The power of contextual expertise for peacebuilding

Duke and UNC graduate students in the Introduction to Peace and Conflict Resolution course used their lived experiences to inspire and develop solutions to address the vexing problems of conflict, violence and injustice.

Taught by Shelley Liu, the course explores peace and conflict through an interdisciplinary lens, analyzing the nature and causes of conflicts from a variety of perspectives and inquiries, including gender, political science, sociology, social psychology, economics, biology and ethnicity.

Throughout the semester's "Peace Lab," students incubated a project with a peacebuilding outcome. They presented their projects to peers, faculty, staff and community members during the Peace Lab Symposium, held in the Sanford Building lobby.

“The ‘Peace Lab’ is meant to serve as a transformative space where everyone could develop or expand projects that are uniquely personal, and that are deeply rooted in their lived experiences, local contexts and professional work," Liu said. "The diverse range of innovations that were on display during the Peace Lab Symposium truly underscored the complexity of building peace in different parts of the world, but also demonstrated the power of contextual expertise and creative solutions in creating meaningful and implementable solutions.”

Khaled Shaath, a Rotary Peace Fellow from Gaza, chose to focus his project on addressing unemployment in Gaza. Research says that when there's high unemployment people tend to go towards extremism and that's happening in Gaza right now, Shaath explained. "Unemployment is about 80% and we have a lot of people displaced internally and externally."

Shaath’s project, Coding for Peace in Gaza, outlines four areas of support to help people find jobs virtually – mental health support, English language skills, programming and coding skills, and mentoring. “My project’s goal is to solve unemployment so people can focus on development and innovation and not focus on revenge and extremism,” he said.

The projects presented:

• Hanan Abafita: Empowering Mothers For Peace and Development 
• Priskila Arulpragasam: Healing Through Memorialization of Collective History
• Tibeb Asfaw: Nexus Corner - A Space for Peace
• Alonna Despain: Localizing WPS in the United States: An Environmental Approach in Arizona
• Oliver Ebwor: Seed of Peace - Enhancing Sustainable Livelihoods and Psychosocial Wellbeing among Refugees and Host Communities in Adjumani District, Northern Uganda
• Mohammed Fakhry: Community-Based Approaches to Health and Peacebuilding in Yemen: A Focus on Abyan Governorate
• Devin Greeno: Municipios en Movimiento - Argentina (Municipalities in Motion)
• Sharmeen Indorewala: IBDITA - The Beginning
• Debby Karemera: Bridging Generations: Fostering Inter-Generational Dialogue Among Youth in the Rural Districts Neighboring Kigali City Through Expressive Approaches
• Nish Kharal: #RENEWRESISTANCE: Reclaiming the Power of Civil Society
• Rory Newbery: European Exchange Practitioners Network
• Abbigail Pearman: Land-Based Learning in Oaxaca, Mexico
• Isabelle Potts: Nuturing Futures: Using Community Gardens to Reduce Youth Incarceration
• Brynn Rotbart: The Coastal Coalition: Cuba
• Khaled Shaath: Coding for Peace in Gaza
• Lilian Vogt: Ubuntu Roots - Growing Through Play: Enhancing ECE Quality in Dzaleka Refugee Camp