Around the World Today

Since its beginnings in 17th-century England, Quakerism has spread to other countries, chiefly Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Kenya, Peru and the United States. The total number of Quakers is nearly 500,000 worldwide.

Though styles of worship vary, the central concept to Friends is the ‘inner light’. This next section shows some ways Quakers translate their faith into action.

In Britain…

Encouraging Peer Mediation in Schools
This is a process whereby children and young people are trained in the principles and skills of mediation. They help disputants of their own age group, and younger, to resolve a range of conflicts.

Sex Offenders
Quakers are developing and promoting Circles of Support and Accountability, a scheme that decreases the likelihood of sex offenders re-offending. It uses carefully trained volunteers from the community. A pilot project has been running in the Thames Valley since 2002 and in Hampshire since 2005. It has won four awards.

Non-violence Training
Turning The Tide (TTT) works with Quakers and non-violent activist groups to advance the understanding of active non-violence and its use for positive social change. It runs training workshops in London.

And abroad…

Truth and Reconciliation in Post-Yugoslavia
Three local representatives deliver programmes on ‘dealing with the past, truth and reconciliation’, one each in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia and Montenegro.

These experienced workers co-operate to build both local and regional networks. They also support and bring together peace organisations and individuals from across the region. The aim of these programmes is to confront widespread denial and prevent further abuse and violence

Peace-building work is also being done in Uganda, South Africa, South Asia, and Israel/Palestine.

Disarmament
Quaker United Nations Office in Geneva is looking at small arms ‘demand’ – why do people and groups seek to arm themselves and what implications there are for an international policy seeking to reduce such demand.

Other Quaker UN work focuses on:

Peace Campaigning and Networking
The world spends billions of dollars on the military and only a fraction of this on alleviating poverty and addressing climate change. Quakers are liaising with the Government’s ‘conflict prevention’ staff and raising public awareness and interest.

The challenge goes on:

"America’s secretaries of state have announced at a regional peace meeting to address the Arab-Israeli conflict, that over the next decade they would be supplying $63 billion worth of arms to their allies in the Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Israel, Gulf States, Egypt). Syria’s foreign minister, Walid Muallem, said of the proposed arms deal that supplying weapons was an odd way to achieve peace. "