A proposal to host a conference for peace and social justice in Nigeria in 2014 will be presented at the Clinton Global Initiative University conference in April.
Team members -- MPH student Onyinye Edeh (UW), her twin sister, Ngozi Edeh (graduate student in legal administration at Marymount University), MPH student Kingsley Ndoh (UW), and pre-med student Immaculata Ajuogu (UW) -- were invited to attend the CGIU conference in St. Louis where they will be joined by former President Bill Clinton and more than 1,000 young global leaders and heads of organizations. The team's proposal is called Nigerians for Social Action and Change, and their goal is to have 250 attendees at the conference they have called “The Nigeria We Seek: Finding Common Ground in a Land of Opportunities.” Onyinye Edeh said the team is currently working on a budget and will be going to the conference in St. Louis to help solicit advisers and partners.
An excerpt rom their winning proposal: "Nigeria, the so-called “Giant of Africa,” has emerged as quite the opposite. The story of Nigeria is plagued with depressing stories of oppression, frustration, anger, terrorism, political instability, and religious and tribal conflicts. Beneath these calamities lies one of the “coldest stories rarely told” -- the Nigerian-Biafran (civil) war. Though this is a very sensitive topic to discuss, the war is a significant part of the Nigerian story shaping some of the ill issues that pertain to the Nigeria of today. A persistent challenge in many African nations is the stark separation of government and “ordinary people.” Nigeria’s youth have been left out of proactive discussions about the condition of Nigeria and prospects for progress. This conference seeks to promote active engagement and collective action among diverse sectors in order to address the lack of social infrastructure in Nigeria. It will establish a coalition of advocates for a united and progressive Nigeria who will develop strategic goals and initiatives for the country."