Cycling to build a Circle of Courage
Date: April 27, 2005
Six cyclists riding across Australia to address issues of at-risk behaviour among young people in small, rural communities will finish their 31-day tour at the Sydney Town Hall on May 5.
“I was extremely concerned when I learnt that statistics showed rural youth to be more prone to risk behaviour than young people in urban areas," says Jonathan Duffy, team leader and director of health for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the South Pacific, organiser of the tour. "While researching on how to help change the trend, I came across the Circle of Courage philosophy. Cycling a total of 4456 kilometres into towns to challenge the adults to take the leading role in developing positive relationships was probably a way to build up our own resilience!”
Having a chat with the young people in Waikere Skate Park
The Circle of Courage focuses on four areas—belonging, mastery, independence and generosity.
The cyclists cover an average of 165 kilometres a day and have spoken in towns like Southern Cross in Western Australia, Elliston in South Australia, as well as three Aboriginal communities. Youth workers from the towns are provided with resource kits and opportunities to request for seeding money for project initiatives.
Johnathan Duffy presents the Circle of Courage
philosophy to the residents of Streak Bay.
