada is recruiting volunteers in communities across Canada. Children and youth will be paired up with soccer groups in the developing world of similar ages, and exchange information about what soccer means to them, and its importance in their lives. The project hopes to build bridges between Canadians and others around the world to make new friendships and learn from each other.
A key feature of the project will be the Global Peace Games. The Global Peace Games are played by thousands of children in almost 50 countries around the world. The Games are meant to bring communities together in support of the United Nations objectives for a culture of global and the achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals for human development. They demonstrate the importance and potential of sport to promote and reach these goals on an individual, social, cultural and economic level.
The project for 2006 will build off the 2005 Pilot Project held in Victoria, Regina, Ottawa, Montreal and Charlottetown. This project provided coaches with a series of drills intended to illustrate each point of the Manifesto for Peace: respect all life, reject all violence, share with others, listen to understand, preserve the planet, and contribute to the development of community.
The games are held annually on September 21st, the UN International Day of Peace. In Canada the flagship event will again be held on Parliament Hill and hosted by Senator Jim Munson and Craig Forrest. The project is led by SOS Children's Villages Canada, in partnership with the Canadian Soccer Association and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO.
"Sport is a universal language that can bring people together no matter what their origins, background, religious beliefs or economic status."
Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary -General
For more information, please contact:
Kelsey Lemon, Partnership Coordinator
SOS Children’s Villages Canada 1-800-767-5111 ext 21
k.lemon@soschildrensvillages.ca