International House New York Meher Jaffri Peace-Building Through Storytelling Karachi, Pakistan

International House New York Meher Jaffri Peace-building through Storytelling Karachi, Pakistan All aspects of our culture in present day rest on the foundations of the ancient art of storytelling. While working on a Native reservation in Canada in 2005, I learnt from the Iroquois people of Kahnawake that oral storytelling, ingrained in their culture, is intrinsic to their spiritual beliefs and that mythologies and origin stories are the primary method of passing on ancient wisdom to younger generations. While studying ancient Greek philosophy at university, I read Aristotle’s discourse on the virtues of storytelling and the cathartic role of the dramatic arts in history. All religions have shaped humanity’s conception of virtue, goodness, evil and ethics through stories. Pakistan (as a part of the subcontinent) once enjoyed a rich tradition of Urdu language oral storytelling (‘dastangoi’) along with other classical art forms such as dance, music and theatre. These suffered greatly during General Zia-ul Haq’s martial law in the 70’s and 80’s with its systematic banning of the arts and the imposition of a radical form of ‘Islamization’. Tragically, Pakistan today is threatened by the evolution of a dangerous form of narrative; one that has been on the rise as the numbers and degree of radicalization amongst the poor and marginalized communities continues to grow. The majority of the Pakistani population suffers from a complex myriad of challenges including rampant poverty, political unrest, illiteracy, government corruption, unemployment and economic insecurity – all which continue to contribute to the exponential rise of radicalization amongst the vulnerable and disillusioned youth. We are now in dire need of strengthening the narratives that contribute towards the development of a tolerant and liberal society, narratives that can counter the hate propaganda so pervasive in my country. It is my firm belief that the only way the human race can gain wisdom in life and hence, have a chance at tolerance and attaining peace, is by expanding our perspectives. Having worked formerly in the development sector, and as a professional (and entrepreneur) in the performing and dramatic arts industry in Pakistan, it is my experience that storytelling is one of the best way of expanding perspectives. This is especially true for those people who are unable to access a certain quality of education, who are physically restricted from travel or meeting new people due to cultural or economic reasons. The Project Peace-building through Storytelling aims to revive and promote the storytelling culture amongst marginalized youth in Karachi, Pakistan with a focus on building critical-thinking skills and reviving the tradition of Urdu storytelling and theatre. The two-pronged approach will: (a) Perform storytelling sessions for 700+ students from 6 low-income schools in Karachi over a 3-week period. These storytelling sessions will be supplemented by group discussions encouraging critical thinking around various topics and conclude in students attempting to write and perform their own stories at the conclusion of the project. (b) In order to plant the seeds of sustainability and longevity with this initiative, we will precede these storytelling sessions with a week of training 10 individuals in the art of storytelling and theatre so that they may continue to conduct these sessions after our project has concluded. They will be selected from both staff and faculty of our partner low-income schools (listed below) and students from our partner high-income school (the Lyceum School). Methodology Finalization of story-telling curriculum. This will consist of carefully curated stories that make for productive discussions, covering a range of topics for the purpose of building critical thinking skills in students. These include Urdu translations of stories from other cultures as well as stories from Urdu authors. Pre-selection of storytelling trainees across high income schools, universities and staff/faculty of low-income schools One- week storytelling training with Trainees: Week long training session with trainees in storytelling and performance arts methods Three-week storytelling sessions with the Youth Story telling sessions in 6 low income schools in Karachi Critical discussion and analysis post-storytelling sessions Students write a story or monologue under our mentorship Students perform their monologues, spoken-word or collective theatre piece. All students will receive supplemental materials including a bag containing a bound collection of stories (curated by us), a notebook and stationary Objectives and Outcomes Storytelling sessions with 700+ students from poor and marginalized communities Training 10 individuals in storytelling techniques and give them practical experience To increase Urdu storytelling and language skills To promote critical thinking skills amongst marginalized youth through storytelling and hence more tolerant and peaceful attitudes. Partners1 Low-income schools: Select branches of The Citizen’s Foundation School, The Kiran School and The Reading Room Project. Volunteers and trainees: The Lyceum School and NAPA Feasibility I have an extensive professional background in business, the performing arts, the development sector and the education sector in Pakistan. I will be working with another mentor, Fawad Khan to carry out this project (see both of our profiles below). With our training and professional experience combined, we are perfectly positioned to carry out this initiative, as we have been actively involved in the space in the past. About Me: I am a Fulbright Scholar (formerly a UWC-SEA scholar), filmmaker, actor and theatre practitioner from Pakistan, currently completing a Film and Theatre degree in New York. I am a current resident at the International House NYC where I have been selected for the prestigious Women in Leadership Fellowship and am a Resident Fellow as well. I have worked in the development sector and in the performing arts. I have produced/directed international award winning films and documentaries and have acted and directed extensively for stage. I have taught drama at secondary schools in Karachi and been a part of the repertory theaters of established institutions such as National Academy of Performing Arts2 (NAPA) and grass-roots performing arts groups such as Tehrik-e-Niswan3 in Pakistan. I am proud to say that I have made a name for myself in the arts, media and development industry in Pakistan and hope to use this as a means to channel more support towards building the artistic space in Pakistan, especially amongst under-privileged youth. About Fawad Khan: Fawad Khan is an alumna and faculty of NAPA in Karachi and a professional storyteller, actor and director for stage, TV and film. Fawad has actively been involved in the revival of the ancient tradition of Urdu storytelling, ‘dastangoi’4, has professionally and voluntarily conducted storytelling sessions with children, and also teaches drama and storytelling workshops at various universities and institutions in Karachi. 1 Please refer to attached Letters of Intent from Partners or more information on them 2 http://www.napa.org.pk/ 3 http://www.tehrik-e-niswan.org.pk/default2.asp?active_page_id=74 4 http://tribune.com.pk/story/931699/timeless-skill-storytelling-a-lost-art/ .

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