In the midst of anxiety about the state of our country, and our world, there is no greater person to speak to than Amani Matabaro, our visionary leader whose dream of the Congo Peace School continues to take root and flourish because of you. Having lived through the ongoing violence in eastern Congo, Amani’s authenticity and vulnerability about his own fears and the reality of the moment stand alongside his steadfast vision for the future. Amani's hope is infectious. Catch a bit of it in the video below.
Speaking to Amani for this new year’s update from the Congo Peace School, he shared how your friendship with the people of Congo, over the years, and in particular during the crisis of the Coronavirus pandemic, has impacted not only their lives, but his own way of seeing the world.
“This pandemic has taught us so many lessons. As humankind, in our lifetime, we have seen that people we don't need to meet to consider ourselves friends, or family.”
Watch a brief video from our conversation as Amani processes a bit of what 2020 was like, “seeing the me in you,” and why he has hope for the new year:
The students continue to celebrate being back in school, and Amani asked 9th grade student Munguakonkwa Borauzima, what is her new year’s resolution?
Amani sent the following message to our family and friends:
We continue to be thankful for the many blessings in our community and life changing programs that your support has been making possible.
2020 was a year of loss and blessing, deep concern and deep gratitude, reflection, and action.
While the past 10 months have been very challenging, we are thankful to have you as faithful companions and supporters during this hard time.
The Congo Peace school has continued being more than just a school because of your support. Children with severe malnutrition are gradually getting healthier and pursuing their education because of your support.
Because of your support, we are teaching a new generation to stand against hatred, learn tolerance and seek justice. And that is peace!
While we stand up and keep committing to action that will further justice and peace in the DR Congo, we are grateful for all of you who journey with us on this path.
- Amani Matabaro
Please share with a friend you think might want to join you in this movement for peace and equality through education! For a sustaining donation of $60 / month, you give the gift of hope and education to one of the Congo Peace School students, and allow Amani and the school staff to continue in their mission of education rooted in peace and nonviolence. (If you aren’t able to commit to that amount, consider forming a Peace School Pod of friends / family who each give $10 or $15 per month to total $60!)
We are connected in so many ways, both obvious and unseen. In this CNN article about predicting and preventing future pandemics, we are reminded not only of how close our connection is with Congo, but also how critical the way we live with the earth is to our collective health. This teaching is embedded in the Congo Peace School curriculum, as the students learn about composting and regenerative farming as well as recycling, using plastic waste to create new materials, such as these blocks that will be used at the Congo Peace School for pathways.
From the CNN piece entitled Hunting for Disease X: “Experts say the rising number of emerging viruses is largely the result of ecological destruction and wildlife trade.
“As their natural habitats disappear, animals like rats, bats, and insects survive where larger animals get wiped out. They're able to live alongside human beings and are frequently suspected of being the vectors that can carry new diseases to humans.
Scientists have linked past Ebola outbreaks to heavy human incursion into the rainforest. In one 2017 study, researchers used satellite data to determine that 25 of the 27 Ebola outbreaks located along the limits of the rainforest biome in Central and West Africa between 2001 and 2014 began in places that had experienced deforestation about two years prior. They added that zoonotic Ebola outbreaks appeared in areas where human population density was high and where the virus has favorable conditions, but that the relative importance of forest loss is partially independent of these factors.
“In the first 14 years of the 21st century, an area larger than the size of Bangladesh was felled in the Congo River basin rainforest.
“The United Nations has warned that if the current deforestation and population growth trends continue, the country's rainforest may have completely disappeared by the end of the century. As that happens, animals and the viruses they carry will collide with people in new and often disastrous ways.
“It doesn't have to be this way…”
It doesn't have to be this way. We are coming together to show that, and your friendship with the people of Congo is a critical part of the solution.
Thank you for being part of our global family,
Rebecca
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Rebecca Snavely
Executive Director, Action Kivu