What happens when creativity, young people, education and community come together?

Seeds of Hope are everywhere!


“I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I arrived at Stage at the Lake…” But it was special to meet all of the Calderdale team in person, who had brought this four-day event together so successfully.


Sometimes an event stays with you long after the final performance has finished. My visit to Stage at the Lake at the beautiful Shibden Hall in Calderdale was one of those occasions.


As UNESCO ASPnet UK Coordinator, I was delighted to be invited as a guest, but what I experienced was much more than simply attending an event. Here, in the grounds of a house steeped in history, the past, present and future seemed to meet.


The English Chamber Orchestra filled the setting with music, Northern Ballet brought movement and storytelling to life, and throughout there was a wonderful sense of creativity, community and possibility.


And then there were the parklets; a unique gardening festival at Shibden Park celebrating community, creativity and the power of nature to bring people together.


At its heart was a specially commissioned trail of ten micro show gardens, designed and built by community groups from across Calderdale. It was wonderful to see spaces where ideas, conversations and creativity were flourishing and connecting through Seeds of Hope. I cannot wait to see them transported to their ‘forever homes’.


Standing there, I found myself thinking about what we mean when we talk about education, culture and hope.

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The UNESCO ASPnet Seeds of Hope is not simply a competition. It is an invitation to young people to imagine the future they want to see and to give those ideas a voice. Through the programme, young people and communities are asking us to look forward and imagine what comes next.


I also had the incredible opportunity to visit Shibden Hall and learn more about Anne Lister and her diaries.


I had read about Anne Lister. I knew about the diaries, the secret code and the relationships that have made her such an important figure in women's and LGBTQ+ history. But standing in the library gave me a different perspective. You could feel another Anne Lister emerging; not only the woman whose relationships have understandably attracted so much attention, but the reader, thinker, traveller and lifelong learner.


I was particularly fascinated to see books and material relating to ceramics and glassmaking, which is of great interest to me personally. It reminded me of something we sometimes forget when we encounter historical figures: people are rarely just one thing.


Anne didn't simply accept the boundaries around her. She travelled, read, managed an estate, engaged with intellectual life and recorded her thoughts. Her diaries became a space where she could think, question and reflect, including writing in a complex code that allowed her to record parts of her life that society did not readily provide a language or safe space for.


Her words have become an extraordinary historical record, but they also feel remarkably relevant today. In 2026, not all women and girls have the opportunity to live the lives they wish to, and human rights for young people continue to be challenged globally.


As UNESCO ASPnet Coordinator, giving young people a voice matters deeply to me.


Our Seeds of Hope programme asks young people to imagine the future they want and express their hopes and ideas creatively. Standing in Anne Lister's library, I found myself thinking about the connection.


Anne wrote for her present, but her words became part of our future. The young people creating today will do the same.


Their drawings, poems, films, performances, ideas and questions may touch our hearts in the moment, but they are also a record of how one generation imagined the world. Perhaps that is part of Anne Lister's cultural legacy: not simply that she left us her story, but that she reminds us how important it is to leave space for people to tell their own.


I came away thinking about how much UNESCO ASPnet and the work we do connecting young people globally, fostering peace and sustainability, really matters. Giving young people a voice is, ultimately, an act of hope.


Young people need more than an academic education. They need joy, belonging, creativity, culture and the opportunity to imagine.


Stage at the Lake is a wonderful example of what happens when those things come together.


Hope doesn't always arrive as a grand gesture. Sometimes it starts with a small space, an idea, a piece of creativity, a conversation and someone willing to listen.


Thank you to Pamhidzai Broodie and the team at Calderdale Council and all the partners; Greg Boardman at Lights Camera Score, James Rutherford at English Chamber Orchestra and everyone involved for making this a very special Seeds of Hope legacy event.


Ann Beatty • August 25, 2026

Alfa Liv Kalkil - Math concepts for popular literacy classes in Haiti

By Chancy Jak • August 25, 2026
2025 During the annual fomasyon for Alfa monitors, Antoliyis Pye gave an extensive presentation on how best to introduce and develop basic math concepts in literacy classes. The response to his insight and enthusiasm led to our decision to create our own math book for Alfa participants.  In Haiti and around the world, illiterate market women and peasant farmers develop their own techniques for calculating and recording numbers. However, in providing literacy for the development of our people, we must also introduce the world of conventional numeracy. These skills lead to logical thinking, problem-solving, and the ability to interpret and make informed decisions on numerical evidence. For a year we worked together to draft the contents of our Alfa Liv Kalkil, seek illustrations, create layout, and finally take our product to the local printer. Funds were provided for 350 copies, enough for each Alfa participant at each of our sites at the present level of attendance. 2026 Our next step was to fully engage each Alfa monitor in the process for introduction and use of Liv Kalkil in Alfa classes. Our two day fomasyon for 2026 was dedicated to ensuring that each member of our team was familiar with the book and comfortable in implementing the concepts with Alfa participants. The sessions were a great success. Every monitor was extremely pleased with this new tool which will allow them and their classes to work together in the world of mathematics. Liv Kalkil is now in service for every participant throughout Alfa, from Limonade itself out to sites in the hills and along the river. It is with some excitement that the monitors and participants are beginning to use our very own, home-grown, math book. In the same way that we already had Goute Sel*, Lekti Netale*, Ti Koze Sou Istwa Peyi Dayiti*, we are proud to have this math book which advances our shared work for the development of our people. We are profoundly grateful to all those who have encouraged and supported us in developing this book. We want to thank our dedicated team of monitors, the Alfa support team in Columbus, Ann Beatty and the Steve Sinnott Foundation, and the many others who contribute to our literacy programme. Chancy Jak (Alfa Co-ordinator) Antoliyis Pye (senior monitor) *Goute Sel: Taste of Salt (base text for Alfa literacy classes) *Lekti Netale (reading comprehension) *Ti Koze Sou Istwa Peyi Dayiti (stories from Haitian history; Alfa second level)

Five Days, 64 Educators, One Renewed Mission

By Marie Antoinette Corr • August 10, 2026
Every teacher has a time in their career when a student needs someone to listen to them instead of just a lesson plan. Schools have been preparing for that moment for far too long. That started to alter on Friday, August 7, 2026. After completing a five-day guidance and counselling program in the RED 2 West hall in Brikama, 64 educators left with certificates and something more substantial than paper. They left with a duty: to be a support system for young people negotiating the challenging realities of school and life, a listening ear for a struggling student, and a source of advice for a colleague. Why This Training Matters During the closing ceremony, union leaders and education administrators made it clear that schools need counsellors, and they need them right now. The message is grounded in reality. Today's students face an ever-more complicated array of social, emotional, financial, and personal obstacles as they enter the school each morning. Teachers are the first to notice it. They are the ones in the classroom when a youngster needs someone to notice, when a student becomes quiet, or when grades decline for no apparent reason. Guidance and counselling have traditionally been viewed as optional extras rather than essential components of a school's operations. This instruction directly challenged that notion. Counselling and guidance are not extras. It contributes to the success of a school. Five Days of Learning and Practice Over the course of the week, participants moved beyond theory into practice, building the listening skills, guidance techniques, and support strategies they'll need to respond to real situations in real time. It wasn't just about acquiring knowledge; it was about rehearsing the kind of presence that makes a difference when a student or colleague needs it most. By the final day, the room held a shared sense of purpose. Participants reflected on what the five days had given them, not only new skills, but a renewed sense of why they came into education in the first place. They thanked the funders who made the training possible and made a collective commitment: to serve with diligence, empathy, and purpose. Taking It Beyond the Training Room The real test of this training won't happen in Brikama; it'll happen in the weeks and months ahead, in classrooms, corridors, staffrooms, and communities across the region. The 64 newly certified counsellors were challenged to carry what they learned into every one of those spaces: to notice the learner who's struggling silently, to check in on the colleague who seems overwhelmed, to be the steady presence that a school community can lean on. That's the real outcome of a training like this. Not just a certificate, but a shift in what's considered normal: a school culture where guidance and counselling sit at the centre of education, not the margins.

Fighting Against Gender-Based Violence in Haiti

By Gabrielle Aurel • August 3, 2026
After several weeks of awareness-raising activities, training sessions, and community exchanges, Sonje Ayiti Organization in partnership with the Steve Sinnott Foundation, SAGE Services, and Behcare, has officially closed its project for the prevention and awareness of gender-based violence (GBV). But as with all of Sonje Ayiti's work, an ending is never really an ending. It's a handover: from project to practice, from training to daily life, from words to lasting change. Over the course of the initiative, participants took part in workshops, training sessions, practical activities, and open dialogue spaces designed to build real, usable knowledge. Topics included: Understanding gender-based violence and its many forms Consent and respect for human rights Equality between women and men Prevention strategies and support mechanisms for survivors Rather than relying on lectures alone, the project leaned into participation. Practical exercises, wellness activities, educational games, and constructive discussions gave young people and community members space to engage actively, not just to listen, but to question, reflect, and practise what they were learning. That combination of structure and openness helped create an environment where genuine behaviour change could take root. Central to this initiative was the active involvement of young people and community members. GBV prevention doesn't succeed through top-down messaging; it succeeds when the people most affected and best placed to shift social norms are given the tools and the trust to lead that shift themselves. By centring their voices in dialogue spaces and hands-on activities, the project aimed not just to inform, but to equip a generation ready to model respect and equality in their own communities. The closing of this project does not mark the end of Sonje Ayiti's commitment; it marks the beginning of a collective responsibility. The knowledge gained through months of training and dialogue now moves from the classroom into everyday life. It's in the hands of participants to put that learning into practice, in homes, schools, and communities across Haiti. The goal ahead is clear: communities where respect, dignity, equality, and non-violence are not aspirations, but norms. Together, the work continues: to prevent gender-based violence and to build a fairer, more inclusive, and more respectful society for everyone. Respect and equality remain the guiding values behind every action that follows. This project was made possible through the collaboration of Sonje Ayiti, The Steve Sinnott Foundation, SAGE Services, and Behcare.