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Stefan Schwartzmann isn’t your typical entrepreneur. Yes, he’s started a successful company stretching across ten Latin American countries, and yes, he’s currently deep in conversations about “scalable growth.” But what makes Stefan stand out is his sense of purpose. He’s not in the startup world for the money or recognition, but rather the peace. If…

Growing up in Ecuador, Alicia Arias Salgado has always been keenly aware of the injustice happening around her. The law is applied differently depending on who you are, and corruption abounds. As a law student, Alicia vowed to advocate for justice reform in her country. Now, she works as a lawyer, mediator and arbitrator to…

Mediators and peacebuilders in this community of practitioners at MBBI, work tirelessly every day toward building a “peaceable” world. The teams conduct analysis, design interventions, facilitate training, convene gatherings, and a whole lot more. It is time to recognize them at this time with a celebration of their work and a spotlight on their impact….

Somia Sadiq is a space-maker for more women of colour to assume leadership roles, and a tenacious boundary-pusher advancing peacebuilding and reconciliation efforts across the globe. She believes stories have the power to advance diplomacy, break barriers, and promote healing. With ancestral roots in post-colonial Punjab and Kashmir, Somia Sadiq holds experience in environmental sciences,…

During the Nigerian Civil War in 1967, a young couple fled the country through underground tunnels. They ended up in Côte d’Ivoire, where shortly thereafter, a future peace advocate was born: Mr. James Offuh. As a child, his parents took him to Nigeria to rediscover his roots in the Igbo community. Mr. Offuh grew up…

For Arabella Tresilian, mediation is less a career than a calling that weaves together every thread of her life. With roots in the arts and years spent as a caregiver, she has always been attuned to the power of story, dignity, and presence. Today, those sensibilities define her work as a mediator in healthcare and…

For Barberine Raming, mediation is the culmination of a life defined by movement, listening, and cross-cultural dialogue. From her beginnings as a nurse in the Netherlands to her humanitarian missions with Médecins Sans Frontières, her years in the Amsterdam police force, and her eventual settlement in France, Barberine has consistently been drawn to the human…

On a clear morning in the Andes, a woman bends over a small irrigation channel, guiding water to her crops. Thousands of miles away, on a coastal fishing dock, another woman mends nets while listening to the weather report that will determine the community’s catch. From forest villages to bustling cities, women are at the…

“I pull from theory, from practice, and then merge them together to propose a peacebuilding approach in a polarized society.” Adeolu Ojedokun blends his accomplished academic background with his on the ground peacebuilding experience to enact real change in his home country of Nigeria and beyond. Growing up in the Yoruba community, the ethnic conflicts…

Speaking with José Barzola, a higher education professional and community facilitator and mediator based in Hawai’i, I could tell that I was in the presence of a master communicator. He is deliberate with his words, an active listener, and charismatic to boot. Indeed, it is no wonder that his current project—a channel called Peacebuilding Initiatives—explores…