Rio de Janeiro – Youths from the West and East marked their presence at the 3rd Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations, wihch began today (27th) in the city of Rio de Janeiro. In the panel “Role of Cultural Routes in Building the Alliance of Civilizations,” anthropologist and founder of the Abraham’s Path project, William Ury, from the United States, talked about the importance of the youth of today in developing a better future.
“Youths are more open-minded, they are more idealistic and are part of the Internet generation, a generation without borders. These characteristics represent a potential to make a better world,” said Ury, who showed a video to the forum’s participants featuring youths from Palestinian villages who participate in the Abraham’s Path project. According to him, the project aims to promote cultural exchange and create a sustainable tourist route geared towards economic development and the coming together of different peoples.
Since the beginning of the project, in late 2006, approximately 3,000 people have travelled the route that retraces the steps of prophet Abraham, originator of the three major monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islamism), which congregate 3.5 billion people worldwide.
The path has been travelled by youths from Palestine, Jordan, France, Germany, Britain, Pakistan and Brazil. The young Imad Mansour, from the city of Nablus, in the West Bank, participated in the debate to discuss the project’s importance and the good experience that he amassed after having taken the path. “I got to know other traditions and cultures from other places in Palestine that I was not aware of. It was a great experience,” said he, who is a member of NGO Tomorrow’s Youth, based in the Arab country.
According to Mansour, the NGO has different programmes to help Palestinian children and youth gain better knowledge of themselves. The programmes include “Our World,” for exchange. “Youngsters from other countries can come to Palestine and gain better understanding of our culture, and Palestinians also get a chance to know other cultures,” he said.
These programmes and paths, according to Ury, contribute to sustainable tourism. In the case of Abraham’s Path, for instance, Palestinian families offer lunches and snack breaks along the way at affordable prices, and the families themselves feel good by offering typical food to foreigners, or even to Palestinians from other cities.
Another NGO of youths that attended the debate was “One Young World,” which comprises roughly 8,000 young people from 112 countries. The organization is represented by young ambassadors in several cities and is promoting dialogue for peace between different cultures. The forum was attended by the ambassadors of Nigeria, Russia and South Africa.
Ury’s panel, which counted on the presence of the president of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Salim Taufic Schahin, the organization’s Foreign Relations vice president, Helmi Nasr, and its secretary general, Michel Alaby, moved the participants, who witnessed the growing commitment of youths with the path of alliance between cultures. “The presence of these youths is very stimulating, because the future is in their hands. It is important to see that they already have notions of respect, tolerance, and peace,” stated Schahin.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
