The session was attended by 46 pupils, who were also given leaflets explaining how Fight for Peace’s Employability Pillar, part of the organisation’s Five Pillars methodology, can offer them opportunities. The first professional qualification courses of 2013 at Fight for Peace are due to begin in July.

There are two ways in which members can join the Youth Council. The first way is through nominations by staff and/or acting Youth Council members. The second way that members can join is through a project-wide invitation. The available spaces are advertised around the project and announced during the Personal Development sessions. The Youth Council then interview potential candidates and deliberate on which applicants are best suited for the role. Recently we had 10 new members join in the past three months, and each member is able to bring a fresh view of the project to the table from their own unique background. I was one who accepted the project-wide invitation and once I’d studied the Youth Council guide I was then interviewed and asked to join shortly after.

Members of the Youth Council with Lennox Lewis, during his visit to Fight for Peace in February 2012.

We focus on the diversity of opinions to ensure all voices are heard within the organization and the quality of input a Youth Council member can provide is certainly important. But perhaps the most important trait we look for is the dedication of a young person. Being part of the Youth Council can be time-consuming. We normally start our meetings at 5:30 and usually end at 7:00, though we almost always run over and consequently sacrifice some of our gym session! Away from the meetings we are required to attend various workshops, training classes and team meetings. All of this amounts to a big commitment to the project. It is by no means easy, but putting in the time and effort shows how much you are willing sacrifice for the project and in the Youth Council, like it is with combat sports, all great sacrifices come with great rewards.

Members of the youth council are able to meet people working in high positions in parliament, banks, businesses and also attend sporting events. We get the chance to meet and talk with many celebrities too. I even once met Lennox Lewis, former Undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World, who came to view the project and encourage aspiring boxers to achieve their goals. Because Fight for Peace has drawn a lot of worldwide media attention, we ourselves are given opportunities to appear on television and radio interviews. At times it can be tiring, but we still find time for fun as well. Being part of the Youth Council has provided opportunities for new experiences such as horse-riding, go-carting, paintballing, and even sky diving! The Youth Council here at Fight for Peace has certainly opened many doors to new experiences for young people.

Fabrício Ferreira, Wanderson de Oliveira, Bruno Fiorentino and Wellington Andrade, all either 16 or 17 years old and competing in the prestigious Forja for the first time, took their victories well and now go with confidence into the finals of the Elite Carioca Boxing Championship, which will take place this Sunday, 19 May in Rio de Janeiro.

On the same night in Sorocaba, Fight for Peace also had two boxers competing in the finals of the IV Copa Rudel. Michel William, 20, won a toughly contested bout at welterweight whilst Carlos Henrique da Silva, 17, lost his flyweight final 16:15. Fight for Peace boxing coach Antonio Cruz (Gibi) was awarded the prize of ‘Best Coach’ for the championships.

For more photos of the Forja and Copa Rudel finals day, view our latest photo gallery.

Why were you in Peru?

I went to Lima to receive the IOC’s Sport for All grant on behalf of Fight for Peace. We were amongst three organizations in the world that received this award. There was one from Peru, one from South Africa, and us from Brazil.

Can you tell me a little bit more about the award?

It was a recognition of excellence for working in sports for all. Here at Fight for Peace, we work with all young people, no matter their situation when they arrive at our door. Specifically, we won in the “Partnerships” category for our Global Alumni Programme, an initiative that is training several community-based organizations across the globe in our holistic methodology, which requires us to collaborate with all sorts of organizations.

Gabriela holds the IOC Sport for All award

Through our thirteen years of work we have learned a lot. We made mistakes in the past, but thanks to them we’ve learned how to do what we do well. Three years ago we started writing our processes and methodology for the Global Alumni Programme, and everything that worked along these years resulted in the innovation that we have now. We are able to replicate what we are doing in Brazil. We did it in London, and we can and we are doing it in many other countries as well.

What does this IOC award mean for Fight for Peace and its future?

Well I think it’s a huge recognition for our work. The criteria that the IOC sets is very rigorous. I think if you receive these awards, it’s because they truly believe you are making a difference. Even the moderator kept telling us that not many people do this kind of work in violent communities. And it’s not because of the social legacy or that we just started doing this work from now until the Olympics in 2016; we’ve been doing it for 13 years.

For the future, we will start working towards building relationships within Brazil. We are more well known abroad than in Brazil, so now I’ve spoken with people from the Brazilian Olympic Committee and the Ministry of Sport of Brazil, so I think this will bring awareness to many levels in the world of sports, and I hope we will make partnerships, receive further government funding, etc.

Can you tell me more about the presentation that you gave in Lima?

Nick Keller interviewed me and two other organizations in front of an audience of 500 people. It was kind of like a talk show. Since the Global Alumni Programme won the prize, I thought I had to talk more specifically about that although in fact I was asked many questions about the organisation and the difficulties of working in an area affected by violence, about our work with at-risk young people and especially about the work we do on gender. They really enjoyed learning that we worked with girls as well.

How was your interview received amongst the audience?

I received a lot of compliments. When I finished talking and the session was over, many people at the conference came to talk with me about the wonderful job we do, and that Fight for Peace is a real model that works. Up until the last day, people were coming to introduce themselves. I spoke with everyone from the special advisor of the United Nations for Sports Development and Peace, to a woman that works for the Bolivian Ministry of Sport that wanted to know about our gender programme at Fight for Peace. I was surprised that what I said during the interview would have this huge impact. It was a very positive response.

Did you get to see a lot of Lima? Where did you visit?

With the other IOC award winners: Leán Terblanche from South Africa & Chique from Peru.

On the first day, we were in the best part of Lima: beautiful, clean, and delicious food. Later that same day, I was invited by Beyond Sport to visit the Peruvian project that won the same award as us. They were about 30kms away from the city in a community that was just like the favela we are in based in, Maré. I was surprised by the similarity of the physical landscape.

The founder, a Jesuits Father born in Spain, lives in Peru and started the project in the El Augustín community fifteen years ago. When he started Escuela Socio Deportiva Martin Luther King there, the community was very violent, with gangs, shootings but he was able to change a lot of that reality through football. He works with over 400 children, all boys. We didn’t see girls in his project. That was a big conversation that I had with them, how we at Fight for Peace attract girls even though we work with boxing and martial arts. They were very interested in that.

So how did the communities that are affected by crime and violence in Lima compare to the communities here in Rio, if any?

I was not there long enough to make any sort of developed analysis, but I did see a lot of similarities. I didn’t see guns in the streets like I do here, but I saw the poverty. Another interesting thing I saw was the involvement of parents. They were very involved with the kids. We do have parents involved here, but I think at a lower level.

What were your overall impressions of the IOC event?

I had a very positive impression. It was a very big conference for over 500 participants and it was very well organized with interesting subjects and networking events. It was really good for us at Fight for Peace. I made a lot of connections such as the IOC, the Brazilian Ministry of Sports, the International Judo Federation, people from all types of sport organizations throughout the world.

Do you think that experience at the IOC will change the work you do here at Fight For Peace?

I wouldn’t say it would change the way we work – our Founder & Director Luke always tells us never to “ask” but instead to show the extraordinary work we do. Some organisations take the angle of poverty and needing money but here at Fight for Peace we look for things and we go after them. We don’t try to paint a sad story of being from the favelas and that donors should help because we are poor. No we don’t do this. We show that if you give an opportunity to young people, they can grow and become champions– either in life or inside the ring – I see it every day with my own eyes.

Skillshare hopes boxing and marital arts will attract young people in the community to participate in their programmes, which include vocational training and entrepreneurship. Programme Coordinator Tiny Healy was positive about the growth of the project following the confirmation of the US Embassy’s funding:

“My hope is that this project will support youth to take control of their lives with confidence and address issues in a mature way,” says Healy. “My hopes have expanded as this project is only a stepping-stone to bigger projects where we will expand our work to cover more youth in the local village.”

The Global Alumni Programme trains community-based organisations in Fight for Peace’s methodology, encouraging them to implement FFP-like services in communities around the world affected by crime and violence.

International Speaker & Performance Coach Billy Schwer gave an inspirational presentation on how to reach your potential after Fight for Peace’s young people had participated in interactive group activities related to identity.

Find out more about how Personal Development is undertaken at Fight for Peace in a blog post by Youth Programme Coordinator Joe Edmonds.

On Friday 26 April, an armoured police helicopter spent an hour flying low above the Rubens Vaz and Nova Holanda communities as part of a morning operation. Later on the same day, a shoot-out between police and drug traffickers on the corner by Fight for Peace’s Academy resulted in an elderly garbage collector, Sr. Hélio, being hit by a stray bullet. He died in hospital the following day.

Then on Thursday 2 May, a police operation by the BOPE, a Special Forces unit specialized in urban conflict, and the Military Police took place for several hours in and around the same communities, with large quantities of drugs and weapons confiscated. During the operation, several residents claimed to have their houses invaded and turned upside down by policemen without warrants.

One of the homeowners was former Fight for Peace mentor and photographer Ubirajara Carvalho, who had his camera destroyed and thrown in the toilet.  “I wasn’t at home to see it happen,” said Ubirajara, known as Bira. “But I’d like to understand the reason behind such brutality.” The resulting protests by local residents have led the Civil Police to investigate the actions.

The participants include Cleiton, an intern at Supplies Company CONAB, Zezinho, who works at the local bakery, Paulo who works at a print shop and Renato, who runs his own computer business. Each combines their job with studying or participating in the boxing & martial arts offered at Fight for Peace.

To see the eight portraits, see our latest photo gallery.