The American actor traveled to Aubervilliers to visit a center funded by his Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative foundation. About sixty business creators are trained and supported there free of charge.
An Oscar-winning actor in Aubervilliers. American actor Forest Whitaker, who was awarded the famous statuette for his role as Idi Amin Dada, in The Last King of Scotland (2007), was, Monday, May 15 in Seine-Saint-Denis, not to present a film, but to inaugurate the French branch of its Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative (WPDI) foundation.
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Already established in Africa, Mexico and the United States, it aims to promote peace by giving a chance to those who live in disadvantaged areas. “It’s always inspiring to meet our interns. This is our very first cohort in the country! Others will follow”promised the comedian in a message posted on Twitter.
The place is modest, just over 100 square meters in an anonymous building, without a plaque at the entrance. But the address is meant to be symbolic, at the exit of the metro station on line 7, Aubervilliers – Pantin – Quatre Chemins: Forest Whitaker chose this place for the entrepreneurial spirit of its inhabitants. “What I saw first here were people, only peopleexplains the actor. I saw that there was a big potential to do things in business, in business and it became the most important thing for our organization in France“, he slipped.
“200% of my goal”
The training – from four to six hours per week – lasts between three months and a year. On the program: business creation and IT. There are no lectures here. The trainers adapt to the project and the needs of the learners. Among them, many like Mary have not yet found their place in society. “I am a jack-of-all-trades: I did communication, I continued in commerce, then in the territorial public service. And today, I decided to start my own account” . She has just created her own wedding planner business.
Sylvia’s project is more advanced. She first embarked alone on the entrepreneurial adventure to offer jams from downgraded fruits. “When you work alone, you don’t really know where to go, you stagnate a bit, you’re in your own bubble. I was tired too”, she confides. This young entrepreneur believes that the support offered by the WPDI foundation has been beneficial. She was “guided on the preparation of the campaign” who happened “by the way went very well”. “I finished at 200% of my goal”, rejoices Sylvia, to the applause of other learners and trainers.
A program for the “fighters”
The foundation also offers the “fighters” program. Reserved primarily, but not exclusively, for women from the suburbs, it offers additional training in conflict management. This is essential, according to Aminata Sidibe, project manager of the WPDI foundation in France. “We learn to manage emotions, to prevent conflicts. This training, coupled with training in entrepreneurship and computer science, makes it possible to create the leaders of tomorrow”. The Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative Foundation supports and trains around sixty business creators in France free of charge.