91短视频

Lina Maria Obando (Marquez), MA 鈥�00

San Jose, Costa Rica

鈥淛ohn Paul Lederach鈥檚 elicitive approach to learning has stayed with me through the years,鈥� says Lina Maria Obando, who is Habitat for Humanity鈥檚 organizational learning manager for Latin America and the Caribbean.

The 鈥渆licitive approach鈥� refers to a participatory educational process often used at CJP. It deviates from the traditional teacher-student role, whereby the teacher is viewed as the expert, filled with knowledge to be poured into the empty-vessel student. In an elicitive classroom, the teacher positions herself or himself as a facilitator, enabling everyone to tap into each other鈥檚 experiences and knowledge. The students are active in shaping the lessons.

Lina says she is 鈥渆licitive鈥� in the way she works with others, builds networks, determines needs, helps people to identify the resources they have, and conducts trainings.

She also has never forgotten Howard Zehr鈥檚 way of modeling what he taught about respecting people. 鈥淵ou can ask questions in a way that empowers people, as Howard does, or that dis-empowers them. I try to give people the opportunity to have a voice.鈥�

In October 2010, Lina coordinated a large Habitat for Humanity conference involving about 60 people from 14 Latin American countries, including the president of each national unit of Habitat.

Lina has been able to work at her highly responsible job, involving much travel, because she and her husband Ruben have agreed to share child rearing. Sometimes Lina works from home, and other times Ruben does. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 want to sacrifice our [two] children to our jobs,鈥� says Lina. 鈥淚t hasn鈥檛 been easy though. We had to review our traditional gender roles.

鈥淲e had to explore the 鈥榥ew masculinity鈥� as a family: What does it mean to be a man? What does it mean to be a woman too? We didn鈥檛 get healthy help from the church. We had to find a special counselor who had lots of experience working in 鈥榥ew masculinity.鈥欌��

Lina wonders why the peacebuilding field doesn鈥檛 pay more attention to the 鈥渋mportant topic of masculinity and peacebuilding鈥� and to 鈥渞estorative relationships鈥� within the family.