CONSTRUCTIUNG TAILORED STRATEGIES
Peacegaming
The Principles for Peace Foundation (P4P) is developing Peacegaming as a tool to enhance mediation and conflict resolution skills. Peacegaming involves tailored strategies for different actors involved in peace processes.
Peacegaming is an innovative, interactive learning methodology designed to tackle the complexities of peace and conflict situations. By simulating real-world scenarios, participants engage in structured role-playing exercises while representing various stakeholders like governments, armed groups, and civil societies.
P4P produces Peacegaming exercises, such as semi-fictional recreation of a peace review process,
to enable participants to identify and analyse the underlying causes and missed opportunities in peace agreements. This method serves as a practical platform for mediation practitioners to apply the principles for peace, using them as a lens to critically assess and improve their approaches for building sustainable peace.
This approach allows them to deeply understand conflict dynamics, fostering a hands-on experience in conflict resolution and peacebuilding strategies. The immersive nature of peacegaming enables participants to experiment with decision-making processes, analyse conflict elements, and explore multifaceted solutions in a risk-free environment.
Peacegaming versions
Peacegame versions, in partnership with Crisis Simulation for Peace (CRISP):
Mediator’s edition
Aims to support conflict mediation work and help mediators build the foundations for sustainable peace.
Security actor’s edition
Geared towards security experts, this version put the emphasis on assessing and ensuring accountable security provision.
International community edition
Aiming to break up the black box of regional conflict by introducing key international actors that influence events on a global scale.
Military officer training edition
Adapted for the specific purpose of training military officers in countries experiencing low levels of security accountability
GUIDANCE AND CONCRETE STEPS
What accompaniment looks like
P4P is developing a series of “playbooks” to guide various stakeholder groups —including institutional peacebuilding partners, mediators, security actors, parliamentarians, the diplomatic community, the business sector, women and youth peacebuilders, civil society organisations, etc. — in their peace engagements.
These playbooks are designed as flexible frameworks for action, offering practical insights and strategies tailored to specific peacemaking contexts and stages. Developed through a co-creative process with experts and affected communities, the playbooks aim to adapt and evolve, reflecting continual learning and the dynamic nature of peacebuilding.
Security sector actors
The P4P playbook for security sector actors, developed in collaboration with Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance, is a dynamic resource designed to guide security sector actors in supporting peacemaking efforts across various contexts and stages. The playbook emphasises the application of the Principles for Peace as a flexible guide and diagnostic tool, helping these actors navigate challenges in areas such as security sector governance and reform and disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration, as well as in broader peacebuilding processes.
The playbook aims to assist security sector actors in understanding their role in peacemaking, highlighting strategies for ending violence, supporting political transitions, and participating in dialogues. It acknowledges the complexity of peacemaking, urging actors to adopt an ecosystem approach and recognising their impact within the broader peacebuilding context.
Developed through a consultative process, the playbook is co-created with practitioners, policymakers, and affected communities, ensuring it is grounded in practical experience and responsive to current challenges and successes in the field.
Parliamentarians
The P4P playbook for parliamentarians, developed in partnership with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, is designed to enhance their role in peacemaking efforts. Focusing on the unique contributions of parliamentarians in peace processes, the playbook provides strategies that align with P4P Principles and addresses their roles in implementing peace agreements, supporting transitional justice, and promoting national dialogue.
The playbook aims to empower them to effectively support peacemaking initiatives. It explores their unique roles and responsibilities in peace processes, offering practical advice on leveraging parliamentary functions for peacemaking and addressing challenges, such as democratic backsliding and the risk of parliaments acting as obstacles to peace.
The playbook also explores the use of parliamentary functions in peacebuilding, including legislative, oversight, and diplomatic roles. It acknowledges the challenges and opportunities parliamentarians face in global peace processes and aims to offer practical and innovative guidance for effective engagement in diverse conflict-affected settings.
This initiative was highlighted at the IPU General Assembly in November 2023, marking a significant step in the collaboration between P4P and IPU to empower parliamentarians in their crucial role in peacemaking efforts worldwide.
