News and Insight

For peace to last, the views and experiences of everyone impacted by conflict, must be included in finding solutions. But too often, peace initiatives centre around a small group of elites. The needs, values and potential contribution of large segments of society are overlooked. Including them in building peace is critical.

Join us in Brussels for a lunch discussion on the impact of the war in Ukraine on the Armenian-Azerbaijani peace process.

Peacebuilders from the Pacific took part in a two-week course to explore the complex relationship between peacebuilding and climate change. The course was delivered by Transcend Oceania, in partnership with Conciliation Resources.

It can seem impossible for those caught up in violent conflict and its consequences to find space to imagine what peace might look like – let alone start taking the difficult steps to get there. In a ‘hot’ conflict or crisis situation conflict parties may be too focused on dealing with an immediate crisis and struggling to survive. In protracted wars or ‘stuck’ peace processes that from the outside may appear frozen for many years, long-held grievances and entrenched positions make it difficult to consider alternative futures and block potential pathways to dialogue or reconciliation.

Brendan’s career in mediation and peacebuilding began in Northern Ireland. During some of the darkest days of the conflict Brendan worked across all sectors of Northern Ireland to show that another way of being was possible, and quietly made a huge contribution to peace on the island of Ireland. 

"The UK’s peacebuilding approach achieved meaningful results”, the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) confirmed in its latest report published on 9 December 2022, “but a more reliable and long-term funding approach would make them even better”.

2022 has seen the outbreak of more violent conflicts around the world, as well as new challenges to peacebuilding. The unpredictability of conflict requires innovative and creative ideas to respond quickly and explore new ways to build peace. 

It’s becoming increasingly clear that climate change can exacerbate fragility and conflict. However, we still lack evidence to help us understand precisely how this happens. Gender provides a lens that can help us analyse and understand this, which in turn can support the development of effective conflict prevention and resolution strategies. Yet, gender, climate change and conflict have mostly been looked at in siloes, rather than in an interrelated way, when it comes to peacebuilding.

Women play an essential, but often under-recognised, role in peacebuilding. Our Europe-Asia Director, Laura Aumeer, spoke to Sparknews about the why and the how, and shares some resources and tips for sharper, more inclusive conflict-related stories.

A new platform for convening environmental experts, think tanks, business leaders and peacemakers across South Asia has been selected for the Paris Peace Forum’s Scale-up Programme, which provides accelerated, customised support for the initiative’s development.

Abdullahi Umar Eggi grew up in a nomadic family in Taraba State, Nigeria, and has undertaken extensive research to understand how and why pastoralism is changing in the region. He’s currently carrying out research on cross-border pastoralism, environmental change, peace and conflict along the borders of Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger as part of our XCEPT project, Promoting Peaceful Pastoralism. Here, he tells us about his upbringing, and what he’s learning from his latest research.

In the Philippines, a changing climate is leading to increased flooding, landslides and tropical cyclones - forcing entire communities from their homes. In regions like the Bangsamoro, which is emerging from four decades of conflict, responses to the impact of climate change must be sensitive and inclusive.