The Power of Peacebuilding

It’s difficult to know where to begin in telling you about our time in Rwanda. We met so many people, experienced so many new things, and learned so much about Rwandan history and culture that there doesn’t seem to be a “best” place to start. However, in recognition of the fact that we recently celebrated International Peace Day, I thought it would be appropriate to start with a story about a group of people who demonstrate the healing power of peacebuilding.

Near the end of our first week in Rwanda, we visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial. I’ll post more about this visit in a later blog post, but for now it will suffice to say that it was by far the most difficult memorial I’ve ever visited. It took a long time to dry our tears, and even hours after we left we were all still wounded and so deeply sad from what we saw and experienced at the memorial.

And then came Ivuka Arts.

To fully understand what a breath of fresh air Ivuka was for us, it’s helpful to get a small glimpse of Kigali. Although the land is lush and green and the traditional dress is popping with color, the bustling capital is drab, especially during the hot, dusty dry season.

A view of Kigali from our street

Not Ivuka though. Brightly colored walls and objects pop out from the dusty neighborhood in which it’s located. The artists who work here at the collective have their art posted everywhere you look. The children that they are teaching and mentoring also have art displayed in a special gallery inside. 

Ivuka Arts

The color alone would have been enough to lift our spirits, but that afternoon a group of kids who participate in a dance and drumming group were at the art center for practice. This dance troupe is one part of Ivuka’s initiatives with children. In addition to the dance and drumming group, they also teach children how to paint, and all the funds raised from the dance troupe and selling the kids’ paintings goes to pay for the children’s school fees.

The children took some time to drum, sing, and dance for us…what a beautiful performance! Even though these children were born after the genocide, they have grown up in a country that is still recovering from the tragic events of 18 years ago. Despite the difficulties these kids face as they get older, they have such a joy about them and are so excited about life! They were truly a bright light for us, and their joy brought us such happiness and hope after such a heavy afternoon. As a student who is studying peace and conflict resolution, it was so moving to experience first-hand the power that peacebuilding work has.

Children at Ivuka - how can those smiles not make your heart happy?

It's a short clip, but I hope this little video will bring even a portion of the joy it brought to us that day. Enjoy! :)

To learn more about Ivuka Arts, you can visit their website at http://www.ivukaarts.com/.