Peacebuilding

Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation… ~ Exodus 20:5 They transmitted only the wound to their children, to whom the memory had been refused. ~ […]

Thomas Hübl: William, in all your work in conflict areas, what do you see as the symptoms of trauma? And do you see that there’s a kind of recycling of trauma as a part of the conflict you work with? William Ury: Thomas, it’s a pleasure to be speaking with you. I was trained originally […]

This article shows how in response to thuggish forces the qualities of feminine intelligence—available to men as to women—can enable us to take a significant leap in consciousness and demonstrate what anyone can do to build a beautiful future. What we encounter now—in Europe and the Middle East, as in the US—is an upsurge of […]

We share our model as an inspiration and affirmation that work is being done that builds safe community. We know now that a community will benefit from a group that has the intention to listen, learn what is needed, and work as solutionaries in support of one another. We also know that building relationships and […]

KOSMOS: Let’s begin, Kai, with an overview. We want to give our Kosmos readers a sense of you, your work, and the field of peacebuilding. What is peacebuilding? KAI BRAND-JACOBSEN: Peacebuilding is one of the most important areas of human endeavor and engagement in the world today. At it simplest, it is about finding concrete, […]

Women’s Hope to End Longest Forgotten War Thirty international women peacemakers from 15 countries walked across the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea on May 24, 2015, International Women’s Disarmament Day. Our purposes were: To call for the end of the Korean War by changing the armistice into a permanent peace treaty To facilitate […]

Kosmos Project Director, Dot Maver participated in the Alliance for Peacebuilding Conference: 'Around the globe, the struggle between civil society voices and government repression is giving rise to violence, extremism, and toxic politics. The peacebuilding and governance/democracy communities recognize the need to work together in order to address the issues of governance, legitimacy, fragility, and disenfranchisement that underlie many violent conflicts today. The Alliance for Peacebuilding conference brings together members of the peacebuilding community with leading policymakers, members of the military, private sector professionals, and civil society representatives to build bridges in both theory and practice between these fields. From repression of civil society in Russia, to the protests over Ferguson here at home, the conference will highlight the impact of social movements on peace and democracy.'

Kosmos is pleased to announce our partnership with PeaceJam and the One Billion Acts of Peace initiative, a five year effort promoted as potentially the largest global citizenship campaign to date. This initiative is supported by numerous groups, youth around the world, and many Nobel Laureates. You are invited to create your own Act of Peace - discover how.

By Dr. Dot Maver We heard the news as we came together for our Kosmos staff meeting. Stunned. Chilling to think that anyone anywhere on the planet could think that killing children is an acceptable strategy for anything. We took a long moment of united silence, hearts across distance, immersed in the feelings and knowing that the people of Pakistan are not the only ones deeply grieving in this moment. Silence. No words.

by Dorothy J. Maver, Ph.D. As people all over the country take to the streets following the Grand Jury decision in Ferguson, one thing is imminently and painfully clear. There is serious unrest and dissatisfaction at the heart of the US citizenry regarding the very system that was designed to keep people safe and secure. And the USA is not alone. All over the world we are recognizing the need for systemic change as we experience an all-systems crisis.