The North East Journey of Understanding!
Encompass began a whole new challenge with the North East Journey of Understanding from 5th-13th July, bringing together young people from diverse backgrounds, but with the condition that they live in the North East of England.
Meeting for the first time on a sunny Sunday in the hear of Newcastle, young people from backgrounds as diverse as Lebanese, Afghani, Egyptian, Armenian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and not forgetting Geordie, came together from across Newcaslte, Gateshead and Sunderland to embark on 9 days of physical and mental adventures in the Lake District at the Ullswater Outward Bound® centre. 
Spending the first night in Newcastle, the group started to get to know each other while exploring their ideas about the atmosphere they would like to create for the duration of the programme, agreeing that the main aim was to understand one another better, to make friends, have fun, and to have new experiences.
Once at the Outward Bound centre, the ups and downs officially began, with jumping into the lake before starting the first evening workshop aimed at building the group. This was a chance for the group’s greatest dancers to strut their stuff and impress us all!
The outdoor activities put plenty of challenges in front of the group, whether it was climbing up a gorge, abseiling down a tall tall tree, negotiating tunnels or underground caves, rock climbing, raft-building or making it up Jacob’s Ladder. However, these didn’t stop the group, but only served to make it stronger!
During the evening sessions, the Encompass Facilitators Snezana and Jay, along with some excellent input and support from Trainee Facilitator Jason, who was himself an Encompass participant back on the ‘Diversity in London’ programme in October 2007, got the group thinking about themselves and each other, and specifically about the way our perceptions of other people are formed.
The most surprising evening of all was undoubtedly the night of the Albatross people, where the group was introduced to a new culture they had never experienced before, and were then asked to interpret what they had seen, heard, felt and thought. Of course there was a twist, but that remains a secret!
Towards the end of the week, strong bonds were visible between the group, and even some of those who seemed to be the quietest members had begun to come out of their shells and to surprise us all, especially with their dare-devil stunts jumping off the rocks!
But alas, the programme did have to come to and end, and the group returned to Newcastle where they started thinking about ideas for projects to take their Encompass experiences forward within their own communities and everyday lives.
The next step in this journey will be a reunion in September this year. Not only will the group have a chance to be reunited, but they will also have the opportunity to gain new skills which are specifically geared towards helping them turn their project ideas in a reality. We can’t wait to see what happens next!
We at Encompass would like to say a massive thanks to everyone who worked so hard and put in so much effort throughout the programme and, despite some difficult times, came out the other end smiling and ready to take it further!
Boom boom pow!
Click on photo below to see the Album;
Posted Wednesday July 15, 2009
