* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
In Aleppo we have already seen the results of a catastrophic failure of to take action play out across our TV screens and newsfeeds throughout the year
2016 is a year that will not be forgotten. First Brexit and now the US election represent an unprecedented democratic upheaval in the Western world, a rejection of a global liberalism by those who feel left behind. These votes have shaken the very foundations of a post-WWII world built by international institutions such as the IMF, the World Bank, the UN, NATO and the EU.
As nations become more inward-looking - with others still to vote in 2017 - global security is dominating the political agenda. In countries protected by NATO, concerns are mounting as to whether President Trump – in putting ‘America first’ (‘Americanism, not globalism’) - will continue to act as ‘leader of the free world’. Will the first avowedly protectionist president since WWII risk losing American lives in order to intervene in international conflicts.
In Aleppo we have already seen the results of a catastrophic failure of to take action play out across our TV screens and newsfeeds throughout the year. Not since Sarajevo has a city suffered like this – but we appear powerless to do anything to help.
The repercussions of this international paralysis, and the lessons of badly planned interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq, are also felt at home in Europe. In ever greater numbers, refugees from Afghanistan, Syria and other conflicts risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean to find more peaceful lives, while on the anniversary of the Paris attacks, our security services brace themselves for further terrorist attacks by extremists returning from the so-called Islamic State or radicalised by its propaganda. Both crises place a strain on the security and cohesion of existing, peaceful communities.
It is against this background, that this year’s RISING Global Peace Forum will explore the consequences of action or inaction in response to violence and conflict under the theme The Ripple Effect.
In such a climate of fear and uncertainty, we believe that it is vitally important to remember and celebrate the importance of personal actions in responding to violence, as well as national interventions and political statements. The ability to build peaceful and secure societies begins at home – wherever home may be - whether that action be rebuilding the lives after conflict, welcoming those who seem different to us or creating opportunities for children in education and for women to participate in society.
At RISING 16 we are welcoming individuals working to affect positive change at either end of the scale. We are bringing international political, faith and community leaders together with peacebuilders, diplomats, academics and members of the public – from the founder of Ibba Girls School in South Sudan and The Romeo Dallaire Child Soldiers initiative to inspiring female world leaders such as President Atifete Jahjaga of Kosovo and President Dr Joyce Banda of Malawi. All are seeking to improve lives in the societies in which they live, or for people who have the most need.
We are also celebrating the work of individuals who refuse to feel powerless in the face of conflict. The first RISING Global Peace prize will be awarded to the volunteers of Syria Civil Defence (aka The White Helmets) and the late Labour MP Jo Cox – who championed their heroism amongst so many other causes. They are the perfect examples of people dedicated to peace and in our view, there could be no more deserving recipients for this prize and it is all the more significant that we recognise them together. Jo Cox worked tirelessly to bring about a better world and is truly deserving of this award. Her legacy is the example she has set for humanitarians and politicians alike.
Earlier this year, Jo referred to The White Helmets in her nomination letter to the Nobel Peace prize committee as “heroes” and said they offer a sense of hope in an otherwise desperate conflict. At RISING, we want to recognise their tireless, non-partisan work to help the victims of one of the worst conflicts of modern times. Both recipients have demonstrated their deep commitment to humanity and offer the hope of a more peaceful, tolerant world in the future.
As RISING is based in Coventry, the UK City of Peace and Reconciliation, it is impossible for us to think about Syria and Aleppo, without thinking of our own city. On 14 November 1940, the centre of Coventry was mostly reduced to rubble, and yet the city embarked on an immediate journey of peace and reconciliation, rising from the ashes.
After WWII Coventry took a lead in repairing the damage of war and rebuilding a connected world in which such conflict would not be repeated. Coventry City Council invented the practice of town-twinning, building bridges with the devastated cities of Dresden, Stalingrad and later Sarajevo, while Coventry Cathedral reached out to people of faith around the world through The Community of the Cross of Nails. Today, the legacy of this work is that Coventry has proudly welcomed more Syrian refugees than any other part of the UK, including London.
It has been remarked during both Brexit and the US election that polarisation of opinion has been fuelled by the echo chamber of social media such as Facebook, failing to create dialogue between people with conflicting ideas.
As Coventry has shown in the past, peace is not achieved through reinforcement of ideas but by the willingness to understand and tolerate those which might be different from our own. It is for this reason that we invite our guests to RISING 16 to unite under the common cause of ‘provoking peace’ – suggesting new, radical ideas that understand difference and bridge the divides between nations, ethnicity, religion and politics.
Ciaran Norris is the director of RISING Global Peace Forum.
