The Kick Project

This is a longer version of an article published on SportandDev.org With the United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace closed down by the global body, there is undoubtedly a void in this space in which many of us here work. But, for all the high profile oomph the UNOSDP added to the world of sport for good, it’s passing need not be seen as devastating. For one, the work the UNOSDP has already done in its 16 years of life has laid a platform for the development of sport for social justice. While many of us knew for years that sport had a wider purpose beyond mere business or entertainment, the UNOSDP has provided a base of credibility that may have otherwise taken much longer to establish. While much of the work is, in many ways, still to be done, the UNOSDP has left a positive legacy on which we can all build. More problematic is the shifting of the UNOSDP’s brief to the IOC. Obliging the IOC to administer to the peace and development facets ...

Our latest article, run on the Sport and Development website, on the peace potential in the dispute between Israeli settlers and the Palestinian Football Association. "It's disappointing FIFA has so far chosen not to lead on the issue of Israeli settlement teams playing in Palestinian West Bank. This is a real opportunity for the beleaguered overseer to take a stance, especially as it appears doing so would simply be by enforcing its own rules..."( more )....

Pic: www.sportanddev.org Our founder James ran an article in today's Huffington Post, on the occasion of Anzac Day here in Australia. "The power of sport to provide a form of sustenance in times of deadly peril is recognised globally, not just by Australians. In fact, sport has proven to be not only a means of maintaining war, but of aiding peace. In conflict zones across the world, sport has been a presence as a vehicle to co-operate, work together, build bridges and to get along." You can read the full article here .

Pic: footage.framepool.com Final in our five-part series on how sport for development and peace works. EXAMPLE 5: SPORT IS FUN The regenerative power of having fun, particularly for younger members of a community, should not be underestimated. In situations where children are forced to witness the cruelest, most unjust, violent or depraved manifestations of human behaviour many experience alarmingly, if understandable, high levels of stress and mental health disorders. Being able to release the tension and to revert to being children again may be all a given child needs to begin to find his/her way back to a normal life. Moreover, introducing children and youths to the fun aspects of life, such a sport, in a well-structured context, can head-off generational attachments to dispute and possibly war. Children who are exposed to children from groups and communities with whom their parents may be, or have been, or may yet be, at war can lift the level of relationships to a more...

Pic: blog.drstankovich.com Part IV of our series on how sport for development and peace works/ EXAMPLE 4: SPORT CAN BE USED AS A FOCAL POINT In many societies sports clubs are used as central points for the community. Not only can they be the site of actual sporting activity, which in itself brings the community together, the location is often seen as a proxy space for both formal and informal community gatherings. Sport, therefore, can act as a kind of motivator, a centripetal force for disconnected communities, which brings individuals together to share a common, fun, interest. This may engender a sense of motivation or even pride among disadvantaged communities. In practice, this means that sports clubs can be readily utilised to act as spaces for both curriculum and community education (such as physical and mental health care) or as meeting spaces for competing groups. The actual practice of sport can act to lighten moods and expend energy which might otherwise be u...

Part III of our series on how sports for development and peace works. EXAMPLE 3: SPORTS IS BASED ON SHARED RULES AND AGREED OUTCOMES It is one of the characteristics of war and many forms of violence that there is an absence of normal, commonly accepted rules. Sport offers an alternative to this. Being in a contained area which, while contested, is nevertheless bound by rules and conventions, and is adjudicated by a recognised and impartial referee goes some way towards ensuring that those used to, or who are seeking, a world without norms and without rules can be countered, both conceptually and literally. The similarities football, and some other sports, share with peace talks and other forms of dispute resolution are manifest. At another level, playing in a team with others with whom an individual might have been obliged to fight and or to hate, can provide ground on which mutual understanding and compassion can be gained. The most basic rule of football is that hand...

Part II in our five-part series on how sport for development and peace works. In this short piece, we look at the inherent peace-building and peace-making characteristics of sport. Example 2: SPORT IS A PEACEFUL ACTIVITY Football is our go-to sport. There's a few reasons for that. For instance, its the most international sport we know, it's easily understood, it can be played by anyone and it takes little equipment or set-up. But another important reason we like to go with football is that it has certain characteristics that make it particularly useful as a peace tool. Take the shape of the game. It flows and shifts, moving over the whole field in a series of fluid movements. There are no lines or obstacles on the field itself to stop movement and flow. Every part of the field is used and anyone can go to any part of the field at any time. This shape ensures that the space is shared. Players go in and out of each other's physical space constantly. Players must...

Pic: abc.net.au Some of us from The Kick Project team were in a meeting with potential partners recently, when we were asked a question about “Proof of Concept” of sport for development and peace. The context of the question was that we were talking about sport for development and peace - especially football - but we weren't putting the pieces together. As she said, “It's all good. But I don't see how this works. How does sport and football generate peace and development? What's the proof of concept ?” It made us think: it can be easy when you're working away on your stuff to lose touch of your context. In this case, this person was someone who wrote grant applications. She wanted to know how she would sell our concept to attract funding. Completely fair enough. So, we (hopefully) addressed her concerns at the time and took her concern on notice for next time we spoke. Debriefing afterwards, we realised there may be others out there who don't quite see t...

Pic: News24 Distressing news coming out regarding a lost generation of children, victims of the war in Syria. Human Rights Watch has released its report into Syrian refugees in Turkey and finds that as many as 400,000 Syrian children there have no access to education. This is in a context of virtual 100% primary school attendance in Syria pre-civil war and high levels of high school attendance as well as good scores on educational ratings, such as literacy. This is what war does. It may be easy to blame Turkey for this situation. But, this country has taken in around 2 million Syrians fleeing violence and a broken country. Rather than blame Turkey - and blame is not a word we like much here, anyway - maybe we should all look at what are we doing as individuals, and at what are our governments and the international bodies that represent us doing about this. This appears evidence that more needs to be done. It's not about blame, but about finding solutions.* We take a b...

Pic credit: simonstacpoole.wordpress.com We've been thinking a lot about the Sustainable Development Goals which were launched in late September. As an organisation that seeks to address issues of poverty, inequality and social development, we are both impressed by the scope of the SDGs and a little frustrated that they are needed at all. However, we are supportive of the initiative and we believe they will engender positive change. In fact, as readers of this blog will know, we are of the opinion that sport has, or should have, a powerful influence on meeting the 17 intended outcomes of the SDGs. The Kick Project's founder, James Rose, wrote a comment piece for Online Opinion, which we hope will make a contribution to the examination of the relationship between sport and the SDGs. You can read the full article here .

Pic:Lockerdome.com A good friend of The Kick Project, Jared Genser, founder of the human rights activist group Freedom Now, alerted us to this piece he co-wrote with well-known Chinese dissident Yang Jianli, in the Wall Street Journal, on the sometimes fraught relationship between big sporting events and human rights. It's an issue that's dear to our hearts here, especially given the plight of migrant workers employed to help construct the facilities for the Qatar World Cup in 2022 (the same year as the Beijing Winter Olympics) It's Important reading. Let's hope it focusses more attention on the negative impacts of big sport in relation to human rights and social justice so as to better harness the many positive outcomes sport can generate. BEIJING OLYMPIC SCANDAL REDUX August 7, 2015 Beijing has been selected to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, making it the first city tapped to host both the Summer and Winter Games. In deciding this, the Internationa...

Mark Bulpitt, Head of World Vision's Humanitarian Resilience Team said this recently, in a letter to the Financial Times newspaper; "Gaza is most worryingly suffering from invisible wounds inflicted on its children by the last conflict. Children are showing devastating signs of trauma. Almost all of those — 96 per cent — on our programmes need direct psychosocial support. Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of them are suffering severe psychosocial issues. Three devastating wars have wrought havoc on children in Gaza, with more than 400,000 of them still in need of psychosocial care." Our program in Gaza is aimed at as many of these children as we can reach.  Please assist us here .  Thankyou!

The Kick Project fully endorses the views of Melissa Fleming from UNHCR on empowering refugees within the camps and settlements to thrive, as per the above TED Talk, (or here if the embed isn't working) given in Rio last October. She speaks mainly of academic education, the kind that leads to degrees and diplomas. Its a totally valid view but I would enhance what she says with a thought for the value of physical education through organised and secure sport. Maths and English may not be for everyone. If fact, if that is the only subjects of education then this may even alienate students. In cases of refugees, these people have been alienated enough. Sport, for me, provides the following important outcomes: Good Health Confidence Interaction Co-operation and Team-work Competing Fairly Hope Fun Pride Trust in Others Direction and Focus Healthy Distraction and Escape Community Engagement I'm sure there are more. That's just off the top of my head...

Just saw this piece from the BBC and love the concept... By Clark Boyd at BBC World Service The official ball for the Euro 2012 Football Championship certainly sounds impressive. After all, it’s been developed over a two-year period and tested across eight countries. Uefa, European football’s governing body, calls the Tango 12 "a modern interpretation of the classic design, including a coloured outline inspired by the flags of the two host nations, Poland and Ukraine”. Wow. But I'm left with a question. After kicking it around for a couple of hours, can you use it power a lamp or charge a cell phone like  the Soccket ?...( more )