Khadija was born in Kismayo, Somalia. Her experience of the Somali civil war helps us to understand the instrumental role played by women in constructing, sustaining, and most importantly resolving conflict. She shares how she has swapped her spot on the battlefield for one at the table of peace.
Achieving financially sustainability can be a significant challenge for peacebuilding organisations. Understanding and improving the factors that affect the finances and funds of these organisations is critical, as is understanding the alternative resources available to them, which can be just as important as financing. Here are 5 practical tips for how peacebuilding organisations can enhance their financial resilience.
At the heart of all of Peace Direct’s work lies the belief that local people should play a leading role in development and peacebuilding programmes. Peace Direct is currently leading on the Stopping As Success collaborative learning project which is looking at aid exits and transitions in support of locally-led development. Farzana Ahmed, Peace Direct’s Senior Researcher who is managing the project, reports on conversations she had with aid actors in the Philippines last month.
A joint blog by Lena Elhibir and Sarah Phillips
For those of us who don’t live in areas of violent conflict, we experience war via the media. On April 11th, 2018, Peace Direct was delighted to partner with Spectrum Media and the War Stories Peace Stories team for the War Stories Peace Stories Symposium in New York: a day of inspiring discussion on the role of the media in covering conflict and peace.
Now in its sixth year, our Tomorrow’s Peacebuilders awards offer global recognition for grassroots peace activists in war zones around the world. These are the only global awards for local peacebuilders – inspiring individuals who are building a better tomorrow in the world’s most fragile places.
This week marks the 24th anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide. At this time of remembrance, we reflect upon the legacy of the tragedy, and share our thoughts on the typically understated role of local agency in the Republic of Rwanda’s remarkable post-conflict transformation.
On March 24th, 2018, Peace Direct joined the March for Our Lives demonstration in Washington, DC calling for common-sense gun reform in the aftermath of the Marjory Stone Douglas school shooting in Parkland, Florida. The march on the 24th was organized by high school students from Stone Douglas, who called on other students across the U.S to join them. For many, it was their first time demonstrating – myself included.
Kaushayla’s husband disappeared during the 25-year civil war in Sri Lanka. To this day he has not returned. But through a network of women all similarly affected by the war, Kaushayla has found a network of people she can connect with. Now she helps run local projects supporting women to run their own small businesses.
Today, Peace Direct is delighted to announce a £250,000 award from the players of People’s Postcode Lottery to support our work building peace in war zones around the world. The money will help support war torn communities in Syria and the DR Congo and enable further funding for projects in Sudan and northern Nigeria, forgotten … Continued
On International Women’s Day, we reflect upon the inspirational work of Josephine, an ex-combatant who has dedicated her life to helping child soldiers re-integrate back into their communities.