Gondwana Sud

Gondwana was founded by a group of people of all ages who have undertaken voluntary work, development cooperation or community service in the Global South and in the outskirts of our cities, with the aim of building on and sustaining the civic, social and political commitment that has defined them.

Gondwana aims to be an ‘active minority’ capable of promoting a new approach to relations between peoples: people-to-people diplomacy.

Diplomacy, in itself, is the art of dialogue and mediation between different cultures and interests.

Popular refers to that which belongs to the community, to the people. “People’s Diplomacy” is, therefore, a form of intercultural dialogue between citizens, ordinary people, from the grassroots up. It is the guiding principle that “relationships” built through dialogue and mutual understanding can constitute an unlimited source of social and cultural enrichment, and an essential tool for conflict resolution, the development of peoples, and the building of a culture of peace.

People’s Diplomacy is non-violence and the pursuit of integration to achieve a free and egalitarian global society, in which relations of domination are overcome. People’s Diplomacy is about “networking” among minorities who refuse to remain silent.

Our commitment – shared by organisations from both the North and the South – to ensuring that those in difficulty find the space and the means to uphold their dignity and shape their own future is characterised by an approach that:

• Respects the culture and way of life of each other’s peoples, with particular attention to the most marginalised sections of the population.

• Co-designing on the basis of shared objectives, involving local partners as widely as possible.

• Cooperating in a multi-sectoral approach and building networks, prioritising interventions that have an impact on the whole community.

• Fostering decentralised and community-based cooperation by promoting interaction between social and institutional actors and strengthening the role of civil society.

• Prioritising the concept of ‘being’ over that of ‘doing’.

• Promoting reciprocity by also giving people from the Global South the opportunity to ‘be’ within the context of the Global North, in order to better share and harmonise their respective cultural spheres.

Gondwana’s mission is based on the following principles:

• To work on behalf of children, women, people with disabilities, the elderly, migrants, farmers and indigenous peoples who find themselves in situations of hardship, disadvantage and deprivation due to their physical, mental, economic, social, cultural and family circumstances;

• To work towards the promotion of human rights, the exercise and protection of fundamental civil rights and, in any case, to overcome the situations of hardship, disadvantage and deprivation in which these people find themselves;

• To work, in Italy and abroad, by encouraging the active participation of young people in carrying out solidarity initiatives that promote a culture of peace.