BTI at the 2011 Clinton Global Initiative Annual meeting.

To watch the video of the sessions click here: BTI's founding director Alvaro Maldonado was invited to participate as a panelist during a special session at the 2011 Clinton Global Initiative Annual meeting in New York city to speak about BTI community Outreach programs and his personal experience with Dance.

Special Session: From Conflict to Creativity: Reducing Violence through the Arts

In countries around the world, the problem of youth violence is pervasive, cyclical and deadly. At-risk youth are often drawn into gangs or the violent drug trade, and those who are incarcerated often return to their communities with even poorer conflict resolution skills than when they left. In schools, juvenile justice systems, and religious and community institutions around the world, creative leaders have learned that targeted arts interventions can save lives and reduce violence. When incorporated into programs for incarcerated youth, arts programs also reduce violations and recidivism, and have proven themselves to be more successful and cost-effective than many traditional programs for at-risk communities. Moreover, because these interventions foster valuable noncognitive skills like creativity, leadership and teamwork that are in high demand in the workplace, participation in these arts programs also leads to better and more consistent employment. This session will convene leaders from the business, government, and arts sectors to discuss how such innovative programming can serve as an effective tool for economic empowerment and conflict resolution among at-risk youth.

Participants:
Jaka Bizilj, Founder, Cinema For Peace
Irina Bokova, Director-General, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Diana Falchuk, Arts Connect Director, Hilltop Artists
Gary E. Knell, President and CEO, Sesame Workshop
Alvaro Maldonado, Founder and Director, Ballet Teatro Internacional

Key points of Mr. Maldonado's inspirational speech.

Mr. Maldonado:

• "I hope today I am the voice of millions of youth who live in violence, particularly for the ones who didn't make it"
• " I grew up in El Salvador in civil war. We had no food and guns everywhere. When I was hiding, I dreamt that I was dancing. Dance is communication, and the greatest desire is to speak beautifully and with little inhibition. When you are in a war, it has the ability to destroy hope and dreams. If kids are not inspired, then kids do not do anything to improve themselves. I wanted to use dance to transform lives. I created an organization that partners with organizations in Central America, specifically those serving gang members and at-risk youth. We develop life skills: working in groups, improving mental/physical health, and increasing self-confidence"
• "Violence is a big issue we are trying to tackle. Certain populations do not respond to education, so we need creative ways. We have to go to them and tackle them in another way"