The Change Makers Programme (CMP) is a project initiated at the Salzburg Global Seminar in 2016 by the JHGC and its partners, Aegis Trust and the South African Holocaust & Genocide Foundation (SAHGF). The CMP is a youth leadership programme for young community leaders and activists in post-conflict countries across Africa. The programme explores relevant historical examples of atrocity, such as the Holocaust, the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and Apartheid in South Africa while developing local case studies in each country it launches.

The CMP draws on lessons from the past and encourages dialogue on human rights, resilience, and active participation in shaping a more peaceful and equitable future within the participants’ own countries and communities. This 3-day interactive educational programme can be easily scaled up to include a ‘train the trainer’ workshop for educators, facilitators and thought leaders enabling far-reaching, ongoing and sustainable projects within these countries.

Since 2018, the CMP has been launched in 13 countries including South Africa, Rwanda, Mozambique, Nigeria, Zambia and The Gambia, and has been evaluated successfully by the University of Pretoria. Through the support of many local partners in these countries, the CMP has reached thousands of young people and thought leaders with the aim of promoting tolerance, pluralism while countering extremism and violence in an effort to prevent future violence and mass atrocities.

Contact tshego@jhbholocaust.co.za for more information.