Around the world, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are actively working to address a wide variety of issues faced by individuals around the globe. The work of NGOs ranges from small, local operations to huge international efforts; but despite differences in scale and target demographics, NGOs work towards a common goal of tacking issues for the betterment of society. This work often comes in the form of humanitarian aid, assisting individuals and communities in the wake of conflict or disasters. It is in this area that NGOs most closely fit the traditional narrative of peacebuilding. Peace is often only imagined in the aftermath of war or armed conflict. However, a true peace is more holistic and encompasses all aspects of personal and community life, rather than just external conditions based on the presence or absence of war (Klein, Goertz, and Diehl 2008, 67). NGOs, in the breadth of areas they address, are poised to embrace and expand a broad definition of peace.
The inclusion of NGO work in peacebuilding outside of post-conflict situations has yet to be recognised. For example, NGO work in Sri Lanka following the Sri Lankan Civil War, described by Oliver Walton (2008), is recognised as peacebuilding. Walton describes how NGOs interacted with governments as well as political and financial stakeholders to provide resources and support for post-conflict recovery in the country. The author clearly labels the work of three NGOs as “peacebuilding.” Meanwhile, NGOs providing similar humanitarian relief in the aftermath of natural disasters are described using language that excludes mentions of “peace” or “peacebuilding.” Chandra and Acosta’s 2009 analysis of the role of NGOs in recovery after Hurricane Katrina uses the phrase “long-term human recovery.” Despite the difference in language, the work of NGOs in the context of Hurricane Katrina and the Sri Lankan civil war are largely similar, with both working to rebuild communities impacted by different forms of crisis. Though the work done by NGOs outside of the context of conflict may indeed contribute to peace, this work is excluded from discussions of peace.
By understanding how NGOs contribute to peace in areas outside of post conflict recovery, we can interrogate and expand traditional habits of thinking about peacebuilding. First, it is necessary to define peace itself, and then to analyse how NGO can be seen as contributing to it, in its many different forms. Academic definitions of peace are varied, but scholarship has underlined the importance of recognising both negative peace (the absence of war) and positive peace (a broader term that addresses human struggles in all areas of life: Gleditsch, Nordkvelle, and Strand 2014, 149). Researchers and practitioners recognise that peace can take place on a multitude of levels, ranging from individual to environmental (Anderson 2004, 104-105). Using a definition of peace that reflects the everyday efforts of people striving to mitigate many different social, economic, cultural and environmental challenges (such as poverty, racism, degradation of nature or farmland), alongside those experiencing the specific circumstances of war itself, provides a basis for a broader and more inclusive definition of peace. NGOs address both negative and positive peace through their work, though most focus on one area or the other.
Save the Children: a case study
An organisation that bridges this gap and demonstrates plainly the contributions of NGOs to a broad definition of peacebuilding is Save the Children (STC). This large, international NGO works in a variety of contexts ranging from post-conflict recovery to environmental justice. STC targets any area in which children are not receiving the care they need to survive and flourish. The organisation’s stated mission is to help children survive, learn, and be protected so that they can thrive in the future. Every action STC takes aims to holistically and positively affect the well-being of children around the world, inside and outside of conflict. Because of STC’s breadth of work and stated mission, an analysis of this organisation should reveal whether the Save the Children itself, as well as other NGOs, can be considered peacebuilders, using a definition of peace that includes elements of positive peace.
This analysis can be conducted by closely examining Save the Children UK’s 2022 Annual Report, which details the organisation’s goals, strategies, and outcomes in all their areas of work. Though STC’s goals of helping children to survive, learn, and be protected align clearly with ideas of positive peace, the Annual Report makes no mention of the words “peace” or “peacebuilding.” The Report instead describes in detail how STC has helped children by improving education, assisting in post-conflict recovery, and reducing poverty. All of these actions are organised by STC UK into four strategic goals for 2022-2024. These goals are:
- a healthy start in life
- safe return to school and access to quality education
- a childhood free from violence
- resilience to cope with tough times
Looking at each of these targets separately should provide a clearer picture of the extent to which Save the Children, and ultimately other NGOs around the world, can be described as peacebuilders.
A Healthy Start in Life
The first of Save the Children’s strategic goals is labelled ‘Healthy Start in Life.’ The initiatives linked to this strategic goal focus on children’s health, specifically through nutrition and medical care (STC 2022, 6). Not only do these programs aim to support children, they support entire communities by providing mental health support for mothers and income support to supplement to the basic provisions of food and health services. Specifically, STC has worked to aid famine recover in East Africa through the provision of food, nutrition services, and clean water (STC 2022, 6-7). In other areas such as Bangladesh, STC combats malnourishment through approaches that improve the ability of families to feed their children, promoting long-term health and well-being for the families and their children. These programs positively affect the security of communities, contributing to the individual, personal peace of those in the STC’s programs. This is evidenced in the ways that these programs increase the capacity of participants and address the root causes of issues. In STC’s Bangladesh programs aiming to improve child nutrition, only 2% of the 62,500 households participating in the program were unlikely to ‘escape poverty’ with six months remaining in the seven-year program. These programs also included workshops with nearly 52,000 adolescent girls, one of the most vulnerable demographics in Bangladesh, teaching them practical skills like negotiation and business practices. These skills help equip the girls with knowledge to provide for themselves and their families in the cases where they already have children of their own (STC 2022, 8). By addressing issues that disrupt the lives of those they serve and working to establish structures that seek to build cultures of peace, Save the Children can clearly be seen as working towards a goal of positive peace through the promotion of health and wellness for children.
Safe Return to School and Access to Quality Education
The second of the strategic goals outlined by Save the Children is the Safe Return to School and Access to Quality Education in the wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Save the Children recognises the importance of education in their statement that education in childhood protects children from both violence and poverty through the structure and provisions of schools. In addition, education provides essential contributions to child development through stimulation (STC 2022, 10). These programs contribute to future peace as well as peace in place, both elements of positive peace, while also protecting children from violence, an aspect of negative peace. STC works to create change in education systems in countries around the world in order to aid educational recovery from the pandemic. This work involves reequipping teachers and students with programs that offer not only education but support systems outside of school to allow children to make the most of their educational experiences. These programs have seen great success, showing high numbers of students returning to school after the pandemic and demonstrating new learning (STC 2022, 10-11). STC also cites a case where their educational programs for some of the most disadvantaged communities in Tanzania allowed children to recover development lost because of their disadvantaged situations while also improving their social interactions and school performance (STC 2022, 13). As education promotes the social and intellectual development of children around the world, it is an important avenue of positive peacebuilding. Save the Children’s significant investment in education demonstrates their commitment to peacebuilding.
A Childhood Free from Violence
Save the Children’s third strategic target, A Childhood Free from Violence, most clearly reflects traditional understandings of negative peace. To achieve this target, STC works to both prevent and respond to conflicts through diplomatic and humanitarian channels. The organisation has worked bilaterally with the United Nations and organisations like the International Committee of the Red Cross for the endorsement of the Political Declaration on the Protection of Civilians from the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas, recently endorsed by 83 countries. STC’s efforts against violence also include lobbying in the United Kingdom to increase support for conflict recovery in Afghanistan (STC 2022, 15). STC has worked specifically to support those affected by the conflict in Ukraine since 2014 by providing supplies, food, and reuniting separated families in addition to their refugee support efforts in neighbouring countries and in the United Kingdom (STC 2022, 15). In the UK in particular, STC ran training programs for volunteers and host families and used local support to distribute information and more essential supplies for incoming families (STC 2022, 25). These efforts sought to create a welcoming and peaceful environment for refugees in the face of conflict. In addition to building peace by reducing the effects of conflicts, STC also has implemented programs to address other types of violence that affect children. The organisation supports programs that seek to educate individuals on gender-based violence, empower women and girls, and works with national governments to increase protections for children in schools (STC 2022, 16-17). In and outside of the context of armed conflict, STC works tirelessly for positive and negative peace by reducing the effects of violence on children. Save the Children’s work reiterates their demonstrated commitment to creating a more peaceful society on individual, local, and global levels.
Resilience to Cope in Tough Times
Save the Children’s final strategic target, Resilience to Cope in Tough Times, broadly targets climate justice, but also deals with positive peace through the strengthening of communities and developing peace in place. To combat an issue as large as the climate crisis, STC employs both humanitarian and diplomatic means to address felt needs of communities as well as the structural issues that perpetuate the problems being dealt with on the ground (STC 2022, 18). The organisation provides relief to children and communities affected by climate disasters such as the flooding in Pakistan in the summer of 2022. The group organised medical care and the provision of food, shelter, and education for around 133,000 displaced persons in the region. STC supplemented these relief efforts with a statement at COP27 calling for climate justice for Pakistan and the whole world in the long term (STC 2022, 18). In their diplomatic efforts, STC has made a point to include the voices of children and has taken specific lobbying action against the government of the United Kingdom and other countries in order to affect change. STC saw progress in this area after COP27 which created the Children and Youth Pavilion to amplify children’s voices in the climate crisis. The conference’s outcome statement also for the first time included a recognition of the importance of children in combatting climate change (STC 2022, 21). Though a difficult endeavour, Save the Children’s advocacy for positive environmental peace on global and local levels communicates a dedication to peace for children affected by the climate crisis. These efforts ultimately reveal Save the Children’s work as peacebuilders for all, as the organisation works to tackle issues that bear consequences for the entire world.
Peace in Practice
Although Save the Children UK’s 2022 Annual Report does not mention peace by name, the actions they take support the claim that STC is in fact a peacebuilding organisation. Their work around the world contributes to a more holistic experience and vision of peace that touches all aspects of children’s lives as well as the lives of many others in their communities. In addition to addressing traditional negative peace by protecting children before and after conflict, the organisation’s programs establish positive peace by ensuring that children are supported throughout their development with educational programs, medical assistance, and strong communities. The work of Save the Children takes a holistic approach to peace, addressing negative peace through their work in and around conflicts as well as positive peace in their efforts to protect children in varied aspects of society. All of these initiatives indicate Save the Children’s strong but unnamed commitment to peacebuilding as they are concerned with issues affecting the peace of children around the world today and in the future. It is interesting to ponder the reasons why NGOs like Save the Children do not explicitly label their work as peacebuilding. Perhaps if they did, our understanding of, commitment to and engagement with peace and peacebuilding would increase. The acceptance of Save the Children as a peacebuilding organisation opens the door for the work of other NGOs that contribute to positive peace to be included in the peacebuilding conversation; and for ordinary people who volunteer or donate to see themselves as supporting peacebuilding around the world. This seemingly insignificant change in dialogue has the potential to have much wider implications by creating a more inclusive and comprehensive approach to peace that will allow NGOs to contribute more fully to the creation of a better society.
References
Anderson, Royce. ‘A Definition of Peace.’ Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology 10, no. 2 (June 2004): 101–16. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327949pac1002_2.
Chandra, Anita, and Joie Acosta. ‘The Role of Nongovernmental Organizations in Long-Term Human Recovery After Disaster: Reflections from Louisiana Four Years After Hurricane Katrina.’ In The Role of Nongovernmental Organizations in Long-Term Human Recovery After Disaster: Reflections From Louisiana Four Years After Hurricane Katrina, 1st ed., 1–14. RAND Corporation, 2009. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/op277rc.8.
Gleditsch, Nils Petter, Jonas Nordkvelle, and Håvard Strand. ‘Peace Research – Just the Study of War?’ Journal of Peace Research 51, no. 2 (1 March 2014): 145–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343313514074.
Klein, James P., Gary Goertz, and Paul F. Deihl. ‘The Peace Scale: Conceptualizing and Operationalizing Non-Rivalry and Peace.’ Conflict Management and Peace Science 25, no. 1 (February 2008): 1–94. https://doi.org/10.1080/07388940701860466.
Save the Children Fund. ‘Annual Report 2022.’ London: Save the Children Fund, 2022. https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/content/dam/gb/reports/annual-report-2022-save-the-children.pdf.
Walton, Oliver. ‘Conflict, Peacebuilding and NGO Legitimacy: National NGOs in Sri Lanka.’ Conflict, Security & Development 8, no. 1 (1 April 2008): 133–67. https://doi.org/10.1080/14678800801977146.