It’s now almost two decades since the signing of the Bougainville Peace Agreement – an agreement that ended nearly a decade of violent conflict and saw the creation of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville within Papua New Guinea. Significant progress towards peace has been made in the region, but legacies of the conflict still present challenges – including for former combatants and the communities they live in.
Kat re-joined Conciliation Resources in August 2019 to support the Cross Regional Programme, in particular coordinating the organisation's involvement in the 'Including the Future' project on youth, gender and peacebuilding (funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency), and the EU's Transitional Justice Facility.
We are working alongside local peacebuilding organisations to develop the skills of women across the Commonwealth, recognise and support their existing work in mediation. This work is part of our Women Mediators across the Commonwealth project and aims to allow women to have greater influence in formal and informal peace processes.
Women Mediators across the Commonwealth (WMC) is a network which connects women with a broad range of mediation knowledge and experience. The network advocates for the increased recognition of women mediators, and their participation in peace processes regionally and internationally. It also provides opportunities for the members to learn from and support each other.
We are playing a leading role in finding solutions to the impact of UK counter-terrorism legislation and sanctions on the work of peacebuilders and humanitarian organisations.
