This issue of the Voice of Peace highlights the vital role that civil society organisations are playing in conflict affected areas to address the causes and effects of violence. From South Sudan and Central African Republic (CAR) we hear how local groups are leading diverse initiatives to reconcile people previously abducted by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) with host communities. In South Sudan, traditional Azande ceremonies bring people together. In CAR tailoring classes help returnees find their place.

Mutual insecurity is a primary driver of the Nagorny Karabakh conflict and a dominant factor in contemporary Armenian-Azerbaijani relations. The current peace proposal, known as the Madrid Principles, addresses the issue of insecurity through the envisaged deployment of an international peacekeeping operation, as part of a wider security package.

This report is the result of a series of conversations and surveys with youth in Jammu and Ladakh regions. They highlight issues that youth identify as critical for socio-political transformation and their role in it - including education, economic, governance and politics.

Conciliation Resources and the Sussex Centre for Conflict and Security Research (SCSR) hosted a one-day workshop to explore the role of gender, power and militarism in peace processes.