Author Archives: Kerry Burnett

F4P could tackle football racism

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Our peace-through-football initiative should be adopted by football’s governing bodies to tackle the kind of “appalling” racism witnessed in the Bulgaria-England UEFA EURO qualifier.

That’s the view of Dr Gary Stidder, Principal Lecturer and Co-Founder and Deputy Director of Football 4 Peace.

He said: “In the wake of the appalling scenes in Sofia and the racist behaviour of home fans towards English footballers there is no better time to address coach, supporter and teacher education through values-based programmes. Continue reading →

Football 4 Peace International Festival

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Over 100 children from secondary schools around Sussex took part in the annual Football 4 Peace festival which was the culmination and finale of a week’s long training camp for potential recruits to the programme.

The University of Brighton’s Football 4 Peace (F4P) programme, which has operated in Israel, Palestine, Northern and Republic of Ireland, The Gambia, South Korea, Colombia and South Africa since 2001, uses football to help resolve conflict between communities. The festival provided opportunities for new recruits to apply the methodology and put theory into practice with children aged 11 – 12. Continue reading →

Football 4 Peace Team Building day for Year 7 Pupils

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Pupils from the High Weald Academy in Kent were introduced to the University of Brighton’s pioneering and ground-breaking Football for Peace (F4P) programme as part of a year 7 team building day.

Football 4 Peace coaches worked with 60 year seven pupils and applied the F4P methodology through a series of physical activities aimed to promote values-based teaching and learning such as equity and inclusion, respect, trust, and responsibility. Continue reading →

Rugby 4 Peace in Colombia

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The group on the pitch in ColumbiaA new collaboration is emerging with Barbarian Rugby Football Club in Bogota, Colombia, which has been using the University of Brighton’s Rugby for Peace curriculum and methodology to bring its community together.

A group visited the programme and began formalising relationships in June 2018 and this July Dr Gary Stidder and Dr Tom Carter from the School of Sport and Service Management visited to work with the Fundación Buen Punto. Established in 2014 the Fundación Buen Punto’s objective is incentivising sport, and reaching children and young adults that find themselves in unfavourable situations with limited resources, or with some form of physical or psychological disability, and who are at risk of exclusion from society. Continue reading →

Israel adopts Brighton’s Football for Peace

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the Brighton team in Israel

Left to right – Simon Green, Warren Smart, Gazi Nujeidat, Israel ministry for Culture and Sport, Dr Gary Stidder and Eli Fratoknic, Senior sports leader Israel Sports Authority.

Israel has adopted the University of Brighton programme which uses football to bring together communities in conflict.

Football for Peace (F4P), which has operated in Israel, Palestine, Northern and Republic of Ireland, The Gambia, South Korea and South Africa since 2001, uses value-based coaching to break down barriers.

The announcement by the Israeli Sport Authority followed participation by PE lecturers from the University’s School of Sport and Service Management in a five-day ‘Sport for Life’ training event which involved 50 Arab and Jewish Israeli sports leaders. Continue reading →

F4P commended in national campaign

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Football 4 Peace International features in the ‘UK’s Best Breakthroughs’ list, part of the new ‘MadeAtUni’ campaign that celebrates the impact universities have on the wider community.

The list of 100 highlights ground-breaking projects and research which have transformed lives. Universities UK is the representative organisation for all UK universities.

Gary Stidder, co-founder of the initiative with Professor John Sugden, said: “I have been really proud to have been associated with Football 4 Peace International for nearly 20 years. As an educationalist I believe that the multi-dimensional research, education and social engagement platform that utilises physical education and sport has had a major impact in areas suffering from high levels of cross-community conflict and various forms of political disorder and social disintegration. Continue reading →

Scoring for peace

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More than 200 children from secondary schools around Sussex will be taking part in a football festival next week.

The University of Brighton’s Football 4 Peace (F4P) programme, which has operated in Israel, Palestine, Northern and Republic of Ireland, The Gambia, South Korea and South Africa since 2001, uses football to help resolve conflict between communities.

Last year children from around East and West Sussex and delegates from Ghana, South Africa, South Korea, Democratic Republic of Conga, Iran, Sudan, Czech Republic and Northern Ireland, took part in the F4P International Festival which is held at the University’s Falmer campus. Continue reading →

University of Brighton academic honoured

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A University of Brighton lecturer has been recognised for “making a difference to the teaching of physical education at national and international level”.

The Association for Physical Education’s (AfPE) highest honour, the Honoured Members Award 2018, has been awarded to Dr Gary Stidder, Principal Lecturer in PE in the University’s School of Sport and Service Management.

Dr Stidder, who coordinates the initial teacher training for Physical Education and is the subject’s route leader for PGCE and Schools Direct student trainees, received his award for services to physical education and for instilling values based education within the PE curriculum through his work with Football 4 Peace (@F4Pvalues). Continue reading →

Football for Peace professor to join UN

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One of the University of Brighton professors who co-founded Football for Peace has been invited to advise the United Nations.

photo of Professor John Sugden

Professor John Sugden

John Sugden, the University of Brighton’s Emeritus Professor of the Sociology of Sport, will be part of an expert group supporting the Division for Social Policy and Development of the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

He will fly to the UN’s New York headquarters in June for a meeting ‘Strengthening the Global Framework for Leveraging Sport for Development and Peace’ in preparation  for a report to the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly in September.

Professor Sugden said: “This is an honour for all those at the University who have helped build and promote Football for Peace International. It is also evidence of how the programme is contributing to global policy in and through sport. Continue reading →