The 2023 Life-Link Friendship Schools International Conference was held during June 17th-21st at Sigtunaskolan Humanistiska Läroverket (SSHL) in Sigtuna, Sweden. SSHL has been Life-Link’s hub school and headquarters for a long time, and it was an immense pleasure for the board to finally be able to welcome member schools back to Sigtuna after several years of digital conferences due to Covid-19.
During June 18th-20th, delegations participated in a range of lectures and workshops centered around peacebuilding and sustainable development. This year’s conference was attended by participants representing Egypt, France, India, Lebanon, Sweden and Türkiye. Due to issues with Visa processing and political instability in certain parts of the world, this conference was significantly smaller in size than previous ones. Only three of the six delegations included students, amounting to a total of six students and seven teachers. The low number of participants allowed for deeper social bonds to be formed between both students and teachers, however. It also provided a good opportunity for the Life-Link board to relearn and garner new experiences for future, larger-scale conferences. Life-Link also had the pleasure of welcoming a new school to its network – Gaziantep Anadolu Lisesi from Gaziantep, Türkiye.
Day 1 of this year's conference was aimed at getting to know each other, Life-Link and Sweden. Participants listened to a short presentation about Swedish history and the country's contributions and challenges regarding sustainability. The delegations took part in a Swedish "tipspromenad" (walking quiz) about Life-Link and sustainable development, and visited the Nobel Prize museum in Stockholm in the afternoon. Pontus Thunblad, Education Director at the museum, gave us a tour along with presentations about Alfred Nobel, the Nobel Prize, and its relationship to the Sustainable Development Goals.
Day 2 of this year's conference began with presentations by each delegation about their respective schools and communities. Thereafter, we were visited by Dr. Marie Sandell for a workshop about theoretical versus empirical understandings of peace, peacebuilding, and sustainable peace. In the afternoon, board member Hiba Ballout hosted a workshop named "Coexistence or No Existence". This workshop consisted of several activities which sought to deepen our understanding of stereotypes, and the importance of communication and empathy in peacebuilding processes at all levels of society. The day was concluded with a cultural evening hosted by board member Peder Palmstierna, in which students and teachers were given the opportunity to showcase their respective cultures in different ways.
Day 3 of this year's conference began with a workshop hosted by Georgios Savvas, a teacher at SSHL. This activity was centered around a student-led project at the school aimed at recycling electronics, introducing participants to a more hands-on approach to sustainable development. Christina Fischer, a long-time friend of Life-Link, then held a presentation about a Tanzanian Maasai pupil whose education Life-Link has supported over the years. We even had the opportunity to say ”hello” to her over Zoom! After lunch, Martin Johnson gave a presentation demonstrating how commercialism and sustainability can coexist by telling us about his business ventures with Rajda Group in India, and their cooperation with monks to develop a sustainable supply chain and work environment. The day was concluded with the final workshop of the conference, led by board members Alice Ekwall Sundby, Frans Lenglet and Daniel Demitz-Helin. The purpose of this workshop was to discuss insights and reflections from the conference, and then to translate these into action plans to be implemented at the delegations' respective schools. Finally, a closing ceremony was held in which delegates received certificates and pins for their participation.
The Life-Link board would like to thank all students and teachers for their efforts in this year’s small, but arguably very successful, conference. We hope that all delegations will return to their respective communities with new energy and enthusiasm to continue their contributions to Life-Link, the 3 C’s and most importantly, sustainable development. Lastly, the board would like to extend a special word of thanks to Anna Johansson, teacher at SSHL and long-time board member, for all her efforts in organizing this year’s conference.
