Interpeace

Interpeace is an international peacebuilding organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. Its work is focused on helping societies address conflict and build sustainable peace through processes that are locally owned, inclusive, and adapted to the political and social conditions of each country. Rather than imposing a standardized model, the organization works with in-country partners and teams to connect communities, civil society, government institutions, and international actors. The organization pursues two closely related goals. First, it strengthens the capacity of societies to manage conflict themselves through non-violent and non-coercive means. Second, it seeks to improve the ability of the international community, particularly the United Nations, to support peacebuilding more effectively. This combination gives Interpeace both an operational role in country-level peace processes and a policy-oriented role in developing approaches to conflict prevention, reconciliation, governance, and peace consolidation. Interpeace traces its origins to a United Nations peacebuilding pilot project launched in 1994 under the name War-torn Societies. The initiative was later established as an independent non-profit organization in 2000 and adopted the name Interpeace. Since then, it has worked in more than 20 countries across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Its country programmes have generally emphasized dialogue, participatory research, institution-building, reconciliation, and the development of locally supported mechanisms for managing disputes. A defining feature of Interpeace's positioning is its emphasis on local ownership. The organization presents peacebuilding as a process that must be shaped by people and institutions within the affected society, while still benefiting from international support and comparative experience. Its programmes therefore seek to create links among groups that may otherwise remain politically, ethnically, geographically, or socially divided. The organization also contributes to international policy discussions concerning how external actors can support peace without undermining local agency. Interpeace became an international organization under Swiss law in 2017, when Switzerland's Federal Council of Ministers granted it international organization status. It also maintains a strategic partnership with the United Nations, including representation of the United Nations Secretary-General on its Governing Board. In addition to its direct peacebuilding work, Interpeace has incubated initiatives that subsequently became independent organizations, including the Principles for Peace Foundation. Its present role combines field-based programming, partnerships with local actors, institutional development, and advocacy for more effective approaches to sustaining peace.

Interpeace's institutional roots lie in a United Nations peacebuilding pilot project known as War-torn Societies, which began in 1994. The initiative emerged from the international community's efforts to understand how societies emerging from war could rebuild political relationships, social trust, and institutions capable of managing disputes without renewed violence. Its approach treated peacebuilding as more than the cessation of armed conflict: it also required locally grounded processes through which communities and institutions could address the causes and consequences of violence. In 2000, the project became an independent non-profit organization and took the name Interpeace. Independence enabled the organization to develop its own partnerships and programmes while retaining a close relationship with the United Nations and the broader international peacebuilding system. Its model centered on working with local actors rather than prescribing externally designed solutions. Interpeace's country teams and partners have therefore engaged communities, civil society organizations, public authorities, and international stakeholders in processes tailored to local conditions. Over time, Interpeace expanded its geographic reach across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. The organization has worked in more than 20 countries, using activities such as inclusive dialogue, participatory research, reconciliation initiatives, institutional strengthening, and policy development. Although the specific design of each programme varies, the common objective is to strengthen a society's own ability to identify tensions, manage conflict peacefully, and build arrangements that can support durable peace. Interpeace's work has also retained an international policy dimension. Alongside field programmes, it has sought to help the United Nations and other international actors become more effective partners in peacebuilding. This dual role distinguishes the organization from both a conventional humanitarian operator and a purely academic policy institute: it combines practical engagement in conflict-affected societies with efforts to improve the principles and methods used by external peacebuilding institutions. A major institutional development occurred in 2017, when Switzerland's Federal Council of Ministers granted Interpeace international organization status. The organization is headquartered in Geneva and maintains a strategic partnership with the United Nations. A representative of the United Nations Secretary-General serves on its Governing Board, reinforcing the relationship between Interpeace's independent programming and the multilateral peacebuilding system. Interpeace has also served as an incubator for new peacebuilding initiatives. Among the initiatives that later became stand-alone organizations is the Principles for Peace Foundation. This evolution reflects Interpeace's broader contribution to the peacebuilding field: beyond individual country programmes, it has helped develop institutions, methods, and policy ideas intended to improve the long-term practice of sustaining peace.

• 2017

  Swiss international organization status

  [1]Interpeaceen.wikipedia.org

  Switzerland's Federal Council of Ministers grants Interpeace international organization status.

• 2000

  Interpeace becomes an independent non-profit organization

  [1]Interpeaceen.wikipedia.org

  The United Nations pilot project is transformed into an independent non-profit organization operating under the name Interpeace.

• 1994

  War-torn Societies project begins

  [1]Interpeaceen.wikipedia.org

  The United Nations launches a peacebuilding pilot project called War-torn Societies, establishing the institutional roots of what would become Interpeace.

An internationally connected but locally driven peacebuilding organization that supports societies in developing their own non-violent systems for managing conflict and helps international institutions improve peacebuilding practice.

• Peacebuilding services

  Locally owned peacebuilding programmes

  Country-level programmes designed with local partners and teams to address conflict, strengthen social and political relationships, and support locally sustainable peace. The programmes may involve communities, civil society, government, and international stakeholders, with methods adapted to the circumstances of each society rather than delivered as a fixed global package.

• Research and policy advisory

  Peacebuilding research and policy support

  Research, policy development, and advocacy intended to improve how international institutions support peacebuilding. This work draws on field experience and seeks to connect practical lessons from affected societies with the policies and practices of the United Nations and other international actors.

• Conflict resolution

  Dialogue, reconciliation, and conflict-management processes

  Facilitated processes that help divided communities and institutions identify shared concerns, address grievances, rebuild relationships, and manage disputes through non-violent means. Interpeace develops these processes with local actors so that their legitimacy and continuation do not depend solely on external organizations.

1. 1Interpeaceen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Interpeace official websiteinterpeace.org