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Peace and Conflict

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Fast Facts about Peace and Conflict

• At the UN World Summit in 2005, the world’s heads of state and government accepted the concept of R2P – Responsibility to Protect. R2P is the responsibility of individual countries and the international community to protect civilians from mass atrocity crimes such as genocide. When conflict prevention fails, economic, political, diplomatic, legal, and military measures can be used to stop mass atrocities from occurring. (International Crisis Group)
• It is estimated that 22 of the 34 countries furthest away from achieving the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals are affected by current or recent conflicts. (United Nations Development Programme)
• Refugees are men, women, and children fleeing war, persecution, and political upheaval. They are uprooted with little warning, often enduring great hardship during their flight. They become refugees when they cross borders and seek safety in another country. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) are those who have been forced to flee their homes but remain within the borders of their native country. (International Rescue Committee)
• The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that by January 2007 there were 32.9 million refugees, asylum-seekers, internally displaced, and stateless people throughout the world. (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees)

Quick Actions to Promote Peace and Mitigate Conflict

• Find a Peace Jam location near you
  PeaceJam is a year-long, ongoing leadership training program for youth. You’ll begin the school year by studying the Peace Jam curriculum, which focuses on the life of twelve Nobel Peace Laureates, their words, and their work, as well as on issues facing young people today (such as violence and oppression). Create a PeaceJam Club to develop and implement a community service/action project in your community. You will need to find a teacher, parent or other adult to sponsor your club.
• Put an end to hate at your school
  Teaching and learning tolerance is a good way to avoid conflict and promote peace on a community level. Check out the 10 Ways to Fight Hate on the Tolerance.org website. You’ll find lots of practical ways to make a difference at your school and in your community on a daily basis.
• Study the Earth Charter
  The Earth Charter is a declaration of fundamental principles for building a just, sustainable, and peaceful global society in the 21st century. Endorsed by thousands of organizations representing millions of people, the Charter seeks to inspire a new sense of global interdependence and shared responsibility for the well-being of the human family and the planet.
• Get involved with programs that assist people caught up in conflict
  CARE is a humanitarian organization fighting global poverty through community-based efforts to improve basic education, prevent the spread of HIV, increase access to clean water and sanitation, expand economic opportunity and protect natural resources. CARE also delivers emergency aid to survivors of war and natural disasters, and helps people rebuild their lives. Read about CARE’s work in crisis hotspots such as Sudan, and learn about ways you can get involved with CARE.
• Write your representatives
  It can be very effective to drop your elected officials a line to tell them you are concerned about something. Often just a few letters, emails, or faxes helps them decide to support or reject an issue because they know that for every person who took the time to write, there are others who have the same opinion. To get the email address and contact information for your elected officials, click here.
• Check out Beyond the Fire: Teen Experiences of War
  Nearly half of all refugees worldwide are under 18, and across the globe an estimated 25 million children have been uprooted from their homes as a result of war. Beyond the Fire tells the real-life stories of 15 teenagers, now living in the United States, who have survived war in seven war zones. These stories tell of loss, hope, fear, strength, despair, and, most of all, resilience.

Want More Information?

• Beyond Intractability
  Beyond Intractability is a free knowledge base on more constructive approaches to destructive conflict that provides additional online and offline resources and teaching materials.
• Center for International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM)
  CIDCM is a university research center that seeks to prevent and transform conflict by pursuing better understanding about the dynamics of conflict and conflict resolution, with a special emphasis on the role of economic development and information technology in helping conflict-prone societies create sustainable futures.
• The Carter Center
  The Carter Center is committed to advancing human rights and alleviating unnecessary human suffering through peace and health programs.
• CARE
  CARE is an international NGO that works with poor communities in more than 70 countries around the world to find lasting solutions to poverty. Because poverty can be both the cause and the result of conflict, CARE works in many countries experiencing conflict.
• Facing the Future resources
  • Additional Peace & Conflict Resources
  • Brief Peace & Conflict Tour
  • In-depth Peace & Conflict Tour
• The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
  The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is mandated to lead and coordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide.