Celebrating Diversity

The Celebrating Diversity Project sprang from a recognition that racial, cultural and gender intolerance in our society will not simply wither away and that the school plays a central role in shaping personal and social values.

Pictured right: a collage about hopes/fears, likes/dislikes done by youngsters involved in the Celebrating Diversity Project.

The focus of Celebrating Diversity was to work with groups of learners at 15 different schools across the racial and cultural divides in the Western Cape on these issues:

  • To help learners develop an understanding of racially prejudiced behaviour;
  • To empower them to work against racial prejudice in their own lives;
  • To nurture an appreciation of the riches inherent in a diverse, multi-cultural society.

A Celebrating Diversity workshopA Celebrating Diversity workshopTo achieve these aims, the Celebrating Diversity Project ran ongoing weekly workshops with 15 groups. The 20-month project, funded by Comic Relief, ran until September 2001. The CDP Evaluation praised the innovation and energy of the project. If further funding can be gained it will refine and develop its curriculum so it can be used in other schools.