Young Peacebuilders in South Caucasus and Central Asia

In 2024, UNAOC launched the 8th edition of the Young Peacebuilders programme, bringing it for the first time to the South Caucasus and Central Asia region. The programme supports young civil society leaders in gaining skills and competencies to address negative stereotypes, prejudice and polarization, while bringing visibility to their projects and initiatives designed to promote diversity and intercultural and interfaith dialogue.

Organized within the framework of Peace4Culture Global Call, an initiative launched by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan in collaboration with UNAOC in 2022, the Young Peacebuilders in South Caucasus and Central Asia is a prime example of meaningful partnerships that strengthen the groundbreaking UN Security Council Resolutions 2250, 2419 and 2535 on Youth, Peace and Security which recognize young people’s important and positive role in upholding and advancing international peace and security.

The Peace4Culture Global Call celebrates cultural diversity and highlights the importance of sustainable peace in reviving cultural spirit based on a notion that all people share values of compassion, humility and respect for others regardless of their religion, race, culture or gender. The Peace4Culture Global Call was created to respond to contemporary challenges, including strengthening the sustainability and resilience of peaceful societies and international peace systems.

THE PARTICIPANTS

UNAOC will select 20 young people through a competitive call for applications. Applicants must be between 18 – 25 years old and be nationals of one of the following countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, or Uzbekistan, to participate in the programme.

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THE PROGRAMME

The programme uses blended curriculum and consists of four phases of learning, to maximize the outcomes that can be achieved through a single one-week face-to-face training and encouraging participants to apply the lessons learned:

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Phase 1: Online Engagement

Using an online platform, participants will convene in a virtual environment for exchange and learning. The initial online interaction will support participants to be better prepared for the face-to-face workshop. By the end of this phase, participants will have basic common knowledge of key peacebuilding terms and concepts.

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Phase 2: Face-to-face Workshop

The workshop is designed to consolidate and leverage the learning from the online phase of the programme and use it as foundation blocks for acquiring more skills and competencies in the field of peacebuilding, intercultural dialogue and conflict transformation. Through experiential learning, games and other interactive methods, participants become better prepared to design and implement their own initiatives upon return to their community.

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Phase 3: Applied Learning

During the workshop, each participant will develop their personal Action Plan which they will bring to life in the months following the workshop. Participants will be encouraged to reinforce and integrate the learning through concrete practice and to multiply the messages and benefits of their intercultural learning experience.

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Phase 4: Results-sharing symposium

As a culminating activity, the participants will have the opportunity to share their experiences, lessons learned, achievements and recommendations with a broad audience of practitioners, UN staff, policymakers, civil society and other experts.