African School of Excellence in Suleja has an Earth Charter Youth Group.
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Earth Charter Communities (ECC) launched its newest manual: The Art & Skill of Dialogue, a Practical Manual to Communication & Dialogue for a Global Community. Written by Stephanie Tansey, director of ECC, for its subsidiary, Earth Charter Communities/Nigeria, this Dialogue Skills Program is a unique curriculum. Its purpose is to nurture global citizens who want to contribute to the global community. It is the most recent culmination of over a ten year period of polishing a special Earth Charter, dialogue and community skill-building program, in different countries that helps people better understand, apply and live the principles of the Earth Charter. 
This all started when the Iraq War began and Stephanie realized that the world had a poor understanding of the inherent power of dialogue and without it, the Earth Charter principles would be hard to establish its rightful place in the global community. She developed her Dialogue Skills Program using the Earth Charter to help create the right environment to find the common humanity in people.
ECC has programs at present in both Israel and Nigeria. In Nigeria, the manual is a multidisciplinary approach involving the Earth Charter principles, the development of personal dialogue skills and therefore better relationships, community-building values, and the application of African indigenous institutions in a modern context, all designed to nurture, using value-creating education methodology, the self-motivated desire to lead a contributive life. In Israel, bi-cultural and bi-lingual programs are in the Tel Aviv area. The handbook in three languages will be available in 2010.
The Art & Skill of Dialogue, a Practical Manual to Communication & Dialogue for a Global Community, which we call the Dialogue Skills Program, is a one-year program that was taught at the African School of Excellence (ASE), in Suleja, Niger State, Nigeria from 2008-2009. ASE students come from religiously diverse and conflictive cultural environments, and include orphans, gang members and children of prositutes. Incredibly successful, incidents of violence has decreased 20%, respectful relations between teachers and students and among the student community are the norm now. Gang members have become program facilitators, and students have regained their hopes for the future. The effect on the surrounding community as well has been remarkable.
Now that the manual is complete, more teachers at ASE can teach students at all levels. The education ministry of Niger State is also eager for ASE to teach Dialogue Skills to its public schools so this will also spread the principles of the Earth Charter and the skills to help others understand them throughout the state.
Download the manual here.
For more information, contact
Stephanie Tansey at tansey [@] usa.net
or
Abu Enyi, Director of African School of Excellence at abuaugustine60 [@] yahoo.com
