?? January News: Hope in 2024

Dear Friends,

It's often said that peacebuilding is generational work. The hard work is building long-term resilience to violent conflict, by rebuilding community and fostering inclusion and social justice.

As we move into 2024 —?Karuna's 30th anniversary year!?? — we're reflecting on the impact of peacebuilding initiatives?over the course of years and decades, and how those insights can inform work earlier in the peacebuilding cycle.

We are?launching a?project in northern Benin,?Building Climate and Conflict Resilient Communities,?highlighted below, which?draws on the design and lessons learned in the?Protecting Our Communities Initiative?in Nigeria,?now in its fifth year.

Meanwhile, in the United States, we are gearing up for our first workshop with youth participants in our?BRAVE Schools?project, who will be learning how to lead community-building circles as part of advancing restorative justice in their schools.

In addition to these projects, the?Paula Green Legacy Fund?has?continued to provide modest support to local partners?with whom?we have?worked over the past three decades—including two places actively affected by?war: Myanmar, and?Israel?and Palestine.?While our contacts in Myanmar are unnamed for their safety, we are including resources for supporting our Israeli and?Palestinian peacebuilding colleagues below—including by?continuing to press U.S. officials?to call for?a ceasefire

These are difficult times, but our work reminds us that there?are people all over the world?who are actively forging paths to peace. In that?spirit, we?wish you a year?of hope?and renewal.?

Preparing for a peacebuilding initiative in Benin

In this brief check-in with Karuna program manager Troy Caruana, we want to share a glimpse into the preparation for a dialogue-based initiative. Troy has been working closely with our local partner in Benin,?Association Coexister, and our colleagues at?Neem Foundation, to launch our new?Building Climate and Conflict Resilient Communities?(BCCRC) project.

The project’s goal is to reduce the risk of farmer-herder conflict and improve community security, paying special attention to the impacts of climate change.?

So what is going on in the project right now?

We started data collection last week, which is exciting. We will be interviewing 100 people in each of the four program communities, talking to people from diverse ethnicities, genders, age groups, and more to really get a wide sample and diversity of perspectives. This data will be our baseline for evaluating the program’s impact, but it will also allow us to develop a more nuanced understanding of these communities so that we can tailor program activities ...

READ MORE (on our website) >>

Video Highlight? (Protecting Our Communities Initiative, Nigeria)

Two of the primary aims of our?Protecting Our Community Initiative?are to mitigate farmer-herder conflict and to advance women's participation in civilian peace and security processes. In this video, Hajia Khadija Ardido, a leader within the statewide herders' association, talks about how women’s leadership is expanding.

Palestine and Israel: Resources for Re-humanizing and Working toward Peace

The voices of people working for peace in Israel an Palestine have often been overshadowed by the dehumanizing rhetoric?that makes mass violence possible. We are including just a few resources below for?re-humanizing the people affected by?that particular conflict—and highlighting the?perspectives of those who are impacted by the violence and refuse to participate in it. Many of these resources are thanks to our colleagues at?Combatants for Peace, who we partnered with between 2013-2017 and who have received support from the?Paula Green Legacy Fund.

Advocate to decision-makers?against the escalation of violence:

• In the U.S, Jewish Voice?for Peace has made it easy to?contact decision-makers.
• For background information, please?see this?open letter to President Biden?from a broad Israeli coalition including Combatants for Peace, and this concise Jan. 23?update on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza?from Canadian aid groups.

Joint Israeli-Palestinian peacebuilding organizations?remind us that war is not inevitable, and there is another way:

• Check out this?November 2023 interview?with co-founders of Combatants for Peace.
• For refreshing, humanizing, but realistic perspectives, we recommend?Combatants for Peace?and the?Parents?Circle?- Families Forum: two groups co-led by Palestinians and Israelis forging a path to peace?out of their shared pain.

"Meet" people from Gaza speaking for themselves:

• One way to hear from?Gazans directly, about their lives and their work to improve their communities?before October 2023, are these video conversations recorded earlier by American Friends of?Combatants for Peace:?Gaza 101?and?Voices from Gaza.

In addition, the organization?Essential Partners?has offered?guidance for dialogue?on this conflict among people in the U.S.

You can help support?initiatives to develop?peace in communities impacted by conflict, with a donation to Karuna Center today. Thank you!