Northern Ireland.
34 Peacebuilding organisations
Groundwork Northern IrelandGroundwork Northern Ireland are using bonfire night - usually an opportunity for conflict, to engage communities in cross-cultural discussions and promote cultural understanding. Irish Network for Nonviolent Action, Training and Education (INNATE)
INNATE acts as a network linking those committed to, or interested in, explicitly non-violent action and training Koram Centre
The Koram Centre is a counselling provider, set up to respond to those people suffering in silence after the conflict in Northern Ireland. Mediation NI
Mediation Northern Ireland works toward conflict resolution by providing training and advice. The De Borda Institute
Based in Northern Ireland, De Borda promotes inclusive voting procedures in contentious elections
34 Peacebuilding organisations
Happily, the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 brought together political enemies in an agreement that offers hope for a sustainable, peaceful future for Northern Ireland. The Good Friday Agreement has often been taken as the end point of ‘The Troubles’, as the conflict in Northern Ireland is known. However three recent bomb attacks, targeting a bank, and a Catholic police officer’s father, and killing Ronan Kerr, a young Catholic police recruit – all attacks linked to dissident Republicans – indicate that peace in Northern Ireland is not as secure as widely perceived.
Regardless of these incidents, Northern Ireland offers a hopeful example of the impact that local peacebuilding can have on violent conflicts. Local NGOs were vital in creating spaces for the dialogue and the constituency for political agreement that eventually brought about the Good Friday Agreement, and continue to work in their communities, striving for a sustainable restoration of peaceful relations.
From the blog
Commentary Ireland: the inside track on making peace
There are numerous places of historical conflict around the world where there is a clear need for helping those involved to find common ground. The current events in the Middle East and North Africa, in which popular uprisings are toppling, or at least trying to topple, long-standing regimes, are welcome. Yet there are no guarantees that a seamless shift to democracy will inexorably follow. Sadly, there is a real risk that new inter-community disputes will arise in those areas in the months and years ahead. Read more >>>
INCORE Peacebuilding Summer School
INCORE, the peacebuilding research centre in the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland, are still accepting applications for their 11th annual summer school, which this year will take place June 7th-11th. Three modules will run as part of the course. Read more >>>
Commentary UDA decommissioning in Northern Ireland
Good news today in Northern Ireland, where the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) has claimed to have completed putting their weapons beyond use. This comes some 5 weeks ahead of their February deadline, when the decommissioning body ceases to operate. The UDA claim was officially confirmed by General John De Chastelain, head of the international decommissioning body. Read more >>>
Commentary Religious cooperation and peace
In many conflicts around the world, groups are divided along religious lines – Catholic and Protestants in Northern Ireland, Muslims, Animists and Christians in Sudan, Muslims, Catholics and Orthodox Christians in Bosnia-Herzegovina. But have these conflicts been motivated by religion, or have other divides happened to fall along religious lines? What has been the role of religious beliefs? And how can religious groups work together for peace? Read more >>>
From the field Berlin 1961-1989, Belfast 1969-????
Following on from the discussion paper ‘A Process for Removing Interface Barriers’ by Tony Macaulay last year, a group of youth workers working in interface communities in Belfast have been meeting together to discuss the issue of Peace Walls, and to explore how to ensure that children and young people are fully involved in any process. The meetings have been co-ordinated by Youth Link NI, the inter-church youth work training organisation. Read more >>>
From the field Beacons & Bonfire Management
Groundwork Northern Ireland has been delivering on Belfast City Council’s Bonfire Management Programme for the past five years. Thirty communities across Belfast are now engaged in minimising the negative environmental impact of their bonfires, promoting family friendly festivals and engaging in discussions around cultural traditions & the impact of bonfires on Nationalist and minority ethnic communities. Read more >>>
