Whether individual or collective, violence affects us on a daily basis. Too often it is accepted, or even trivialized, but it has a major impact on our physical and emotional wellbeing. Humans are not innately violent, but we do have a tendency to reproduce violent behavior. Under these circumstances, how do we leave violence behind and rediscover the ability to live together, including in countries like Rwanda where the wounds of genocide are still raw? fedevaco is organizing a conference on the subject in Lausanne.

Switzerland is finding it increasingly difficult to reach a consensus on the values it wishes to convey. While pluralism of values seems dangerous to some, others see it as an opportunity. As incidents become more common, a discussion on values is increasingly pressing. mission 21 is organizing a conference on the subject in Basel on February 13, where experts on values and religion will be present.

Learn about non-violent conflict transformation and improve your negotiation and mediation skills. In this 2-day course, mediators share their experience with supporting peace processes. The Peace Mediation training will take place on February 24-25, 2017, as part of swisspeace’s CAS in Civilian Peacebuilding Essentials 2016/2017.

The World Development Report (WDR), published each year by the World Bank, provides an in-depth analysis of a specific aspect of economic development. The 2017 edition on “Governance and the Law” seeks to shed light on how a better understanding of governance can bring about more effective policy interventions to achieve development. A panel discussion organized by the Center for Development and Cooperation (NADEL) of the ETH Zurich will focus on how the lessons of the WDR can be applied to development cooperation.

The Gender in Conflict & Peacebuilding training will take place on April 7-8, 2017, as part of swisspeace’s CAS in Civilian Peacebuilding Essentials 2016/2017. It focuses on gender equality in peacebuilding and applies a gender perspective on conflicts.

Is religion a cause of conflict or peace? In this new CAS on religion and conflict, participants will reflect on the relationship between state and religion, the conflict dimensions of religion, the potential of religion to resolve conflicts and build peace, as well as on methods and tools to tackle conflicts with religious dimensions. The CAS certificate program starts in April and finishes in October 2017 and consists of 17 course days (from Thursday to Saturday) which will be held in German.

The swisspeace course on Preventing Violent Conflicts explores and critically discusses the notion of conflict prevention, macro- and micro-level methods for conflict prevention and the potential of private sector risk assessment tools for the development and peacebuilding sectors. It will take place on May 3-5, 2017.

Fragile states have become an issue of major concern for the international community. But what exactly is state fragility? The swisspeace course on Fragility, Conflict and Statebuilding focuses on the conceptual, policy and implementation challenges of statebuilding in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.

How can Switzerland help societies torn apart by war and violence become safer and more peaceful in future? This question will be the subject of a presentation of Switzerland’s activities in Afghanistan by the SDC’s cooperation bureau in Kabul. Since 2002 and the fall of the Taliban, the SDC has been conducting a reconstruction program there specifically addressing education, local governance and human rights.

Despite wide recognition that the fields of human rights, peacebuilding and development work in and on similar contexts, they are often perceived as distinct disciplines. Get insights on the value of linking human rights and conflict transformation and learn from practical lessons and tools from both fields for use in project design, implementation and evaluation processes. The training will take place on May 31-June 2, 2017.

How can peace and conflict studies contribute to understanding the conflict dynamics in South Sudan, and how can insights from South Sudan advance academic research? The 5-day summer school will focus on the main developments in South Sudan since independence in 2011 and the key actors and main drivers of conflict today. It explores how the ongoing armed conflict relates to previous civil wars and the lessons learned from peace and state building engagement taking place prior to independence. Specific topics relevant to the South Sudan context including state formation, local governance, peace mediation, civil society, and responsibility to protect will be centre stage. The Summer school will take place on July 3-7, 2017

The International Association fpr Human Values (IAHV) is launching a longer term, in-depth peacebuilding program in Lebanon and Jordan with the aim to contribute to the prevention of violence and future extremism among affected children and foster a self-sustaining peace by strengthening the psycho-social foundation of targeted vulnerable populations. The aim of the program is to reduce trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety for 18000 children and 3000 families, heal and empower 400 youths as agents of change in their communities who will continue the healing work, and improve the well-being of social workers.