...	Contributed Halifax high school student Elise Sinclair is shown outside an elementary school in Pancevo, Serbia, where she attended an anti-bullying conference last month.

By ELISE SINCLAIR

The past is the past and it can't be undone, but we can make the future better, says Goran Rujevis. The 17-year-old high school student should know, given that he lives in Novi Sad, Serbia - a country that, until recently, was notorious as a place of intolerance, violence and even murder.

Some Serb students are doing what they can to promote a more peaceful country. "Although the wars were unpleasant, the things in our lives aren't," says Rujevis.

With all the conflicts Serbia has recently had, it may be a surprise to some that there would be a peace conference there, led by Serbian youth. However, they were very keen to make a difference.

During the second week of March, Rujevis led a workshop on the harmful effects of gossip. Students from Canada and Serbia were in attendance, and it was one of five workshops related to peace in schools. Of the 32 Canadian students, 29 were from Nova Scotia.

The conference was part of the organization Peaceful Schools International, which is committed to making schools around the world safe environments through workshops for students and training for staff. Through games and role-plays, Rujevis demonstrated how gossip can start, spread and change.

Out of the 12 days the Canadian students were in Serbia, only two were spent at the conference. The conference was at the end of the trip; before then, they visited a few schools that are members of the peace group, did some sightseeing, and stayed at host families for two nights in the town of Pancevo.

"My highlight of the trip was walking into the elementary school in Pancevo," says Zander Brosky, 17, of Halifax. "To walk in and have 150 people cheer for you, that's amazing. The atmosphere in the room just gave me goosebumps; I couldn't wipe the smile off my face."

Part of the goal of the workshops was to reduce discrimination, something that has caused wars and violence throughout history. Olga Maksimovic, 15, of Pancevo believes it is important to teach youth to be peaceful and tolerant of others, because they are the future generation.

The tour also included downtown Belgrade, where there are bombed buildings that have not been repaired or torn down, standing next to beautiful, stone-carved buildings. It was something that most of the students never thought they would be standing in front of.

"There's so many things you take for granted in Canada," says Mathieu Coates, 17, of Gatineau, Que. "For them, it was normal to have a bombed building and years of destruction. Now it's a normal part of their life."

Serbia was part of Yugoslavia, but in the early 1990s, conflict erupted throughout the country as different states started to declare independence. Mass murders were taking place, including 7,000 Muslims in 1995. NATO bombed Serbia in 1999 to protect other areas from Serbian attacks. Many of the Canadian students were surprised to learn that Canada took part in the bombing.

The Serb students are doing what they can to get rid of violence. Maksimovic said she has used conflict-resolving skills she learned from previous Peaceful Schools International workshops held at her school in situations outside of school.

The purpose of this youth-to-youth conference was to share ideas and improve the skills of those in attendance on how to avoid bullying, discrimination and exclusion of others.

Halifax is not free from school violence and bullying. Hetty van Gurp, the founder of Peaceful Schools International, believes that bullying is a problem everywhere. In February of this year, the RCMP were brought into Cole Harbour High School in response to a threat made towards a student the week after there were problems between two groups.

"Through the conference, I have gained motivation to change people's negative thoughts and perceptions," says Sarah Dubé, a student from Halifax.

A number of the students filmed the trip, and some film footage will be shown at the Viewfinders Film Festival for Youth on April 19. The documentary Teaching Peace in a Time of War, which inspired the trip, will be shown on the April 21. It shows Hetty van Gurp visiting schools in Serbia and running workshops regarding peace in schools. A number of students saw the film and were inspired to do what they could to help.

Elise Sinclair is a Grade 12 student at St. Patrick's High School in Halifax. During March break, she attended an international anti-bullying/conflict-resolution conference in Serbia.