In the 1980s, the Rev Useni Sibanda flew home from his UK studies to Zimbabwe, not long after it achieved independence. A civil war was raging, and inflation was rampant. You could easily hand over a trillion dollar note for just one egg. Now Useni works with the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance, a Christian advocacy organisation addressing social, political, economic and humanitarian issues affecting the country's poor and vulnerable communities. What might we learn from a group which is never party-political, yet never afraid to speak truth to power?

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

The Archdeacon of Derry, Robert Miller, looks after three Church of Ireland joint parishes, Christ church, St Peter’s Culmore and Muff. He's a peacemaker, mediator and community activist, as well as part of the team producing the Walled City Passion every Easter. But he tells Diane and Will one special secret - how the Christian life should be "like a really well-made hot chocolate"...

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

The former UTV journalist Jude Hill now works in the charity sector, but still makes time to produce and present her own ground-breaking podcast about peace and reconciliation. Diane and Will hear all about the imminent new series of "Peace by Piece", as well as understanding the faith motivation that made a teenage girl from a County Antrim village move to an interface area of Belfast and start to help people tell their own stories in their own way.

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

Rev Dr Lesley Carroll joins Diane and Will to discuss what has motivated her during an extremely varied career, as a Presbyterian Minister, working in Victim Support, as Prisons Ombudsman, with the Equality Commission and the Consultative Group on Dealing with the Past. She also discusses her new role with the ICRIR, the much-criticised Independent Commission For Reconciliation and Information Recovery. For Lesley, it all comes down to how any Christian loves their enemies, and becomes a peacemaker.

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

In the first episode of a brand new series of Inspired to Act, Thrive Ireland's Director, Diane Holt, and co-presenter Will Leitch welcome back David Porter. His career has spanned working for missionary societies, helping set up ECONI (Evangelical Contribution on Northern Ireland), and working for some years as Chief of Staff for the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. Now a Visiting Professor at Coventry University, his insights into national and religious identity are profound. "See a challenge in your path?" says David. "Pick it up".

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

Diane Holt and Will Leitch are back with a new series from Thrive Ireland for 2024-5!

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

Belfast's annual Four Corners Festival has been going for 12 years. Its Christian organisers consider it subversive, but in a positive way. They say they want to encourage people to step out from their comfortable places and meet others with differing backgrounds and opinions.

Diane and Will get around the table with Rev Steve Stockman, Fr Martin Magill, and Mylie Brennan to discover why they do what they do with the festival, and why they think they are right to "...drop depth charges into the city's culture for a week".

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

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In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council

It's the turn of Ed Petersen to join Diane and Will this time. It's fair to say he's made an unusual journey to end up working in peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland. How does a New Jersey boy, who very nearly studied at West Point to be a US Army Officer, end up working at Clonard in West Belfast? Fortunately Ed is very happy to tell us about that and his work building relationships and friendships across Christian churches. And he explains how he believes that despite all the twists and turns since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, "with God, all things are possible..."

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Produced for Thrive Ireland

Made by Commission Christian Radio

In association with The Northern Ireland Community Relations Council