Universal Enlightenment and Flourishing (UEF) develops and supports programs nurturing the practice of Love, Learn and Play (LLP), an approach to flourishing which teaches children life skills, tools, and resources to flourish in diverse environments.
Our goal is to create accessible programs for children of all ages to learn the LLP approach. Our methodology bridges silos of academic research, wisdom of religions and cultures, with aspects of cognitive behavioral therapy such as journaling, mindfulness, positive discussion, and exercises offering empowerment. This philosophy can be adapted to meet the needs of every population, regardless of socioeconomic class or geographic location.
In early 2021, UEF partnered with the Paul Hodges Trust and We Yone Child Foundation to provide opportunities for flourishing to vulnerable girls in South Africa’s poorest communities where restricted by the negative gender norms, girls are at high risk of violence, abuse, early pregnancy and school drop out. To put UEF’s innovative framework into action, a pilot program was launched to start a LLP Girl’s Club in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Thirty girls met weekly for 16 sessions, engaging in dynamic discourse and activities surrounding Love, Learn, and Play. Measured through a range of qualitative and quantitative data, participation in the club led to significant positive changes and increased self-confidence.
Building from the success of the pilot program, the Paul Hodges Trust and UEF scaled up the program in 2022 to extend the curriculum from 12 weeks to 6 months, and launched the LLP Girl’s Club in two different locations, George Brook and Freetown. The first group of 50 girls attended these clubs and graduated in October. A new batch of fifty girls is set to graduate in May of 2023.
In Summer of 2022, UEF in partnership with the San Juan Community Library in Puerto Rico Launched a summer program. Girls and boys ranging in age from 7-14, enthusiastically participated in the LLP Youth Club to experience self-expression and growth in a safe environment following all COVID precautions. According to the Library Director Ms Connie Estades, there was a special synergy between the LLP Youth Club and the Library’s summer reading contest where the members of the LLP Club joined the Library and the summer reading contest and vice versa. Parents as well as the participants expressed their appreciation for this unique program that easily adapted to the social and cultural realities of Puerto Rico due to the universal appeal of love, learning, and play.
Knowledge acquired by human beings has been increasing at an exponential rate for over a century. However, we have yet to make commensurate progress in human flourishing. This is because knowledge has been getting increasingly fragmented and sits mostly in silos. The UEF believes that if we can integrate knowledge across the silos of time, civilizations, geographies and academic disciplines.
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