“A tree cannot stand without its roots.” African Proverb
About
Green Team International was founded in 2013 as an outgrowth of the ecotourist site, St. Mary’s Peace Farm. Our mission is to empower people in North America, the Caribbean, the African Diaspora and the world in matters concerning education and the environment through community-based grassroots initiatives.
New Initiative
Rose Garden Peace Institute
In these troubled times, The Rose Garden Peace Institute is a place to mediate and to solve conflicts both local and global. As Board members of the 10-year-old NGO Green Team International, we have demonstrated our commitment to peace through our initiatives to protect our environment and to support young people in pursuit of their educational goals.
Who We Are
We are people of color born in Jamaica but with lived experiences in Europe, North America and Africa who individually and together have mediated many conflicts in the places and spaces we have lived and worked over several decades. We are ultimately concerned with leaving a better foundation and future for young people and those yet unborn.
Some of the initial principals include:
Dr. Anne C. Bailey is a decorated writer, historian, and professor of History at SUNY Binghamton (State University of New York). Bailey is committed to a concept of “living history” in which events of the past are connected to current and contemporary issues. She is also concerned with the reconciliation of communities after age old conflicts like slavery, war and genocide. Her non-fiction book, African Voices of the Atlantic Slave Trade: Beyond the Silence and the Shame (Beacon Press) and her most recent book, The Weeping Time: Memory and the Largest Slave Auction in American History, published by Cambridge University Press in 2017, reflect that commitment.
Bailey is also the founding Director of the Binghamton University/Harriet Tubman Center for the Study of Freedom and Equity. As a person of color and an expert in slavery and abolition studies, she understands the challenges of transcending a difficult past and has a strong focus on repair and resilience.
Dr. Hilary Robertson Hickling is a retired behavioral scientist with a M.S. from John Hopkins University and a Ph.D. from the University of Birmingham. She was a lecturer for many years at the Mona School of Business and Management at the University of West Indies. Her books include White squall on the land: Narratives of resilient Caribbean people and That Time in Foreign. She is also managing director of Connelley House in Kingston Jamaica which offers comprehensive mental health services on a multigenerational basis. She has extensive experience working with teams including some of Jamaica’s famous sports franchises– the track and field and soccer teams. She is globally sought after for her teambuilding and conflict resolution skills.
What We Offer
For such a time as this, we offer our expertise in
CONFLICT RESOLUTION, PEACE TALKS and philosophy of NON-VIOLENCE AND DIPLOMACY to assist groups in historical conflict with one another. We offer a peaceful and calm space to negotiate and to work through conflicts. We have concrete experiences in bringing people together —whether it is a bipartisan approach in the United States or in bridging disparities between the rich and poor in under resourced and underrepresented communities worldwide.
We are Christian in orientation. For us, that means that we are open to and welcome people of ALL religions and persuasions or no faith at all. Our Christian orientation stems from a decolonized perception of the faith as well as a belief in liberation theology ie. the belief that ALL people are made in God’s image and all are entitled to freedom and civil rights.
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Where
Peace negotiations will take place at the beautiful location of Rose Garden Peace Institute in Portland Jamaica. This location – a former great house and slave plantation – itself a symbol of a past crime against humanity-has been repurposed to be a center for peace and healing. We consider this location as a Caribbean Camp David.
We welcome any and all, local and global, who sincerely seek peace and have found that the usual channels have not worked. As people of African descent whose ancestors survived slavery, we know what it means to suffer from this traumatic legacy.
But ironically, it is this position (like history from below) that has been and will be the key to our success. We are literally leaning into this experience.Through our personal and professional lives, we have transcended this legacy and managed to help others around the world.
We can do the same for you.
We offer ourselves as mediators and are ready to take on any and all challenges.
Please contact us at rosegardenpeaceinsitute@gmail.com or at (607) 744-2134 whatsapp
YOU
You have tried and exhausted all the traditional channels with little or no success. You will try us if you believe that you have nothing to lose.
Please know, that we, too, respect the usual diplomatic, governmental and church channels and know that ultimately, they will have the last word in ratifying any tentative agreements, but we believe we can get you to the table. We have no vested interest except an interest in achieving a consensus that benefits ALL parties.
And with that, we look forward to hearing from you.
Scholarships
Heritage and Environment Tour
Our local partner, Jack’s River Primary School winning a national award for environmental stewardship
Arresting Climate Change
Beach Clean up
Thank you to the October Hill Foundation for your generous support.
IN MEMORIAM
Mr. Maxwell “Tall T.” Wilson, Principal of Jack’s River Primary School, was a leader of the kind needed in the 21st century. This is an era of climate change, environmental concerns, issues of food security, a pandemic, and problems in the educational system. Yet this tall man, a man of big ideas, impressed his students, his colleagues, the parents, and all stakeholders with a zeal and commitment which was sacred. He was a consummate teacher who addressed the student as a whole person. He nurtured students as he supported the school garden which provided food for them and others in Jack’s River, Oracabessa. When the pandemic struck, he helped to organize and deliver needed food packages that utilized supplies provided by Green Team International.
He led by example and with the understanding of rural Jamaica in which he grew up. He was committed to the development of students and staff and his community and demonstrated vision. He managed to integrate and provide a comprehensive response to the challenges they faced. He will be sorely missed but we shall plant trees in his memory and he will never be forgotten, His students will no doubt carry the baton he has passed to them and will shine wherever they go. For his family, we send our love and prayers.
Dr. Hilary Robertson Hickling, Green Team International Board Member
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