Publications

The concept of “Countering Violent Extremism” (CVE) has become central to the security policy of governments around the world. Yet despite the near-ubiquity of the term there is widespread disagreement over what the concept means.To explore these issues further Peace Direct held a collaborative research project for experts and practitioners interested in this area. Over 5 days in April 2017, 118 expert participants from 36 countries took part in a series of discussions around issues relating to violent extremism and peacebuilding. This report contains reflections from a number of the participants on some of the main themes and sessions from the w

In 2016 we supported 14,827 people to live safer, more peaceful lives as a result of our work with local people building peace around the world. Read the highlights in our impact report.

This report presents the analysis and recommendations of Zimbabwean civil society activists that emerged from a practitioner workshop (called a ‘Peace Exchange’ in this report) which took place in Harare in April 2017.

The rise of the concepts of ‘violent extremism’ (VE) and CVE has caused much discussion within peacebuilding communities around the world. Some see opportunities where the agenda of CVE and peacebuilding overlap, while others believe it is an agenda that distracts from the real root causes of conflict, and could actually undermine peacebuilding efforts. This online consultation brought together a range of experts in violent extremism and peacebuilding, from diverse contexts and expertise, to discuss these issues.

The field of ‘countering violent extremism’ (CVE) is a relatively young and fast-evolving one. Its origins in the security and defence arena, combined with a dominance by Western-based institutions and researchers, has resulted in little focus on locally-led peacebuilding perspectives and strategies. This report aims to redress that balance by highlighting local analysis and solutions following a consultation held in September 2016 with Pakistani peacebuilding practitioners and academics.

Following five years of work supporting local peacebuilding in the Sudanese province of South Kordofan, Peace Direct commissioned a mapping of local peacebuilding capacities in Unity State, across the border in South Sudan. The aim was to map local organisations and other actors, as well as the international organisations supporting local peacebuilding.

In August, at least 42 civilians were hacked to death with machetes in Beni, Eastern DR Congo. Peace Direct has released a briefing on the situation.

In August 2016, at least 42 civilians were hacked to death with machetes in Beni, Eastern DR Congo. Peace Direct has released a briefing on the situation.

This learning summary highlights the main successes, challenges and lessons learnt from an ongoing project delivered by Peace Direct and the Collaborative for Peace Sudan (CfPS) in South and West Kordofan. The project aims to strengthen local conflict prevention capacity by creating and supporting local Peace Committees (PCs) across the region.

In June 2016, Peace Direct convened a ‘Peace Exchange’ in Northern Nigeria. This brought together 17 local peacebuilding organisations to collectively analyse the conflicts facing their communities, and develop joint strategies to help local groups prevent more mass atrocities in the region. This report brings together their analysis and recommendations and adovcates for a shift to a locally-led approach, directly engaging and supporting civil society groups in order to reduce the devastation caused by conflict in Northern Nigeria.