Most of us are aware that there is a more constructive way to deal with conflict. Typically called a win-win, collaborative or cooperative approach, it can be applied to all kinds of conflict, from small everyday disputes between individuals to large ones that divide communities.
After 30 years spent shifting attitudes, we know that violence is not inevitable. When the parties to a conflict have the opportunity to understand each other, they can find a solution that works for everyone involved.
So, how do we move from an adversarial approach to a common ground approach?
Here are a few tips that might help: read more…
Active Citizenship in Sri Lanka’s Hill Country
The tropical Island of Sri Lanka located in the Southern region of Asia, is best known for its natural beauty and tourism. Sri Lanka is striving to achieve socio-economic growth and development despite facing a three-decade-long armed conflict and other socio-political and cultural challenges.
by Madelaine Dickie
After a few days kicking around the salty streets of Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, the tart cold air of Sri Lanka’s Hill Country comes as a shock. The Hill Country is an area of breathtaking scenery: tea plantations curve around the mountains, the gardens of old estate homes are full of roses, and in the mornings, beads of moisture smoke the windows. Despite the beauty, the people in Sri Lanka’s Hill Country are one of the most economically disadvantaged groups in Sri Lanka. Most of the people were brought to the area from India by the British to work on the tea plantations as migrant laborers. Today, key issues faced by those in the Hill Country are a lack of civic participation and the curtailing of people’s basic rights due to the old structures of governance.
SFCG began working in Sri Lanka in 2011, where it has a long-term strategy to promote a national dialogue for peacebuilding across ethnic, religious, and political dividing lines.
SFCG has been working to address these issues for the last 12 months through the ‘Promoting Active Citizenship in the Hill Country’ project. read more…
The Second-Annual RFPA Awards: Three African Journalists Awarded for Their Contributions to Peacebuilding
Visiting local radio stations while in Kigali for the awards ceremony.
By Nathan Strand
Last month, Search for Common Ground (SFCG) hosted the second annual Radio for Peacebuilding Africa (RFPA) Awards in Kigali, Rwanda. The awards are presented to exemplary radio producers and journalists to recognize high quality radio programs that contribute to peace on the African continent. Awards are open to broadcasters across all of Sub-Saharan Africa and are given in three categories: Youth, Gender, and a Jury’s Special prize.
RFPA received a diverse selection of nominees for this year’s awards, including programs in English, French, and numerous local languages. The difficult task of deciding the winners in each category fell to a jury composed of journalists and peacebuilding experts from Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as from Europe and the United States. read more…
What Exactly Is the Conflict Around Race?
St. Louis area youth participate in a Congressional Conversation on Race.
Why Race?
People sometimes ask me, “Why does a Conflict Resolution organization have a program on race?” The short answer is that the social construct we call race in the United States fuels conflict (more on that below). But when I think about the deeper answer, I’m reminded of a conversation that one of my college mentors had with his students at the beginning of every school year as a part of his “Habits of Achievement” lecture. He would instruct us to reflect regularly on these four questions:
- Who are you?
- Where do you come from?
- Where are you going?
- What do you stand for?
He told us to become students of self. read more…
Return in Peace: Addressing the Rwandan Refugee Crisis (Retour en Paix: Faire face à la crise des réfugiés rwandais)
Context
Recent studies by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimate that there are over 150,000 Rwandan refugees living in the North and South Kivu provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). At the same time, a “cessation clause” will come into effect on the 30th of June, 2013. This clause will revoke Rwandan refugees of their refugee status, and potentially their right to Rwandan citizenship. This leaves them with three major options leading up to the implementation of the cessation clause: voluntary repatriation in Rwanda; permanent residence in the DRC; or an extension of their refugee status based on certain exemption criteria. SFCG will work to foster a dialogue that will allow refugees to make an informed decision regarding their futures.
The Rwandan refugee crisis is one of the primary factors contributing to conflict in the region. Therefore, SFCG will access remote parts of the DRC, and conduct an outreach campaign regarding the cessation clause, voluntary repatriation, and the other options available to Rwandan refugees. We will produce a radio program and hold community forums in both the DRC and Rwanda, and ultimately help to find a more durable solution to the problem. read more…
Meet the 2012 Common Ground Awardees: Peace Child International
“First Inform Yourself – then Take Action.” – Peace Child International Slogan
Peace Child’s name comes from a Papua New Guinea tradition in which warring tribes would exchange a child in a symbolic gesture to make peace. The children would grow up as members of the others’ tribe and, when conflict threatened again in the future, the ‘Peace Child’ from each tribe was sent to negotiate a sustained peace. This legend spotlights the important role young people can play in changing the world. read more…
