As of September 2016, some 590 individuals – including 77 Fulbright scholars – have received a graduate certificate and/or MA degree from the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding. These graduates weave a peacebuilding network that spans the world, engaging complex conflicts in places like Afghanistan, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Israel-Palestine, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan and Syria – as well as Harrisonburg, Virginia; Washington D.C.; and Oakland, California.

Feedback from alumni provides valuable insights into the latest peacebuilding approaches and practices that are working on the ground, allowing CJP faculty to revise curricula accordingly. Alumni feedback also allows us to develop new programs, like the MA in Restorative Justice, in response to growing interests and demands in the peacebuilding field.

With the recent hiring of Diana Tovar as CJP’s Peacebuilding Network Coordinator, we are eager to do an even better job of connecting with our alumni and helping them connect with each other. Already, alumni are linking together to address complex issues.

CJP-affiliated faculty member Dr. Alma Abdul-hadi Jadallah is working with four Middle East alumni to create a dialogue center at a major university south of Baghdad, in a project funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). In the Pacific Northwest, graduates Catherine Bargen, Matthew Hartman and Aaron Lyons have formed Just Outcomes, a firm which supports communities in “developing just responses to harmful actions or situations.” And this summer, CJP grad Angela Dickey teamed with STAR trainers Donna Minter and Crixell Shell to deliver a STAR I program in Minneapolis for an internationally diverse group.

Another of Diana’s tasks will be to increase the number of CJP alumni voices streaming into the classroom via Skype and Zoom. This will allow current students to learn from the peacebuilding experience of CJP alumni – and to begin forming relationships within the network they will join upon graduation. Indeed, as evidenced in this issue of Peacebuilder, CJP students are already engaged in real-world practice opportunities.

With daily news reports of global violence and social unrest, it is easy to despair. I remain hopeful because of the healing justice work CJP students and alumni are embracing in hotspots around the world.

The original curriculum at what is now the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) was created in 1995, shortly after the end of the Cold War. It was a time of hope and a time of worry. It seemed possible that the world might move resources from war systems to other pressing human needs. It seemed possible that residual violent conflicts – the proxy wars of the Cold War period – might be transformed. It seemed possible that focusing on inclusive decision-making, reconciling relationships, acknowledging and healing past harms and promoting a restorative approach to issues of justice could have real impact. At the same time, new wars were breaking out in the Balkans, and the existing ways of dealing with violent conflict seemed poorly suited to these new challenges.

The CJP curriculum, from the outset, embraced holistic and multi-faceted approaches to issues of promoting justice and reducing violence. Our faculty and graduates have achieved the early goals in some communities and in some countries. However, injustice and violence are like cancers or bacteria; they transform in order to thrive.

We need to regularly alter our understanding and our approaches if we want to have any chance of ending violence and transforming injustice.

CJP is comprised of uniquely knowledgeable people – faculty members are active practitioners and students arrive with direct experience of problems they want to better understand in order to take well-informed and realistic transformative actions. Consequently, the curriculum undergoes a major revision approximately every five years, largely as a response to changing world conditions.

When the program started, the general public and most academics were inclined to locate issues of conflict and violence “over there” in other countries. Today, it is clear to many that the United States is neither different from nor separated from “over there.” You can’t, for example, look at the challenge of conflict between communities of color and an increasingly militarized policing system and not see parallels to other countries with similar problems.

When the program started, most practitioners working to transform conflicts talked of conflict cases that could be managed. Today, it is apparent that many if not most of the manifestations of violence and injustice are the result of tightly intertwined systems that have failed to deliver just outcomes. If we want to talk about a “case” of conflict, we need to define the problem as larger than the parties who end up involved in direct conflict with one another. We need to consider the systems that have given rise to the conditions that support their open conflict.

This new understanding is illustrated in a case that we study in the new curriculum. Hurricane Katrina wiped out large sections of the metropolitan city of New Orleans in Louisiana in 2005 revealing huge problems of systemic racism, poverty, inequality and failed governance structures. As we unpack this case in class, it becomes clear that the harms of Hurricane Katrina are rooted in historical discriminatory housing policies, the legacies of slavery, systems of political corruption, the practice of locating human communities within fragile ecosystems, and a host of other systems created and sustained by humans. If we want to harvest justice and peace from this catastrophe, we need a multi-faceted and creative approach. Students analyze the many factors that created the conditions for Hurricane Katrina and they study a wide array of responses to the disaster with a focus on evaluating how well those responses have addressed underlying causes.

The Hurricane Katrina case is used in the second of two team-taught courses that integrate analysis, theory, and design thinking. Foundations of Justice and Peacebuilding I and II teach students to analyze complex problems of injustice, violence and harm; design creative responses; and think ahead to how those responses would be implemented and evaluated. The first course starts with less complex cases and the second course ends with large challenges such as transforming the systems that are driving global climate change.

The last piece of the new required core courses will be implemented this year with the introduction of Research Methods for Social Change. This course ties research to problems of action and prepares students to learn continuously about the problems they are addressing and the effectiveness (or not) of their own work.

All is not new at CJP, however. We have retained and improved distinctive features of our curriculum.

The long-standing promotion of reflective practice at CJP has been refined into a curriculum that emphasizes personal formation. Our goal is to promote self-awareness and skills of self-management so that our graduates can remain calm and focused when faced with situations of great ambiguity. We also prepare graduates to work in teams by providing a coaching support system for their first major team project.

And, as always, we continue to require the mastery of specific skills for managing conflict and promoting justice. As you’ll read in the following pages, students learn, grow and prepare for the future through practice and practicum experiences, and strong mentorship by Amy Knorr, our peacebuilding practice director and faculty members.

The learning objectives for the students are under constant scrutiny and revision. The process of updating the curriculum is discussed with the students who, consequently, embrace a continuous learning approach to their own work. This is one reason they are seen as leaders in the field.

Acting Associate Vice President for Applied Research / The United States Institute of Peace/ Washington D.C.
91����Ƶ’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding infuses student learning with both the hard realities and the hope of building peace. The effects of violent conflict are studied in the classroom, encountered in field-based practice, reflected on personally, and learned from fellow students – many of whom have lived in violent conflict and made a courageous commitment to respond, repair and rebuild. 91����Ƶ’s location in the mountains of Virginia is deceptive – this is not a “remote” learning experience, but an engaging, international education, which produces compassionate, knowledgeable peacebuilders who are fully capable of engaging globally and at home to help communities heal.

LEYMAH GBOWEE MA ‘07

Nobel Laureate 2011 / Executive Director, Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa / Monrovia, Liberia
Prior to enrolling at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at the 91����Ƶ, my view of conflict was limited to my region and to those close to my country, Liberia. After my graduate studies at CJP and my interaction with the dynamic local and regional peacebuilders from across the globe, that view changed significantly. Each global conflict has a face and a name. Today, my drive for global peace is due to the fact that every conflict is very personal. I have a name in my heart for every region of the world, a direct result of the CJP experience.

KOILA COSTELLO-OLSSON MA ‘05

Consultant / Co-founder and former director,Pacific Centre for Peacebuilding / Suva, Fiji
CJP offers a practical peacebuilding education program that contributes to strengthening accountability in adult learners, teachers and practitioners. If education is a way to influence us to be reflective in the way we think, feel and act, then this is what CJP is doing in an environment with global citizens who are diverse in culture, religion, language and gender. CJP equips us with ways that help discern choices in dealing with conflict and violence from a place of compassion, justice and love. This way of learning makes intentional the finding of words that contextualize stories of suffering, success, laughter and critical thinking, when so much misunderstanding is generated from the misinterpretation of words and action.

JACQUES MUSHAGASHA MA ‘16

FROM BUKAVU, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO / LIVING IN HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA / SERVES AS PRESIDENT OF THE CONGOLESE COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

PRACTICUM EXPERIENCE: I introduced restorative justice concepts to the Congolese community, which includes 140 refugees.

ACTIVITY: The 27 adults in the workshop learned the difference between restorative justice and penal criminal justice; the principles, values and practices of restorative justice; and how these practices might be used to resolve conflict, repair broken relationships, and strengthen their community. At the end of the training session, they learned how to organize a circle process, the role of the facilitator and the use of a talking piece. Eight young people ages 14-17 also attended as listeners.

WHAT THEY LEARNED: Many participants were very fascinated by the role that a talking piece can have in a conversation. Most of them promised to use the talking piece in their conversation at homes. They also promised, in case of a conflict, to explore restorative justice practices before referring the matter to the legal criminal system. This practicum allowed me to enhance my skills in facilitation and production of curriculum for training or workshops.

A VISION FOR THE FUTURE: I have always dreamed of going back to Congo to work in the area of peacebuilding education and trauma healing. My vision for the Congolese community of Harrisonburg is a community of people well-integrated, both culturally and financially, into the larger Harrisonburg community. I would like to see a community of responsive and productive citizens ready to give back to their native country as well as to the welcoming society.

JODIE GEDDES MA ‘16

FROM THE BRONX, NEW YORK / NOW LIVING IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA / EMPLOYED AS A COMMUNITY ORGANIZING COORDINATOR WITH RESTORATIVE JUSTICE FOR OAKLAND YOUTH (RJOY)

BEFORE THE PRACTICUM: As a first-year student, I was a conflict trainer with the Boys and Girls Club of Harrisonburg. My role was to provide peace education and conflict de-escalation skills. I facilitated small-group discussions and processes for community organizations. Each of these experiences created a larger picture of the Harrisonburg community while connecting me to its residents.

HEADING WEST: As a black woman, I was seeking to be in a place that affirmed my being while engaging with some of the communities most disproportionally affected by systemic harm. Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth provided me with the opportunity to engage in the use of restorative justice as a cultural shift while internalizing these practices for my self-care and healing.

WORKING ALONGSIDE YOUTH: During my practicum, I designed and implemented community organizing training for and with youth. The trainings consisted of political education, journaling and storytelling. I also helped build relationship with community organizations that seek to interrupt the cycles of violence facing black and brown youth/communities.

PERSONAL GROWTH: I recognized the importance of stories and the way narratives inform systems change, especially when speaking with those that do not see the symptoms of oppression. I was challenged by the way forms of oppression became normalized in the telling of some stories. I believe we have all been taught to sit with oppression, as a comfort.

THE FUTURE: I believe I was led to RJOY and I am grateful to be continuing this journey.

AARON ODA MA ‘16

FROM AUBURN, INDIANA / NOW LIVING IN HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA / EARNING AMEDIATION CERTIFICATE

TO MYANMAR: I spent my practicum in Yangon, Myanmar (Burma) with People In Need (PIN), an organization committed to working with local communities in solving problems using the creative resources already available. This included many indigenous and creative ways for healing, resilience, storytelling and relationship building in order to transcend the atmosphere of violence. I was primarily interested in working with arts-based peacebuilding methodologies, addressing sectarian and identity-based violence, and studying and analyzing the current conflicts in Rakhine State. I had prior connections to Myanmar, having worked in the past with Burmese refugees in Georgia and Indiana.

DOCUMENTARY FILM: I conducted research into how arts-based peacebuilding approaches are addressing ethno-religious conflict in Myanmar. The case studies – collected with interviews of local participants working in the conflict transformation field, human rights workers, musicians, psychologists, and others – took the shape of a documentary film.

NEW KNOWLEDGE: My practicum provided me with the analytical and relational lens to interact and work alongside people living amidst democratic transition. I learned how to address issues of interfaith identity conflict in creative ways. In a collectivist, indirect culture such as Myanmar, the need for sensitivity and imagination is crucial. I also see clearly the need for local voices and agency within peacebuilding processes and assessments. I often navigated and mediated the different communication and conflict styles between Western folks and local Burmese in the office.

POWER OF THE ARTS: After this experience, I can attest to the power of the creative arts and embodied practice as a medium of conflict transformation. Having had the opportunity to observe participatory theater in Karen State and listen to the countless testimonies of practitioners for the documentary film project, I can proclaim how powerful the opportunity for storytelling, emotional expression, and creative problem-solving is in regard to a holistic understanding of service and empowerment in peacebuilding.

FUTURE PLANS: I am working towards the Virginia General District Court mediation certification. After a year or so in the States, I envision continuing my work overseas in international peacebuilding involving capacity-building and training, arts-based approaches to peacebuilding, and facilitating dialogue and bridges of understanding to diverse groups of stakeholders involving identity-based conflicts. I would love to continue this passion for using documentary film for participatory peacebuilding efforts as well.

Through its previous research, the International Labor Organization (ILO) had determined that women employed by private schools and universities in Irbid, a governorate in northern Jordan, earn substantially less than their male colleagues. As this conflicts with several core ILO principles, the organization recently hired Amman-based consultant , MA ’03, to help with step two: analyze why this wage gap exists, and propose ways to close it.

“The whole purpose [of this contract] is to provide the ILO and the Jordanian National Commission for Women with solutions,” said Quandour, who started the work in mid-2016. “There are a lot of components that we have to study.”

As frequently is the case in her consulting work, Quandour places the techniques and theories of conflict analysis that she studied at CJP at the center of her approach.

“How can I handle the problem of pay equity if I don’t [understand it]?” she said. “Thinking about how these organizations deal with conflict is very
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Quandour recalls an organizational development class at CJP, co-taught by , MA ’02, and as one of her primary influences. Among Quandour’s other recent consulting jobs have been researching the juvenile justice system in the region for the International Development Law Organization, as well as an evaluation of educational programs for Syrian refugees in Jordan on behalf of RAND and UNICEF.

Over the past several years, Quandour has also felt CJP’s influence as she’s begun to lead trainings on peacebuilding and organizational development. Her first experience doing so was in 2014, when she assisted and translated for Brubaker, who was leading a several-day organizational development training for a group of Jordanian NGOs. On the final day of the training, Brubaker asked Quandour to lead the training herself.

“David’s presence and moral support during this last session gave me much needed confidence, which led to [other opportunities],” she said.
From January to May of 2015, working for the NGO Caritas, Quandour designed and provided a conflict resolution training for around 1,200 people, most of them Syrian refugees. She has also trained Jordanian NGO staff on managing organizational conflict and change.

“What I studied [at CJP] is very much a part of how I live my life,” said Quandour. “[It influences] how I do everything I do – subconsciously, consciously, you name it.”

, MA ’14, thought finding work in peacebuilding in his native Burundi after graduation could take up to two years. When, he, his wife Francine Muhimpundu, and young son returned, Nkundwa renewed former contacts from working 12 years with partner organizations affiliated with Mennonite Central Committee and also with Harvest of Peace Ministries. With Burundi International Community Church, he helped mobilize churches in community violence prevention training and began building an early warning system network

However, his patient plan was sidetracked by a May 2015 political crisis, one which Nkundwa presciently predicted the month before in a New York Times op-ed titled “Burundi: On the Brink?”

The coup was precipitated by the decision of President Pierre Nkurunziza to run for a controversial third term. Since his win in the election, hundreds of people have been killed and more than a quarter of a million people have fled the country. Human rights abuses are rampant.

“That article helped get my name out,” Nkundwa said. When he fled to Rwanda with his family and other civil society leaders, he was quickly back on his feet. With former classmate , MA ’15, he published a conflict analysis that opened doors to his inclusion in gaining support of leaders in Uganda, Ethiopia, South Africa and Tanzania for peace talks.

Nkundwa says the strategic peacebuilding and negotiation practices taught at CJP have contributed to a unique skill set: “CJP taught me to think about who to build relationships with, how to work with influential individuals and groups who can facilitate your messages. As someone who works independently, that is one of my biggest skills. Now I support civil society groups in analysis, suggesting interventions, framing messages, targeting allies, networking and process.”

From exile in Rwanda, Nkundwa is being called upon to help peace negotiations forward and to advocate for international intervention to prevent a situation that could turn swiftly to genocide, once again. In May, he was invited by Crisis Action to advocate before the United Nations Security Council with representatives of Burundi’s civil society for police intervention to protect civilians.

Disturbed by the lack of consensus among mid-level security council members, he then scheduled a series of meetings, facilitated by a U.S.- based student peace organization, in Washington D.C. with staff of Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa Tom Perriello in the U.S. Department of State. He also met with the United States Senate and U.S. House committees on foreign relations, representatives of USAID, and non-governmental organization advocates.

He also visited Gehman, now an independent contractor for the U.S. Army Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute, and met with military officials to highlight that “without civilian protection, political solutions are not possible.”

At SPI, during his final week in the United States, Nkundwa took ’s course on peacebuilding approaches to violent extremism in anticipation, he says, of what is likely to occur in Burundi.

Despite concerns about his future, Nkundwa was pleased to be back at 91����Ƶ. “Always moving from one emergency to another and constantly adapting leadership skills and language is exhausting. I needed a break. This has been a good time to reflect. I’ve taken some good deep breaths here,” he said with a laugh.

Invaluable, too, was the encouragement of fellow peacebuilders. “My colleagues in other countries dealing with similar issues have listened, counseled and criticized,” he said. “My own understanding of my situation and of what is happening in Burundi needed to be checked. Here is a space to which I can bring my assessments and the way I think things should be done, so my colleagues can help me develop the most clear analysis and the best strategies to suggest when I return.”

In the fall of 2016, 91����Ƶ’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) debuted an expanded course catalog featuring its new program. In keeping with CJP’s long-established leadership in the field of restorative justice, the degree is the first of its kind offered by a traditional, residential graduate program at any North American university.

The core restorative justice courses, designed to give students broad exposure to the theory, history and application of restorative justice, will be taught by CJP professors and . More specialized restorative justice courses taught by visiting faculty will also be offered during the annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute.

Degree requirements will also include some of the peacebuilding courses that form the core of CJP’s degree; electives on topics such as trauma, community development, international development or organizational development; and a research project related to restorative justice.

Among the new degree’s distinctive aspects is that it teaches restorative justice in a graduate program with broad emphasis on peacebuilding and conflict transformation.

“Restorative justice is often taught with a rather narrow focus on applications such as criminal justice or education,” writes, a CJP professor and co-director of CJP’s Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice. “A restorative justice program rooted in the frameworks of conflict transformation, trauma awareness and peacebuilding provides for a much deeper and broader foundation, with a wide range of applications. This has often been remarked on not only by our graduates, but by people who have worked with them.”

Another notable emphasis of the program will be its application of restorative justice theory and practices to social movements and structural change.
“We are building the curriculum around the idea that restorative justice not only affects the individual, but that it also has the frameworks and tools and values to be applied to systems and structural change,” said Stauffer. “That’s new territory [in the field].”

Turner adds that the restorative justice movement overlaps with “a broad range of social movements for social justice” and offers effective tools for addressing structural violence.

“Young people of color organizing for restorative justice in their schools see this movement as critical for dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline and ending state violence against youth,” she wrote in an email.

Students in the new degree program can pick from four areas of focus for their study of restorative justice, including criminal justice, community-building, transitional justice and education. (The education focus will include partnership with 91����Ƶ’s program, which currently offers a restorative justice in education concentration and graduate certificate, and is starting an MA in Restorative Justice in Education program in fall 2017).

One of the justifications for the new restorative justice program, highlighted in a prospectus prepared by CJP, is the fact that rapid growth in the practical application of restorative justice has resulted in a “significant disconnect between practice and theory.”

“As a result, there are many lost opportunities for collaboration, improved practices, program reforms and mutual learning,” the document continues. “This program would help to bridge the divide between practitioners and theorists, and give opportunities for current practitioners to explore the theoretical debates and current research in the field.”

“We think this degree broadens and deepens the 91����Ƶ commitment to peacebuilding,” writes CJP Academic Programs Director . “The maturing of the field of restorative justice is evidenced by the number of school systems and criminal justice systems that are adopting restorative justice practices. At CJP we think that restorative approaches to justice have even more to offer when those practices are linked to an orientation toward social, political and economic change that focuses on long-term transformation of the systems that promote and perpetuate inequalities.”

For many professionals interested in earning a graduate degree, moving to Virginia to study full-time for two years at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding isn’t possible. Recognizing this, CJP now offers a limited residency program for the MA program.

“Full residency is still the preferred option, when possible, because it allows for a deeper level of community building,” said , academic programs director. “But this option enables practitioners and others interested in gaining new skills and knowledge to join us while honoring their other commitments.”

That was the case for Gregory Winship, training and office manager at the Center for Conflict Resolution (CCR) in Kansas City, Missouri. He had the support of CCR’s executive director , MA ’09*, who also was urging Winship’s colleague Debbie Bayless to attend 91����Ƶ. But he couldn’t leave his organization for two years.

Winship’s work with CCR includes sites such as prisons, schools, communities and the criminal justice system. “For me, the restorative justice training was an important piece of what CJP offered. At CCR, we think that restorative justice, conflict resolutions, and trauma awareness and resilience are the trifecta of what people need. Those concepts cover life skills … whatever context a person is in, knowledge of those three concepts helps immensely.”

If all goes as planned, Winship will be the first to graduate within the limited residency format, earning an MA in restorative justice in May 2017. He will have accomplished this by attending the Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI) for two consecutive summers, taking online courses, fulfilling a one- semester residency requirement, and completing the practicum requirement at his workplace. (Winship is also earning a graduate certificate in non-profit leadership and social entrepreneurship, coursework that included a few extra online classes.)

Winship says his spring 2016 residency provided opportunities to develop friendships and networks among current students and faculty he’d met at SPI and online, and “get a better picture for the mission and values of 91����Ƶ and CJP.” Faculty and staff have been welcoming and supportive, as he transitioned into the academic community and juggled responsibilities at CCR (he telecommuted 10 hours a week during the semester).

The residency also provided unique learning and practice opportunities for Winship, an experienced trainer. He led workshops within Virginia Mennonite Conference, facilitated meetings in a local community, hosted a seminar series at a transitional residential home for ex-offenders, accompanied an undergraduate class to Graterford Prison, and joined other students in lobbying for sentencing reform with Friends Committee on National Legislation.

The presence of experienced professionals in classes benefits the CJP community as much as it does the individual, says Docherty. “Our discussions about case studies are more realistic. Working professionals often share workplace skills with less experienced students. The work/school balance can be difficult for these students, but they also find the extended time in Harrisonburg helpful for reflection and reorienting their career goals or plans for future work.”

There have been plenty of challenging times, Winship says, but a key factor has always been the relevance to his work, and lately, too, the exciting possibilities in the field itself.

“Restorative justice is operable in so many venues, and a lot of those places are becoming RJ-friendly. I can see this degree opening up a lot of new possibilities in the field.”

More than two decades after the war that tore apart the former Yugoslavia, the scars remain. Memorials and ruins stand as physical reminders of the conflict that ran for four years in the mid-1990s; less visible are the emotional and psychological wounds that many residents still bear.

It is these latter scars that drew the attention of and of 91����Ƶ’s (91����Ƶ) Center for Justice and Peacebuilding. Mansfield, director of the program, and Hart, professor of trauma, identity and conflict studies, helped to plan and participated in an international conference on “Trauma, Memory and Healing in the Balkans and Beyond” in July in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The conference, sponsored by the Transcultural Psychosocial Educational Foundation (TPO), had two goals: developing an “archive of knowledge” from the papers presented at the event, and building a network of people who “share ‘best practices’ for psycho-social trauma recovery and the healing of memories,” according to the website.

Mansfield says the goals were largely met, with “a joint effort of scholars, practitioners and activists.”

Mansfield and Hart were on a panel that considered how to integrate psycho-social responses to trauma into peacebuilding work and shared about 91����Ƶ’s STAR program, which began in 2001 to address the trauma of the September 11 events. Hart also presented a paper titled “Multidisciplinary and Cross Sector Approaches to Building Peace after Complex and Violent Conflicts: The Importance of Psychosocial Trauma and Well-being in this Process.” Mansfield facilitated several workshops on the body’s response to trauma and on using play as a method for getting around “stuck-ness.” She also led a daily period of breathing and meditation exercises.

Beyond the formal presentations, they say the conference included sobering moments, such as a visit to the memorial at the Srebrenica genocide site, and heart-warming ones, including the hospitality shown by a local women’s group that works together across ethnic boundaries. Many issues remain for the region, including high unemployment and other economic challenges, growing insulation of ethnic groups, changing gender roles and differing perspectives on the wartime years.

Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) has a longstanding presence in the Balkans, and 91����Ƶ has several connections there as well. Those include former seminary faculty members N. Gerald and Sara Wenger Shenk, who served in the former Yugoslavia with MCC, and ’00, MA ’04, and , MA ’99. Amela, a native Bosnian, is MCC Area Director for Europe and the Middle East and was a keynote speaker at the conference. Since graduating from CJP, the Puljek-Shanks have been creating and facilitating trauma awareness and resilience learning forums throughout the Balkans.

The conference “highlighted the importance of being persistent in continuing to talk about the impact trauma has on generations while also naming that we are not doomed forever due to the traumatic experiences many generations have gone through,” she said. “Resiliency and recovery from trauma are key terms that need to be in the forefront of our conversations. Trauma brings many opportunities for growth and healing. Thus, for us in MCC … supporting our partners across the world in their work, learning how they worked on trauma healing and recovery, and exchanging best practices helps all of us build critical yeast that will eventually lean towards peace.”

This was the second conference held on the topic, and both Mansfield and Hart hope the series continues. They praised TPO program director Zilka Spahić Śiljak, co-organizer of the conference, as “a really impressive and dynamic person” whose energy and vision were instrumental in bringing the event together. The author of Shining Humanity – Life Stories of Women Peacebuilders in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Šiljak teaches at several universities and is currently doing research at Stanford.

“I think it was the right conference as part of the next step,” Hart says. “It’s a building process. I really trust that they’ll take this forward in a dynamic, meaningful way, and we want to be as much a part of that as possible.”

“It’s exciting to think how CJP may be involved in helping to deepen those capacities that are already so powerfully there,” Mansfield adds.

The collection of conference papers is expected to be available in English by early 2017.

What she found was disappointing. Most courses offered at major universities, Schirch says, are oriented exclusively towards counter-terrorism, “focused on the use of police and military action.”

However, for this course titled “Peacebuilding Approaches to Violent Extremism,” Schirch wanted students to examine violent extremism through a wider set of perspectives.

“There is not one cause of or cure for violent extremism,” Schirch says. Using the metaphor of bacteria growing in a petri dish, she notes: “We have to think of violent extremism in its full context. When you have corruption in the government, poverty, rapid changes caused by climate change, the media covering and glorifying violent extremism and making people famous for doing it, and when there’s religious extremism as well, all these factors are the ecology in the petri dish that enable violent extremism to grow. And you can’t stop there. Different responses to violent extremism, such as the use of drone bombs, cause a cascade of other reactions and problems, all of which contribute to whether the extremism continues, escalates, lessens or ends.”

Even before she had determined her curriculum, the course filled quickly, eventually bringing together 26 SPI participants from 13 different countries. Their experiences varied widely, from Al Shabaab to Boko Haraam, from Muslim and Jewish religious terrorists and Daesh (ISIS) to radical Buddhist nationalists in Myanmar and White supremacists in the U.S.

Mornings were spent gaining basic understandings: exploring definitions of violent extremism, which vary in different contexts; looking at psychological, social, political, economic and religious factors contributing to radicalization; community resilience; responses to violent extremism; and legal contexts.

Legal frameworks often impede peacebuilding responses to violent extremism, Schirch says. “Peacebuilding is about reaching out and engaging people with extremist beliefs. But counterterrorism laws prevent us from teaching negotiation to people affiliated with extremist groups.”

Two guest speakers addressed violent extremism in the United States, a topic of special interest to the students considering recent political rhetoric. , MA ’12, a doctoral candidate at the University of Toledo in Ohio, spoke about the harmful impact of FBI and police initiatives within the Muslim community. Adnan Ansari, program director at the Northern Virginia-based independently funded think-tank Muflehan, talked about their consulting work in countering violent extremism, which includes, among other efforts, digital intervention and clergy/leader training.

In the afternoons, students participated in role-play scenarios with case studies from Schirch’s recently published Human Security: A Civil-Military-Police Curriculum. They also analyzed a specific violent extremism movement of their choice and provided a briefing on the final day.

Schirch frequently participates in policy conversations about violent extremism in Washington, D.C., London and Geneva. But she believes the one-week course at 91����Ƶ provides a one-of-a-kind opportunity for cross-cultural analysis of violent extremism.

“91����Ƶ may be the only place where you have people from this many different countries sharing and learning from each other about how violent extremism takes place in their country, looking at how it’s both unique and similar,” she said. “With this comparative lens, you start seeing interesting patterns and distinctions in how the government responds in different ways and how some governments have more success than others in countering it.”

The course will be offered again during SPI 2017.