Hello friends, glad to meet you. My name is Risa Putri Rahmawati, you can call me Risa. I come from a small town in Java island called Kudus. I have lived and studied here in Kudus city. After graduating from Elementary school in 2014, I decided to study at a Madrasah Tsanawiyah (Islam-based middle school) while living in an Islamic dormitory called Pesantren Darul Falah Kudus. After that, I continued my education in high school at public Madrasah Aliyah (Islam-based high school) 1 Kudus, focusing on sciences. Once I graduated from high school, I registered at a college to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Ushuluddin or Islamic Theology at State Islamic Institute of Kudus, where I am still studying until now.
I was first introduced to Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP) in Indonesia in 2022, when I participated in Creating Cultures of Peace (CCP) Training, organized by Peace Place Pati, around July that year. When I first joined this workshop, I was confused but have grown curious about tools because this is unique and something I have not experienced before. Back then, I was very reserved and rarely talked because I was still adapting to new friends. As time went by, I became more open and enthusiastic in learning AVP. Then I got to know the Power of Goodness (PoG). Every time I get an offer to facilitate , I take it. Methods in AVP and PoG help me develop myself personally and in my social life.
Friends and I are now training to become AVP facilitators. I facilitate PoG and am trying to expand PoG with friends from Central Java. Conducting training in both AVP and PoG makes me feel more motivated in my studies and growing myself. When I am with friends, I try to practice this approach just as I learned it in AVP training. I practice being a good speaker, a good listener and a good companion when my friends are in need of emotional discharge. This is challenging for me, to keep practicing and growing. To do this, I also need support from my family, teachers, relatives and friends so I can continue developing in what I am currently doing and in what I have in my future. I want to strengthen myself by continuing to learn and grow. I hope I can continue my studies to a higher level of a masters degree.
Thank you to all peace friends across the world who have supported and given this opportunity to a person like me to join training and workshops with you. I hope to stay connected with you all, especially in developing this method for peace for our world.
Love, Risa.
PoG in Sambongrejo Village, Tunjungan, Blora taken by Afif