Alternatives to Violence Project Supporting people to deal with conflict and violence
Alternatives to Violence Project Supporting people to deal with conflict and violence
Target group addressed
Priority area addressedAVP is a training programme enabling participants to deal with potentially violent situations in new and creative ways. The workshops exploresthe five pillars of AVP: affirmation, communication, co-operation, community building and transforming power. Country of originAmerika, but the projects runs worldwide. See: https://avpinternational.org/worldwideLevel
Type of training
Brief descriptionAVP is an international volunteer programme that enables participants to deal with potentially violent situations in new and creative ways. The AVP training uses the shared experience of participants, interactive exercises, games and role-plays to examine the ways in which we respond to situations where injustice, prejudice, frustration and anger can lead to aggressive behaviour and violence. AVP started in prisons in the USA in 1975, and now also operates in communities, schools, colleges and conflict situations worldwide. The organization of the programme is based on volunteering. Everyone who manages to participate on the three workshops of the programme can become a facilitator. |
Main achievementsThe workshop gained popularity through its success and the fact that its workshops can be modified to meet the needs of a specific group. Facilitators are recruited from the participants. EffectivenessThe AVP training uses the shared experience of participants, interactive exercises, games and role-plays to examine the ways in which we respond to situations where injustice, prejudice, frustration and anger can lead to aggressive behaviour and violence. The AVP workshop can help to: manage strong feelings such as anger and fear deal more effectively with risk and danger build good relationships with other people communicate well in difficult situations recognise the skills one already has and learn new ones be true to ourself while respecting other people understand why conflict happens Teams of trained AVP facilitators conduct the experiential workshops to develop participants' abilities to resolve conflicts without resorting to manipulation, coercion, or violence. An AVP basic workshop takes 2-3 full days, and explores the five pillars of AVP: affirmation, communication, co-operation, community building and transforming power. EvaluationThe trainings participants all recommend the workshop as a way to for self-development. Related documentationContact / InformationKey wordsviolence, communication, self-knowledge |
