Join Harmony Movement to celebrate youth creativity at the AGO Youth Centre Launch Party on Friday, September 30 at 7pm. We will be showcasing some of the work created by youth in the 2011 Arts.for.Equity program!

This FREE Youth Centre Launch Party is presented in partnership with the AGO, Manifesto Community Projects and Manifesto’s 5th year anniversary. It will be an awesome free event for young people in Toronto.

Taking place from 7pm until midnight on Friday September 30 in the brand new Weston Family Learning Centre this event is a chance to help Manifesto celebrate their 5th anniversary and get a sneak peek at our brand new youth
centre.

There will be THREE special guest DJs, art work by Harmony Movement’s Arts For Equity, snacks, drinks (non-alcoholic), birthday cake and more!

Friday 30th September, 7:00pm – Midnight
In the Weston Family Learning Centre at the AGO
DJs/Dancing/Performance/Cake

About Manifesto: Manifesto is a non-profit grassroots organization working to unite and energize Toronto’s music and arts community and find innovative ways of working together towards common goals. Find out more about Manifesto:https://www.facebook.com/ManifestoFestival

Find out more about this and other Weston Family Learning Centre launch events:http://ow.ly/6t4yg
Join the AGO on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AGOToronto

Youth opportunities at the AGO:
http://www.ago.net/youthcouncil
http://www.ago.net/youth-opportunities

This event is a full day conference (10am to 3pm) where students will watch inspirational speakers, a 90 minute showcase created by talented youth in the community and participate in two, one-hour workshops facilitated by youth.

For more information about the conference click here.

NXE is a non-profit, un-partisan organization, run by youth, to encourage youth to be civically engaged by finding creative ways to make voting, politics and civic engagement ‘cool’.

This year, Arts.for.Equity will be hosted at 918 Bathurst Centre from August 22-26th. Workshops will run from 11:00am-4:00pm. Only 40 spots available!

For more information click here.

Gallery 44 is pleased to offer OUTREACH, our award-winning education program designed specifically for youth who traditionally have not had access to photography, as a medium of creative self-expression. OUTREACH breaks down barriers to the arts and encourages at-risk youth to develop their creative voice and understand the power of the photographic image. Through OUTREACH, Gallery 44 works in collaboration with five community organizations to offer black and white photography workshops to over 50 young people in the Metro Toronto area. The workshops have a different thematic focus each year and guide the youth from concept, through to production, and exhibition at Gallery 44.

Find out more about the Gallery 44 Photo Project here.

“If we are to create peace in our world, we must begin with our children.” – Mahatma Gandhi

Peace Tree International, Harmony Movement and the Toronto District School Board’s Departments of Student and Community Equity and Safe and Caring Schools request the participation of Peace Tree Ambassadors from schools across Toronto to celebrate Peace Tree Day at Mel Lastman Square on June 1st from 10:30a.m. to 2:00p.m. Peace Tree Day, inspired by the film The Peace  Tree  by Mitra Sen, was first proclaimed by Mayor David Miller on June 1, 2006.  On Peace Tree Day, students will participate in inter-cultural/interfaith workshops, panel discussions, enjoy a taste of food from diverse cultures and experience the Peace Tree concert reflecting peace, diversity and fusion through the arts by children and youth.

On Saturday December 4th 2010, The Harmony LINKS Equity Conference will bring together 200 students from across the GTA to redefine leadership, create exciting initiatives, network with youth leaders, gain equity-based knowledge, and work on sustainability tools that will have a lasting impact on your schools and communities.  Five of your students will attend one of five different interactive workshops that will give students the tools to create sustainable action plans.  These action plans will be used to initiate positive social change within your schools and communities.

The Harmony LINKS Equity Conference will be an exciting opportunity for students in grades 7-12 who have been identified as leaders or as students with leadership potential.  Together they will create a driving force towards equity and inclusivity, not only within your schools, but within your communities at large.  Harmony Movement is a not-for profit organization with a mandate to combat all forms of discrimination in society.  We work with schools and school boards across Ontario to challenge biases, create inclusive learning environments, and empower youth to become leaders of social change.  The LINKS Conference is the first event of its kind that aims to build youth alliances extending beyond city and school board boundaries.  Youth conference delegates will be visionaries of change within the GTA, and serve as role models for youth nation-wide.

Additionally, the Harmony LINKS Conference will include workshops for teachers that will give them the tools to support student-led initiatives, while also educating them on how to create inclusive learning environments for their students.

After the conference, each school will receive an equity strategy developed by the students, including a mandate for change, a calendar of events and a detailing of initiatives to implement throughout the school year (a minimum of 5 initiatives per school).  The students will also be given a resource to start a Harmony Equity Club and tips outlining how to sustain any pre-existing social justice club in your school.

The Ontario Ministry of Education’s Equity and Inclusive Education Strategy is challenging schools and school boards to redefine inclusiveness to incorporate all aspects of diversity.  This year, schools are mandated to report back to the Ministry about equitable policies and practices that have been implemented for both staff and students.  Having your students and teachers participating in the LINKS Conference will help you reach the important targets set out by the strategy and give you the tools to create an inclusive environment within your school.

EVENT DETAILS:

Date: Saturday December 4th 2010

Location: Centennial College- Morningside Campus, 755 Morningside Ave., Toronto, ON, M1C 5J9

Time: 9:00-4:00pm (Registration from 8:30-9:00)

Cost per student: $20.00; each school must register a minimum of 5 students (a maximum of 10)

Cost per Teacher: $50.00; however, one teacher admitted for FREE if they attend with 5 students

Lunch and Snacks will be provided

LINKS Brochure (pdf)

LINKS Printable Form (pdf)

The LINKS Conference is a call to action for youth who want to see change in their school communities.  The unique workshops will not only provide your students with the tools to create meaningful initiatives and sustainable goals, but will also help them develop the confidence to become agents of

social change.   If you are interested in sending your students to this

exciting event, please visit our website at www.harmony.ca and fill out the online registration form.  If you have any questions about this event, please call 416.385.2660 or email info@harmony.ca

Arcadian Court

HARMONY AWARD BANQUET
Date: Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Time: Reception 5:30 pm/ Dinner 6:30 pm
Venue: Arcadian Court, 8th Floor Simpson Building
401 Bay Street (at Queen), Toronto
2010 Banquet Flyer (pdf)

For complete information please click here

The Harmony Award is presented annually to individuals or organizations who have made significant contributions in the promotion of harmony and equity in Canada. Award recipients are also leaders in Canada who have a commitment and have worked tirelessly to enrich the diversity of our country. Past Harmony Award recipients included Sol Guy and Josh Thome, Roméo Dallaire, Stephen Lewis and Michele Landsberg.

This year’s award recipient is Jessica Yee, founder and Executive Director of Native Youth Sexual Health Network.  Jessica is a young woman on a mission.  She started volunteering for a Toronto women’s shelter when she was 12.  At 15, she spearheaded a letter-writing campaign in support of a gay student who was barred from bringing his boyfriend to the prom.

Several years later, Yee went to South Dakota to fight against the re-criminalization of abortion and connected with the powerful Native American Women’s Health Education Resource Center.

By age 20, Yee has pulled those experiences together to form the Native Youth Sexual Health Network, the first agency of its kind run by and for youth that isn’t focused solely on disease prevention. With head offices in Toronto and on the Oneida reservation in Wisconsin, the network is a North American force for healthy sexuality and reproductive rights, among other things.

Yee currently holds the second inaugural community internship at the Centre for Urban Health Initiatives at the University of Toronto. Her health research centers on empowering youth as researchers in the areas of sexual health promotion, decolonization, and reclaiming traditional knowledge.

A prolific writer and lecturer, Yee is the author of the forthcoming book to be published by Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Feminist Education Now: Youth, Activism, and Intersectionality, and will be featured in the new National Film Board documentary Feminism Now.

Arts.For.Equity 2010

Harmony Movement is proud to announce our 2^nd Annual Arts.For.Equity Workshop Series!  This is a chance for youth to learn about diversity and equity while developing new skills in the arts.

As part of our exciting new “Project Peace” initiative funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Multiculturalism Program, we are proud to announce our 2^nd annual Arts.For.Equity workshop series, is taking place from August 23 – August 27, 2010.

This 5-day workshop series will present youth from across the GTA with a unique opportunity to participate in diversity training, while simultaneously developing new skills in a variety of art forms – from dance and photography to visual and performance art.

The youth will then use their newly acquired artistic skills to express their understanding of diversity and equity in their communities at a youth art showcase in September!

WORKSHOP DATES: Monday, August 23 – Friday, August 27.  Workshops will run from 11 – 4 p.m.

LOCATION: Art Starts @ Yorkdale Community Arts Centre

Yorkdale Shopping Centre, 3401 Dufferin St. (Lower Level), Toronto, ON M6A 2T9

This year, youth will be working with these amazing artists:

• Tobias Wang (Photography)
• Nylda ‘LadyNoyz Gallardo-Lopez (Dance)
• Nicolle ‘Coco’ Matthews of Elevated Grounds (Performance Art)
• Zanette Singh of Sketch (Visual Art)

If you are interested in applying and are between the ages of 13-18, please send in your COMPLETE application to Letecia Rose, Education Director at Harmony Movement by email (lrose@harmony.ca); by fax (416-385-2644); or drop off/mail your completed applications to: 255 Duncan Mill Road Suite 705, Toronto, Ontario, M3B 3H9. Applications are due by 12:00 noon on Wednesday August 18, 2009.

We will be selecting 25-30 youth to participate in the project. We will call you by Friday August 20, 2010 to let you know about the status of your application.

This Friday, June 25, 2010

We will be recognizing the young people, showcasing their films and enjoying some light refreshments!

Where: Toronto District School Board, Main Office at 5050 Yonge Street, Toronto (Next to Mel Lastman Square)

When: 5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Parking: Off of North York Blvd in the parking lot

Over

Peace Tree Ambassadors from across the TDSB participated in student-led intercultural/interfaith workshops including African Drumming and Tabla, a play of Harriet Tubman, Fusion Dance, Mehndi Mela, Petals for Peace, Pow Wows, Hana’s Suitcase, Festival of Lights, Bollywood Beats and many other workshops that helped them raise funds for War Child Canada and Pennies for Peace.  Workshop presenters included students from Berner Trail Jr. PS, Dr. Marion Hilliard Sr. PS, Winchester Jr. & Sr. PS, Firgrove PS, Rose Avenue PS, Grenoble PS and Humber Summit MS.

A first time and unique experience for the children was to speak to Arab and Jewish children who united in Israel to celebrate Peace Tree Day at the Peres Centre for Peace. Thanks to modern technology, the Toronto Peace Tree Ambassadors from General Brock School were able to connect with the Arab and Jewish children via webcam and Skype to share peace initiatives. The students were intrigued to see their friends in Israel and how similar they are to children here.

To conclude the Toronto Peace Tree Day festival, the Peace Tree Concert highlighted beautiful creations of peace, diversity and fusion of dance and music by children and youth, plus inspirational messages from spoken word artist, Mustafa Ahmed.  The Peace Tree Ambassadors attending the festival left with many ideas to promote peace in their schools and communities including how to create their own Peace Tree, how to set up their Peace Tree Club, Peace Tree Centre and Peace Tree Stand in order to spread peace and diversity initiatives through out the school year.

Peace Tree Day was a very inspiring experience for all the children and youth who attended thanks to all the Peace Tree Ambassadors from schools across the TDSB who shared their vision of peace and respect for people of all backgrounds.

For more information about Peace Tree Day click here