Peacebuilding Organizations
Critical Kindness
I taught at a Montessori school for five years, and we talked a lot about “peace curricula.” At one particular staff meeting when this topic managed to make it onto the agenda again, I noticed my mother, who worked at the school with me, was getting increasingly irritated. Finally, she blurted out “I’ve had it up to here with peace!” Everyone was a little taken aback by this confession. How could anyone be tired of peace?
Read MoreThe Femininity of Peacebuilding
In my Strategic Peacebuilding class, we got in a heated discussion about a book entitled Women Building Peace: What They Do, Why it Matters, written by Sanam Naraghi Anderlini. In retrospect, it seems strange that a book about peace would spark debate, but nevertheless even those members of the class who rarely spoke, raised their hands to speak their opinions that day. The debate began because some females in the class thought this particular book supported the common stereotype of women as “caregivers” and pigeonholed us into solely a nurturing role. They were offended by this perception and some chose to view the book as a type of propaganda working against women’s equality.
Read MoreAbout Ali
I have an M.A. in International Studies with concentrations in International Development and Conflict Resolution from the University of Denver and a B.A. in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. I hope what inspired me to pursue peacebuilding will also inspire you. Thank you for reading!