White Paper on the Future of Environmental Peacebuilding: www.ecosystemforpeace.org
The White Paper is a collaborative, multi-author project which outlines a vision for the future of environmental peacebuilding.
The Geneva Peacebuilding Platform (GPP) currently acts as a neutral convener of the Geneva Dialogue on Environment, Climate, Conflict, and Peace (ECCP) in order to improve the exchange between environmental and peacebuilding communities. GPP, in collaboration with the PeaceNexus Foundation, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the Environmental Peacebuilding Association (EnPax), undertook a collective process from 2020-2022 to develop a White Paper on the Future of Environmental Peacebuilding to advance a forward-looking, practical agenda for environmental peacebuilding.
What is the White Paper?
The White Paper is a policy-oriented document, developed through a reflective, consultative, multi-stakeholder process. It aims to deliver a strong, cogent message about the future of the field to the Stockholm+50 forum in June 2022. This project was developed not only to advance a policy agenda for environmental peacebuilding, but also to foster inter-institutional collaboration and shared innovation for the field. It was intentionally designed as a highly collaborative project, inviting institutions to work together to develop submissions, and creating space for field-wide reflection on drafts at each step of the process.
You can find the full project at: https://www.ecosystemforpeace.org/
What does the final product look like?
Practically, the final product consists of two major written components. First, a 32 page White Paper on the Future of Environmental Peacebuilding that is translated into multiple languages. This paper is a policy-oriented document, drawn and crafted out of the contributions to the compendium. Second, a compendium featuring 50 contributions spanning different regions, perspectives, themes, and topics.
You can find the full project at: https://www.ecosystemforpeace.org/
Who wrote the White Paper?
The White Paper is a two-part product. The compendium is composed of contributions from environmental peacebuilders, practitioners, policymakers, researchers, advocates, funders, and other actors. The White Paper itself was written by a single editor under the supervision of the Steering Committee, hired particularly to work on this project. The paper was reviewed and refined through a series of public and open consultations, offering contributors the opportunity to discuss the final version.
You can find the full project at: https://www.ecosystemforpeace.org/
What are the goals for the White Paper?
The White Paper on the Future of Environmental Peacebuilding is a policy document with a call to action. Its goal is to stimulate thinking, policy, and funding for innovative programs and solutions around environmental peacebuilding. While it is not an advocacy document, it illustrates a number of options available to actors. It is not comprehensive, but it tries to encompass many topics while still maintaining a cogent, focused narrative. Its primary target audience is policy-makers. The White Paper process itself aims to generate inter-sectoral and inter-institutional collaboration across different types of actors to advance the field of environmental peacebuilding. The White Paper was presented at the Second International Conference on Environmental Peacebuilding in Geneva in February 2022, and will be presented at the 50th Anniversary of the UN Conference on Environment (Stockholm+50) in June 2022.
To learn more about the origins of the project, please read the concept note here.
White Paper launch
The White Paper launched on 1 February 2022 at the Second International Conference for Environmental Peacebuilding. It is currently available in English, Spanish, and French at https://www.ecosystemforpeace.org/. Chinese, Arabic, and a limited print run of English-language copies will be available soon.
Previous collaborative opportunities
The White Paper project was open for review and consultation from 15 October to 15 November 2021.
White Paper Consultation - 21 October, 14:30 CET - at the International Leadership Association Conference
White Paper Consultation - 3 November, 9:00 CET - at Geneva Peace Week
Consultation en français - 8 November, 17:00 CET - en collaboration avec le Geneva Water Hub
White Paper Consultation - 9 November, 15:00 CET - Open Consultation
Consulta en español - 15 November, 17:00 CET - en colaboración con Alexis Manuela Cañari
Previously, the call for proposals closed on 16 April 2021, but you can still see the call for proposals here.
An information and update session was held online on 21 June. You can watch the presentation here.
