With love from the Netherlands

Before me is the challenge of founding Children of the Earth Netherlands. It will be a personal challenge, as well as a challenge in leadership and developing skills in international affairs while learning about other cultures and experiences. For some reason I know that when I think back about the past year in which I became active for Children of the Earth this has been a turning point within my personal life. Politics, science or business will not solve our global problems, I thought. Only deep spiritual thinking will do so.

Withdrawing from a high level but standard career path at Shell International where real sustainable energies as wind and solar power were not made profitable suddenly my life was becoming to change into a life with more meaning and purpose in terms of ethics, spirituality and sustainability.

I realized life’s about finding wisdom and peace. Inner peace of individual people will lead to a global consciousness that enables us to live in a more peaceful, just and sustainable world.

For some training on European NGO’s I have been to the European Youth Empowering Society Summer camp in France where I spoke with NGO’s like Eradicating Ecocide and Occupy Wall Street about the financial, economical and climate crisis. The year after Princess Ogechi Ukaga from Nigeria, Rosie Waygood from the United Kingdom and Sarah Dreyfus from Switzerland have been visiting the European Festival of EYES (EuroPie) in Toulouse which we organized together with many other NGO’s from Europe  in order to learn about the European culture and identity.

In the same summer we have been visiting the Globalization for the Common Good Conference in Paris together with President of Children of the Earth Nina Meyerhof. Within the session on Inspiring and Creative Leadership we have spoken about Peace, Sustainability and Spirituality.

For UN Peace 2013 there has been developed a book on Arts for Peace in which there have been presented artworks of people from all over the world. The Netherlands has made a large contribution for all this. Next to that we have published a book on Portraits of  Sustainable Youth Leaders around the World. This and many other amazing things have been happening within the past months. It’s been a wonderful time in terms of exploring inner strengths, developing personality, finding creative soul mates and exploring the universe in more extended ways.

Four Ambassadors have joined our program  Ebrima Dem (Portugal/Niger), Demi Smoloktou (Greece/Chile), Maayke Damen (Netherlands/Chile) and television journalist Ruba Mimi (Netherlands/Palestine). Three Partnership Coordinators which are Fehmina Choudry (Netherlands/Pakistan), Marie José Oomen(Netherlands) and Zsuzsanna Károlyi (Hungary)have been added to the team. Currently Fehmina Choudry who is a financial economist stepped into the role of Financial Advisor.

Last year I have been representing Children of the Earth at the Globalization for the Common Good Conference in Oxford together with Rosie Waygood. Also I have been adjudicating within the NS Publieksprijs for the Book of the Year, giving a lecture for a woman’s business club in a castle in Wassenaar and giving a speech at the opening of City Art which is an exhibition space for artist’s in Rotterdam. Next to that I have been publishing some Blogs and articles for the website of Children of the Earth and Global Education Magazine.

Let’s see what the future brings us for Children of the Earth Netherlands.