ABOUT US, INTRODUCTION

The Tibetan Centre for Conflict Resolution (TCCR) is an NGO registered under the Societies Registration Act of 1860. The Centre was established on the 1st of May 2001 and is a not for profit educational organisation dedicated to the non-violent management of conflicts in the Tibetan Community and the world as a whole. The Danish Centre for Conflict Resolution (DCCR) headed by Mrs. Else Hammerich and Mr. Bjarne Vestergaard has been a key factor in enabling the formation of the Centre by providing the initial expertise and education for its first group of members. With the humble beginning of three staff and an average of twelve workshops per year for the first three years, TCCR has now grown to six permanent staff and an average of twenty six workshops per year in the last three years.

In the past almost eight years since its inception the Centre has been able to work at the grassroots Tibetan, Indian as well as other communities reaching out to over 4000 people through more than 160 workshops, training programmes, public meetings and Buddhism classes. These activities include empowering the general public, youth, women, facilitating public meetings on various issues of importance in the communities, inter-cultural initiatives and intensive training courses spread over periods of months.

In the year 2008, TCCR further prioritised its activities focussing on training and recruiting fresh trainers. The Trainers’ Training Programme (TTP) is an intensive residential training programme conducted over a period of two and a half months (454 hours of training and practice). The programme was able to produce new Certified Trained members for the Centre who are now capable of conducting workshops on Conflict Resolution, Peacebuilding and Democratic Processes. The TTP has definitely contributed towards a stronger, more resourceful and a more contributing TCCR team.

Therefore more equipped to venture into innovative spheres of work and also better reinforced with fresh trainer members, we plan for the period between 2009 and 2011 to conduct activities that are pioneer projects for TCCR. The Centre of course would continue with the grassroots empowerment of the Tibetan community in exile through its various initiatives since these enable TCCR to propagate the various methodologies of non-violent management of conflicts and introduce communication skills that prove useful in conflict prevention and prevention of escalation of conflicts. While at the same time our activities would enhance our connection with the pulse of the common people and would in a way contribute to our knowledge of the various conflicts and issues in Exile that further help us in developing tools that make our workshops more effective.