One of the most important aspects of a flourishing democracy is an active, tolerant citizen body.

Facing the Past – Transforming Our Future is Shikaya’s core project, in collaboration with Facing History and Ourselves and the Western Cape Education Department, and aims to cultivate students’ awareness of the ways that society is shaped by the choices of individuals, and the role that they can play in the creation of a culture that values human rights, diversity and peace.

By examining case studies from Nazi Germany and apartheid, students are exposed to questions of identity, diversity versus exclusion, apathy versus activism, and are empowered to contribute towards building a more compassionate South Africa. As its content may be adapted for the specific teaching material, the approach is relevant for History, English and Life Orientation classes. By training over 250 teachers in the last eight years, the impact of Facing the Past has reached over 16 000 students.

Facing the Past is based on and supported by the work of Facing History and Ourselves.