22 May – SPARK Social Justice, our new project

For a while now we have been only too aware of the lack of younger people (with some exceptions) coming along to events organised by the Justice & Peace Commission.
With financial support from the Porticus Trust we have just started up a project that will run to the end of 2020. It is specifically designed to engage people aged between 16 and 30 on issues of Social Justice and help them think about what more they can do to make a difference.
Our aim is that by the end of this project there will be some groups of people in this age group who meet on a regular basis to reflect on issues of social justice in the light of their faith and then take action in the light of that reflection.
We will reach out to people in this age group through holding workshops in high schools, parishes and colleges. With a limited budget we will not be able to cover all the schools or parishes in the Diocese but at this stage we would welcome interest from any parish who would like to take part in this project.
Rather than re-invent the wheel, our approach will be to review existing materials from other organisations (such as Church Action on Poverty, CAFOD, Columbans UK, Global Justice Now, War on Want etc.) that already have a good track record of working with people under 30 about issues of social justice.
Leading the work on this project will be Ms Aoibheann Kelly.
Aoibheann comes from a background of working in drama and has extensive experience of working with small groups of people of all ages. Chair of the Commission, John Battle, comments “As a Commission we are delighted to welcome Aoibheann to carry out the activities on this important project for us. From my own encounters with young people I know they have a great passion for Climate Change, homelessness, poverty and a range of other issues. This project will give them an opportunity to reflect on what they can do in the context of their faith. I know of Aoibheann through my involvement with some other local projects and I know that we are very lucky to have obtained her services.”
If you are looking for ways of involving young people in social justice issues then email the office and we will put you in touch with Aoibheann to explore if this project might be helpful.