The eighth annual Peace Direct Awards, previously known as the Tomorrow’s Peacebuilders Awards, are now open for applications. The awards highlight the inspiring work that grassroots groups are doing to establish peace and rebuild communities in conflict-affected areas around the world.
Thank you for being with us at this difficult time.
The world’s youth population tops 1.8 billion, and many of those young people are living with violent conflict. Youth populations have long led grassroots efforts for peace and justice, yet they remain underrepresented in policy decisions. This legislation seeks to address the problem.
If you work with a peacebuilding organization, shouldn’t you be able to define peacebuilding? After almost two years of working with Peace Direct, I still struggle with the term. Forget trying to be correct by academic and professional standards – I’m just trying to get the general public to understand well enough to be inspired.
Updated on Jan. 10: Peace Direct remains deeply troubled by the recent retaliatory attacks between the U.S. and Iran and persistent militarized tensions between the countries. We are relieved that both the U.S. and Iran appear to be pulling back from the brink of war and taking steps to immediately de-escalate the conflict.
Peace Direct, Search for Common Ground and Mercy Corps present “Pathways to Peace”, an art exhibit showing the face of conflict and hope in Yemen.
Updated on Dec. 20: The inclusion of local civil society in peacebuilding initiatives is vital to building sustainable peace. The U.S. Congress passed a new policy initiative called the Global Fragility Act that will take local voices into consideration. The act demonstrates significant progress toward international recognition of the critical role played by local people. The initiative brings the United States closer to a more focused, high-level policy response to address violence and instability in the world’s toughest places — one that helps put locally led peacebuilding at the forefront.
As we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy today, Peace Direct and the Alliance for Peacebuilding would like to celebrate everyday peacebuilders across America who are heeding Dr. King’s inspirational example.
2018 has been a year of growth, successes, challenges and learning for Peace Direct. We’re proud to have continued supporting local people to build peace in 12 countries around the world, and to shine a light on the efforts and resilience of grassroots action in many more.
Drawing upon our experiences with other deeply divided societies, Peace Direct’s Bridget Moix proposes three peacebuilding lessons as America heads to the polls.