africa

During the 1990s and 2000s, John Paul worked extensively in different regions and countries in Africa. Of note would be support to accompany colleagues and students who were developing the West African Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) and in offering support for direct conciliation initiatives in Somalia and Kenya. John Paul's involvement in peacebuilding in Somalia unfolded during his tenure with the Mennonite Central Committee and more specifically the Mennonite and International Conciliation Services. In collaboration with the University of Waterloo's Horn of Africa Project and regional partners, John Paul was involved in a range of mediation initiatives. For example, he served as a convener/facilitator with the Somali Peace and Consultation Committee and a consultant to the Life and Peace Institute's initiatives in support of the United Nations' reconciliation process in Somalia. John Paul’s direct participation in peacebuilding efforts in Kenya were most notably as an advisor for the National Council of Churches of Kenya and the Nairobi Peace Initiative, with a particular emphasis on evaluation and program design. Beyond these direct engagements, John Paul has practiced alongside and provided accompaniment to extraordinary Kenyan peace practitioners. The stories of peace practitioners like Rose Barmasai, Dekha Ibrahim, Hizkias Assefa, Sam Doe, and Emmanuel Bombande feature prominently in John Paul’s writing and speaking. More recently, in his role as Senior Fellow at Humanity United, John Paul has been working with The Unyoke Foundation, founded by Nomfundo Walaza and Chris Spies, alongside youth networking and initiatives for peace in South Sudan.

ACR Conference Keynote The Moral Imagination: The Art and Soul of Building Peace

A keynote address delivered at the Fourth Annual Conference of the Association of Conflict Resolution.

Peacebuilding Today: An Appeal for the Moral Imagination

A lecture given at Messiah College's Sider Institute on the power of the moral imagination in the turning point of a new Millennium in human history.

University of Colorado Lecture The Moral Imagination: The Art and Soul of Peacemaking

A lecture on the moral imagination in peacebuilding delivered for the Annual Gottlieb Lecture at the University of Colorado, Boulder in 2003.

The Circle of Reconciliation: Seeking the Natural Frequency

A lecture about the circular nature of reconciliation delivered in 2005 for Rice University's Annual Lectureship.

The Intervention in Somalia: What Should Have Happened

An interview with Joe Stork on the U.S. military intervention into Somalia and alternative avenues to provide assistance.

Building Mediative Capacity in Deep-Rooted Conflict

An article making the case that the nature, purpose, and construction of mediation must be reconsidered toward the nurturing of social mediative capacity.

The Moral Imagination

A video interview with Robert Wright for The Wright Show, a production of meaningoflife.tv.

Third-Party Involvement in Social Conflict

A tool that suggests a convergence of universal and particular processes, components, and skills in conflict resolution training.

Some Keys to Evaluation as Learning

A summary of key ideas emergent from the seminar "Strategic and Responsive Evaluation of Peacebuilding" shared with the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding in November 2001.