Thank you for your leadership.
These words, spoken by a Kenyan woman peacebuilder, both gladdened and surprised me – gladdened because it’s always nice to have someone affirm a positive contribution they feel I’ve made; surprised because my focus had been on serving, not leading.
She spoke at the conclusion of a five-day retreat whose theme was Celebrating and Nurturing Women as Peacebuilders. Co-convened by Catalyst for Peace and Green String Network, ….Keep reading this post >
Catalyst for Peace’s work with Fambul Tok in Sierra Leone has shifted from its initial focus on post-war community reconciliation. As we have written about elsewhere, building on the lessons of that work, we are focused now on creating spaces for communities to lead in their own development, supported by an inclusive governance infrastructure. Simply stated, the work has moved from peacebuilding to development (and inclusive governance) – while still ….Keep reading this post >
At the end of February, my colleague Charles and I went to Kenya to meet with friends and colleagues who are part of an organization called Green String Network. We wanted to explore how we could, together, facilitate growing women’s leadership in peacebuilding.
Our colleagues have long experience working in Peacebuilding in Kenya and in the region more broadly. Due to the respect they have from their previous work and relationships, ….Keep reading this post >
Amy and I left Angi’s early today for a women’s circle in Kibera/Kibra (the name depends on your tribe), the largest “informal settlement” (referred to by many of the people who live there by the less elegant term – slum) in Nairobi, stopping along the way to pick up Nyambura, who has done a great deal of work in Kibra.
Nairobi is in the midst of what seems to be an ….Keep reading this post >
Thursday was a mostly easier day. We stayed at our beautiful Airbnb overlooking the Indian Ocean until early afternoon, when we went to the Malindi airport for our flight back to Nairobi. For a good part of the morning, we sat on the open-air, covered terrace and shared reflections about the women’s circle of the previous day in Mombasa.
It was clear, as it had been after the circle in Nairobi, ….Keep reading this post >
Up in the dark at 5:30 AM and prepared to depart by 6 AM on the 2+ hour drive to Mombasa where we were to have a meeting with about 20 women peacebuilders from the Mombasa/Coastal area. After spending a good deal of time bouncing our way north on an unpaved, rocky road with arid, rocky land that reminded me of Palestine/Israel stretching out to the east and west, we ….Keep reading this post >
Flying high over scattered clouds out toward the coast from Nairobi to Malindi, over mostly brittle brown lands bearing witness to the drought that has been visiting Kenya for some time. The dryness of the land stands in stark contrast to the living waters that flowed through our gatherings earlier today at the Green String Network office and the nearby Wasp and Sprout Café.
About 15 women and 4 men gathered ….Keep reading this post >
My colleague, Amy Potter Czajkowski, and I have journeyed to Kenya to learn more about the work of women peacebuilders in Kenya and to explore what Catalyst for Peace might be able to do to help invite and support women’s leadership in peacebuilding and development. After getting to bed at 1 AM this morning on the tail of a long, long journey from Washington, DC to Nairobi, Kenya, with a ….Keep reading this post >
In November, Catalyst for Peace and Fambul Tok hosted an Inter-District Learning and Sharing Conference – Growing Inclusive Governance in Moyamba, Sierra Leone. The conference consolidated learnings from the People’s Planning Process (PPP). The PPP started as a post-Ebola recovery and planning initiative. It soon became the foundation of District-wide efforts to put communities at the center of peace and development with support from local and national government and organizations. The conference created a ….Keep reading this post >
We believe the strong, visible, invited, respected leadership of women in peacebuilding and development is essential everywhere in the world. When women share their authentic selves and voices and work together, they take on activities that support the whole community. Women, invited to offer their wisdom and capacity, think and act holistically and when fully participating in structures with men and women, offer ways of working that create inclusive, creative ….Keep reading this post >
