ABOUT US
ABOUT UPRC
WE WISH FOR A WORLD WHERE PEACE, SOLIDARITY, AND UNITY IN DIVERSITY ARE ESTABLISHED
The UBWUNGO PEACE AND RECONCILIATION CENTER team is brand new and was formed officially in 2019 through a shared interest in promoting reconciliation both in Rwanda and throughout the world.
Our team has many different backgrounds both personally and professionally, and we were first introduced to each other through our various connections with Christophe Mbonyingabo, the founder of UPRC and CARSA.
We believe that the diversity reflected in our backgrounds and through the direction of the Rwandan expertise of Christophe will aid in supporting the vision of UPRC.
CHRISTOPHE MBONYINGABO
Christophe is the beating heart of UPRC and CARSA - AND the founder of both. Without his visionary mind and his idea for a reconciliation center there would be no UPRC. His expertise and ideas in the field of healing and reconciliation are one of a kind and he is driven by an unbelievable strong power to unite Rwandans.
With his great team at CARSA he has built a wide variation of sustainable programs for the Rwandan community over the past 15 years and is now ready to go even further with this new project. Christophe lives with his family in Kigali (when he isn`t traveling the world to speak at conferences!) and is your guy for everything you need to know about UPRC!
See more of Christophe`s work here!
KAYLA SLAGTER
Kayla is the team whisperer and warm soul that keeps us on the move and together at UPRC!
She is our kickass project manager who makes things happen, who keeps an eye on our deadlines and who moderates our monthly online meetings with ease. And she keeps us together with her big smile! Kayla has worked in the field with CARSA in Rwanda, thus she has seen firsthand the impact of reconciliation in transforming communities. She also serves as the board chair of CARSA, USA and is an expert with managing calls across several time zones. Having finalized her masters in "Post-Conflict Justice and Peacebuilding" at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, her passion to see grassroots solutions solve world problems takes her all around the world - and she has just recently walked the Camino de Santiago in Spain and Portugal!
SLAVIS POCZEBUTAS
Without Slavis and his team at MEKADO we would not be where we are right now!
With his unrestricted passion for sustainable architecture and urban design, he conjured the fundaments of UPRCs idea: a complex campus with substance and a strong vision to serve its purpose and the people alike. Slavis has in-depth experience in the design of buildings, their interiors, the urban spaces in between and the technologies to operate them. His focus and passion lies in environmental and social design, creating inclusive spaces and places for people. Slavis lives and works in Berlin, where MEKADO has its HQ, and from where he conducts architectural projects all over the world.
Find the work of MEKADO Studio for Design | Architecture | Urbanism here!
MALI LAZELL
Mali is an advocate for beautiful still and moving images. She collects and captures stories in photographs, videos and interviews.
Mali develops and conducts participatory photo projects and photo workshops with kids, youngsters and grown ups all over the world.She utilizes photography as a tool of communication for social well being and to establish a universal language where pictures speak when words fail. Her work at UPRC tempts Mali to try new things: she is our brand new webmaster and website appointee from scratch and is trying to break the internet. Mali is also the soul of our visual universe and is working on a master plan on how to use participatory photography at the Ubwungo Center. In daily life Mali is a professional freelancer photographer and videographer currently based in Zurich, Switzerland.
Take a look at Malis work here!
TONY MACAULAY
At UPRC Tony is our text brain and a master in filling out applications. Try him!
Tony is an author, leadership consultant, peacebuilder, broadcaster and suicide prevention advocate from Northern Ireland. He has spent 30 years working to build peace and reconciliation, working with hundreds of youth and community groups to break down barriers of mistrust, hatred, and division. He has applied his experience and learning into leadership development and management of change and transition in many voluntary, public and private sector organizations.
Tony grew up in West Belfast at the start of thirty-five years of civil conflict - an experience that has shaped his life. He is still true to Belfast, but when we are on our monthly online meetings you actually find him sitting in an airport cafè, a train or in a car - traveling the world.
Read more about Tony here!
ANNA FRIES
If we talk about communication expertise we talk Anna!
With all her heart she aims to get UPRCs vision out into the world and into YOUR cosmos.
She paves our path to international growth and publicity and thereby is the engine of the team. She connects people, finds ideas and inspires other visionaries to support us on our journey. Anna is currently based in Bali, Indonesia, but generally roams the world wherever she feels the call to go to. We imagine her sitting at the beach doing what she does best: communicating with the world beyond distance and borders. She works as a freelance content and communication consultant doing all things online. Equipped with a distinct sense for image and aesthetics and a profound comprehension of the digital ecosystem Anna helps where others lack words and an intuitive understanding for their target groups. Her heart beats strongly for Africa, sun salutations, lonely beaches and Mother Earth.
Find Anna also here!