Power Relations of Peace

Understanding peace in the humanitarian–development–peace (HDP) nexus, and implementing peace activities, is one of the major challenges for those providing aid and putting the HDP nexus into practice. This project aims to identify diverse visions of peace within communities and among aid organisations, with the intention of identifying location-specific peace activities. At the same time, it seeks to understand the influence of power imbalances on the design and implementation of peace activities within the HDP nexus. 

The HDP nexus was introduced as a policy concept after the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit with the intention of linking humanitarian assistance, development cooperation and peacebuilding more effectively. These activities are carried out by aid organisations operating in areas affected by war and violent conflict.

Since then, donors and aid organisations have fostered the HDP nexus approach in many crisis contexts. However, conceptualising peace and implementing peace activities remain one of the key challenges in putting the HDP nexus into practice. Visions of peace can differ within and between communities, as well as between local and international NGOs. But who decides which vision of peace is pursued locally and through which kinds of activities.

The aim of the project "Power Relations of Peace" is to understand how power imbalances in the aid system improve, prevent or mitigate the inclusion of local peace visions and how local visions of peace can be integrated into peace activities in a way that responds to diverse local needs.

To achieve this, the project team is conducting an empirical and comparative study in different localities in Mali, South Sudan and Syria. The team analyses diverse visions of peace held by local communities, as well as by local, national and international HDP nexus actors, including NGOs, UN agencies but also donors and state actors. Furthermore, the team explores the opportunities of and barriers to including communities’ peace visions and activities in project design and implementation. The project will provide HDP nexus actors with recommendations and tools to help them address power imbalances and better integrate local visions and locally led initiatives towards peace into the HDP nexus.