Peace that is sustainable needs to be nurtured—deeply rooted in communities through long-term commitment and efforts that foster inclusive dialogue, promote justice and reconciliation, and address the root causes of conflict. Grounded in consistency, integrity, and accountability, these foundations make peace resilient to withstand future challenges and support stable, thriving societies, even in the most difficult circumstances.
- Can effectively communicate in English (oral and written)
- Have at least two years of experience in peacebuilding or related areas of development or human rights
- Able to clearly outline objectives/strategies for applying the lessons and skills learned from the training to one’s work situation or specific context in a Statement of Intent (to be completed in the Application Form)
- Able and committed to fully participate in the courses
- Open to dialogue with people of other faiths and cultures
- Complete the ONLINE APPLICATION FORM (preferred) or DOWNLOAD THE FILLABLE APPLICATION FORM and upload it along with the required documents listed in item #2 at https://www.mpiasia.net/mpi2026docupload.
- Submit the following required documents:
- Curriculum Vitae/Résumé
- Letter of Recommendation
- A copy of your Passport ID Page (for international participants)
- A copy of your Philippine Visa Page (for international participants living/working in the Philippines)
- ONLY FULLY ACCOMPLISHED APPLICATIONS WITH COMPLETE DOCUMENTS WILL BE PROCESSED. The deadline for receipt of discounted-fee applications is March 20, 2026, and for regular applications is April 20, 2026. Applications not completed by the deadlines will be automatically canceled.
- Once your application is reviewed by MPI, you will receive an ACCEPTANCE LETTER and a BILLING STATEMENT, which will be sent either to you for individual payment or to your sponsoring organization, if applicable.
- Upon receipt of your full payment, you will receive a CONFIRMATION LETTER securing your spot in the training. ACCEPTANCE ONLY MEANS YOU HAVE A TENTATIVE SLOT IN THE COURSE(S). RESERVATION and CONFIRMATION of your slot will only follow once your full payment has been received by MPI.
TRAINING COURSES
WEEK 1: MAY 18 – 22, 2026 (FOUNDATION & THEMATIC COURSES)
Education can be a powerful community ally in the quest for a culture of peace. But what is it about education that offers such a wide range of resources to those who seek just and peaceful societies? In this course, we will explore ways to harness the capacity of education to support peace efforts.
Participants will experience the power of education to shape and change the lives of all ages through fun and participatory learning activities. Exploring the concepts and components of teaching and learning, participants will design their own age-appropriate and contextual educational plan for teaching peace. Numerous examples and case studies of peace education will be highlighted to give participants ideas for their own designs. Of particular focus will be the use of conventional and recent technological innovation tools, especially AI, in educating for peace.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
This course is tailored for participants who are interested in harnessing the power of education for peace. Participants from any sector, background, and/or any education level are welcome to join.
This course explores the concepts of conflict, violence, and peace, starting from participants’ cultures and lived experiences, and compares these with established theories. It will present the fundamentals of conflict sensitivity, conflict transformation, and peacebuilding as frameworks or lenses for dealing with conflict dynamics in society. It will also offer foundational skills for analyzing conflict and provide space for participants to learn from each other’s contexts and explore ways to unravel conflict using a conflict-sensitive and transformative lens.
This course will provide participants with fresh lenses to view the work they have been doing on the ground, which they might not have considered to be a peacebuilding work, and to allow them to rethink or redesign their interventions. The course will make use of highly participatory methodologies ranging from group discussions, role plays, simulations, arts, and interactive lectures.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
Ideal for those who are entering the work of peacebuilding for the first time or those who have been working with or in conflict-affected communities but have little or no exposure to frameworks and theories. This is also ideal for those who want a refresher of the basic concepts or those who have already taken conflict transformation or peacebuilding training but would like to augment this with conflict sensitivity.
This course provides a comprehensive exploration of the historical and contemporary causes and conditions of conflict and violence. It introduces participants to the essential concepts and frameworks of strategic peacebuilding, equipping them with the skills necessary to navigate and transform complex conflicts in our rapidly evolving world. The course emphasizes the norms and values that underpin strategic peacebuilding efforts, particularly the ability to assess ‘horizontal’ and ‘vertical’ capacities for community-enabled, systems-responsive, and policy-oriented conflict transformation and reconciliation. The course will guide participants in developing their own contextualized frameworks and applying these principles within their own organizations and/or communities.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
This course is for individuals with experience in peacebuilding and/or non-violent activism, community development, humanitarian support, social welfare, justice, and local governance.
PREREQUISITE
Those who have completed MPI's foundational courses, such as Foundations of Peacebuilding (FPB), Introduction to Conflict Transformation (ICT), and/or related foundational courses or training on peacebuilding, social cohesion, and other relevant fields.
In our ever-changing world, where digital spaces increasingly shape the dynamics of peace and conflict, peace practitioners and advocates must learn to navigate these complexities with confidence, ethics, and creativity. This course provides the skills to strategically apply basic digital tools for storytelling, conflict analysis, and transformation. By merging theoretical insights and practical applications, participants will examine how digital strategies can influence conflicts and how peacebuilders can intervene with empathy and integrity. The course covers interconnected topics such as Understanding the Digital Landscape, Digital Nonviolent Communication (NVC), Online Tools for Conflict Analysis, Digital Safety, and Impactful Digital Storytelling.
By the end of the course, participants will emerge with enhanced analytical and communication skills that can showcase how technology can serve as a bridge for peace rather than a battleground for division.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
This course is ideal for peacebuilding practitioners and advocates working in or with conflict-affected communities, particularly those who fall into one of the following categories:
(1) individuals with practical experience but limited exposure to the frameworks of Digital Peacebuilding, and (2) those seeking to review core concepts and integrate a conflict-sensitive approach into their digital work.
PREREQUISITE
A foundational understanding of peacebuilding is required, completion of courses such as Introduction to Conflict Transformation (ICT), Fundamentals of Peacebuilding (FPB), Media, Communication, and Peacebuilding (MCPB), a similar course, or equivalent professional experience.
WEEK 2: MAY 25 – 29, 2026 (THEMATIC COURSES)
This course will strengthen participants' capacity to nurture, sustain, restore, and regenerate the varied relationships between people and their socio-ecological environments. Participants will explore the nexus between forms of violence, ecological harm, and climate in justice using reflexive peacebuilding and critical restorative praxis frameworks. Interactive case studies and group work will be used to identify, develop, and deploy contextualized strategies for mapping, assessing, and transforming these challenges. We will draw on learnings from micro and macro-level initiatives such as environmental peacebuilding, community-based renewables, carbon justice, restorative compensation, and climate health with an emphasis on Asia and Pacific contexts.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
This course is tailored for peacebuilding practitioners, humanitarian workers, academics, climate justice advocates, and those participants passionate about preserving and nurturing our socio-ecological environment and the planet. It offers insights and practical tools to foster resilience, sustainability, and collaborative action in addressing the interconnected challenges of social and ecological well-being.
PREREQUISITE
Participants who have previously completed MPI's foundational courses such as Fundamentals of Peacebuilding (FPB), Introduction to Conflict Transformation (ICT), From Understanding to Action: Designing Conflict Sensitive Interventions (FUA), Understanding Grassroots Environmental Peace (UGEP) and/or with an equivalent experience in peacebuilding, environmental peace, and climate justice, are welcome to join to deepen their expertise and contribute to a collaborative learning environment.
There are many considerations when designing a peacebuilding program. From violence reduction to inter-religious dialogue, from restorative justice initiatives to the culture of peace curriculum in schools, all these efforts have similarities in design. This course is for beginners and experienced practitioners alike, covering concepts, skills, and relevant contextual considerations. Special emphasis will be placed on monitoring and evaluation to ensure sustainability and success.
Just like the gardener plans, tends, and evaluates their crops, this course will take participants through the steps of carefully designing and planning their own peace program. From inception to final evaluations, by the end of the course, participants will have developed their own plan.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
This course is tailored for participants wanting to design their own peace program. Regardless of design complexity, experience with peacebuilding, or knowledge of peace frameworks, all participants are welcome in this course.
PREREQUISITE
Participants who have previously completed MPI's foundational courses such as Fundamentals of Peacebuilding (FPB), Introduction to Conflict Transformation (ICT), From Understanding to Action: Designing Conflict Sensitive Interventions (FUA), Understanding Grassroots Environmental Peace (UGEP) and/or with an equivalent experience in peacebuilding, environmental peace, and climate justice, are welcome to join to deepen their expertise and contribute to a collaborative learning environment.
This course focuses on increasing knowledge and confidence for strengthening relationships, improving understanding, and rebuilding community and interpersonal relationships toward sustainable peace in conflicted contexts affected by conflicts, social divisions, or experiencing violence and injustice. Opportunities for change occur when people in divided communities come together to engage in meaningful conversations that will lead to mutually beneficial and win-win solutions. This course will introduce participants to a variety of conflict resolution skills and approaches that are potentially capable of enhancing relationships that are under stress. The course will explore the theory and practice of different conflict resolution methods — with an emphasis on processes that build on mediation and dialogue.
Sessions will focus on conceptual frameworks, processes, and the practice of conflict resolution skills. Participants will practice some basic techniques to help them develop their personal style and build confidence. Teaching methodologies will encompass large and small group discussions, role plays, interactive exercises, practitioner experiential sharing, and case analyses.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
This course is intended for those interested in Conflict Resolution Skills, community leaders, peace and development workers, academe, justpeace advocates, and humanitarian and/or social workers. This is also open to other fields enthusiastic about deepening knowledge in conflict resolution skills.
PREREQUISITE
Introduction to Conflict Transformation (ICT), Fundamentals of Peacebuilding (FPB), Introduction to Peacebuilding Theory and Practice (IPTP), or an equivalent course/experience.
This course is designed to provide participants with a thorough overview of the complex issues of trauma and healing, and the nurturance of resilience within socio-historical and cultural contexts. Participants will explore the interdisciplinary processes: social-psychological-economic-political-neurobiological-physical-spiritual, of responding to deep personal loss, pain, and suffering in settings of protracted, violent conflict, including natural disasters, as well as examine recently developed approaches in healing individuals and communities as they move from destruction, violence, and war to justpeace. Participants will explore the theoretical bases through narratives and case examples from a variety of local, national, and international settings and engage in practical exercises to demonstrate approaches to trauma recovery, considering individual and societal resilience. This course specifically aims to integrate trauma healing into the larger peacebuilding and conflict resolution/transformation field, since unhealed trauma often perpetuates the cycle of violence and victimization. It is expected that participants will bring a general understanding of these issues and be prepared to address them theoretically and practically. Competencies highlighted in this course include well-being, global understanding, communication (oral and other creative expressions), reflective and critical thinking, group collaboration, civic engagement, and mindfulness.
PREFERRED PARTICIPANTS
The course is open to all participants, given their practice background or the absence thereof.
PREREQUISITE
There are no prerequisites to register for the course other than a mindful presence and a willingness to engage in learning activities and learn from one another, bringing with them their field and knowledge-based experience.
WEEK 3: MAY 31 – JUNE 5, 2026 (FIELD-BASED COURSE)
This course recognizes and affirms that transformative peacebuilding must be rooted in the cultural realities and lived experiences of the communities it seeks to serve. It is grounded in the conviction that peace is most sustainable when it is locally owned, culturally grounded, and spiritually meaningful.
The field-based course will be held within the ancestral domain of the Talaandig Tribe in Bukidnon Province, in Mindanao, an Indigenous community renowned both locally and globally for preserving their cultural identity through music, dance, visual arts, oral tradition, and customary laws. This field-based course offers an opportunity for participants to learn directly from Indigenous knowledge keepers in a space where tradition and peace are deeply intertwined.
Through immersive, communal learning, respectful intercultural and reflective dialogue, and living with host families in the community, participants will explore how Indigenous ways and creative expression serve as a powerful vehicle for conflict transformation, community cohesion, progress, and healing from historical injustices. By honoring Indigenous wisdom and embracing the power of cultural and artistic expression, this course contributes to a broader, more inclusive peacebuilding paradigm, one that values diversity, restores dignity, and nurtures healing of the past in ways that are both deeply rooted and forward-looking.
PREREQUISITE
Participants who have previously completed MPI's foundational courses, such as Fundamentals of Peacebuilding (FPB), Introduction to Conflict Transformation (ICT), From Understanding to Action: Designing Conflict Sensitive Interventions (FUA), Foundations of Conflict Transformation and Sensitivity (FCST), and/or equivalent experience
FACILITATORS
MICHAEL FRANK “MIKE” A. ALAR (Philippines) is an independent consultant on conflict transformation, dialogues, and peace processes. He currently consults for the World Bank Philippines, particularly in support of the Mindanao Peace Process as part of its Fragility, Conflict, and Violence team.
For more than 20 years, Mike has worked, studied, and volunteered in the peace field in countries that have included Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, and Turkey. In the Philippines, he was a consultant for the United Nations Population Fund on Youth, Peace and Security, and a Project Manager for the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue Philippines, where he provided capacity-building opportunities and technical support to Mindanao Peace Process stakeholders. Mike also worked for the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process of the Philippine Government, where he designed and facilitated trainings on peace and conflict for civil society organizations, local government units, the security sector, and government offices such as the Bangsamoro Development Agency.
Mike holds an MA in International Peace Studies from Japan, an advanced specialist degree in Peace and Development Studies from Spain, a diploma in Islamic Studies and Interfaith Relations from India, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Silliman University in Dumaguete City, Philippines.
MIKE
CHARMAINE MAE “XX” J. DAGAPIOSO- BACONGA (Philippines) is a peace-builder with experience in peace education, community-based mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), participatory governance, and the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS). She serves as a peace facilitator, trainer, and community worker, collaborating across diverse sectors—from community-based organiza-tions and civil society groups to non-state actors, government institutions, military and police units, and international organizations.
Her peacebuilding journey began as a Church Volunteer and SIAD Organizer with Balay Mindanaw and continues through her training and volunteer work with the Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute, Mediators Beyond Borders International, and Action Asia. Currently, she is finding her way through as a volunteer and is deeply grateful for the meaningful relationships, learnings, and shared efforts toward healing, justice, and inclusive peace that have shaped her vocation.
CHARMAINE
MAY CHE CAPILI (Philippines) is a development communicator and advocacy specialist with over a decade of experience in peacebuilding, public policy, and stakeholder management. Her expertise focuses on the critical nexus of climate justice and conflict transformation, informed by extensive research and community work in conflict-affected Mindanao.
May Che brings practical knowledge in integrating sustainable resource management into corporate and community relations. She is highly skilled in building multi-sectoral coalitions across civil society, local governments, and local communities to advance conflict-sensitive economic governance and inclusive peace policies.
MAY CHE
AL FUERTES (Philippines) is a teacher-field practitioner, and consultant who specializes in community-based psychosocial trauma healing as an integral component in peacebuilding and conflict resolution and transformation. He travels extensively around the world, particularly in places affected by war, armed conflict, and natural disasters. Al’s areas of interest are facilitation and dialog, global education, psychosocial trauma healing, conflict resolution and transformation, theology of struggle, anti-human trafficking, and displacement issues. He works with government, religious, military, and community leaders, as well as NGO development workers, school administrators, teachers, youth, refugees, and internally displaced persons. He has taught and facilitated for several years at the Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI), the Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute (MPI), and the Northeast Asia Regional Peacebuilding Institute (NARPI). Al’s current research projects include Forgiveness and reconciliation teaching pedagogies in Rwanda; Voluntary repatriation of Karen refugees back to Burma; Prosecution and conviction of human trafficking cases in the Philippines; and Peacebuilding in Sri Lanka, post-conflict.
Al is a recipient of the 2023 George Mason University Life Partnership Award and was granted the 2020 Inspiration Award by the Centreville Immigration Forum (CIF) in Virginia, in recognition of his contributions and service to the community. He is also a recipient of the 2019 Global Peacebuilder Award by the Daniel Fissell Music Foundation, the 2019 Outstanding Sillimanian Award for his work in peacebuilding and conflict transformation, the 2015 Spirit of Martin Luther King Award, the 2014 Oscar Mentoring Excellence Award, the 2008 GMU Teaching Excellence Award and the 2001 AT&T Asia-Pacific Leadership Award.
AL
MARIA IDA “DENG” GIGUIENTO (Philippines) is one of the two recipients of the 2015 Tanenbaum Peacemaker in Action Award. This was given in recognition of her work in interreligious dialogue in Mindanao, Philippines, and Timor-Leste. She is also a recipient of the 2018 Peace Weaver Award, a yearly recognition for those who contribute to building peace in Mindanao. Her past experiences included being the Peacebuilding Training Coordinator for Catholic Relief Services (CRS)-Philippines from 2005-2018, and a member of the Project Reference Group for a curriculum development project involving best practices of civil society working with security forces to improve human security. She also served as the Director of the Peace Education Center of Notre Dame University in Cotabato City from 1995-1999.
A grassroots peacebuilder from the Philippines, Deng has dedicated nearly three decades using the conflict transformation paradigm in working with partners in Mindanao and post-independent Timor-Leste. From 1999-2004, she worked on post-conflict peacebuilding among Timorese youth, women, and former non-state actors. As a practitioner, Deng has trained students, teachers, school administrators, religious leaders, civil society groups, military officials and non-state actors in peacebuilding concepts and skills development. With MPI, she has been a facilitator from 2000-2017. After taking a short break, Deng is now back facilitating courses at MPI.
DENG
WENDY KROEKER (Canada) is the Director of the Canadian School of Peacebuilding and Associate Professor of Peace and Conflict Transformation Studies at Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg, Canada. Wendy has over 30 years of experience as a community mediator, conflict transformation trainer, peace program manager, and program manager for international development projects. In addition to many years living in the Philippines, Wendy has worked over the past two decades with indigenous groups, NGO staff, community and religious leaders, and various educators in such places as Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Myanmar, and Palestine.
After significant years of practice within the conflict transformation field, she entered the Peace and Conflict Studies PhD program at the University of Manitoba, Canada, and completed it in June 2018. Her research focused on the space of local actors in building a culture of peace in Mindanao. As well, she holds a Certificate in Mediation and Conflict Resolution from the Resolution Skills Centre in Winnipeg and an MA in Theology focused on Contemporary Theology and Peace Studies. Wendy has taught at MPI since 2003.
WENDY
MYLA LEGURO (Philippines) holds an MA in Peace Studies from the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame in the USA. She has worked for Catholic Relief Services (CRS) since 1991 on peace and development projects in Mindanao. As the Program Manager of the Peace and Reconciliation Program of CRS-Philippines, Myla organized two major peacebuilding initiatives: the Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute in 2000 and the Grassroots Peace Learning Course in 2003.
She has worked as an international trainer in Timor-Leste and Nepal and has served as a resource person in various peacebuilding conferences in Colombia, Thailand, and the USA. In 2006, she was the first CRS-Kroc Visiting Fellow.
Myla holds the distinction of being one of the 1,000 women collectively nominated for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize. Myla has served as Program Director of a CRS global program on Advancing Interreligious Peacebuilding, an initiative that covered four interrelated projects on interreligious dialogue and cooperation in Egypt, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Niger, Nigeria, and the Philippines. She is currently the Technical Adviser II, Social Cohesion and Church Engagement for CRS in Cotabato City, Philippines.
MYLA
KARLOS MANLUPIG (Philippines) is a writer, photographer, and peacebuilder, has served as a correspondent at the Philippine Daily Inquirer since 2014. Recognized with awards like the Indigenous Voices in Asia 2014, he investigates and exposes human rights abuses against the Manobo indigenous people. He was honored at the International Photography Awards in 2015 for his work in the Deeper Perspective/Philippines category.
As Director of Balay Mindanaw Foundation, Inc., Karlos contributes to building empowered, sustainable communities and fostering peace in Mindanao. With an MA in Applied Conflict Transformation Studies from Pannasastra University of Cambodia and an MS in Clinical Psychology from Ateneo de Davao University, he actively engages in conflict analysis, peace education, resolution, and community empowerment.
KARLOS
MM Padmakumar “PK” (India) is an Associate Professor and the Head of the Department of Media Studies at CHRIST University, Bangalore, India. He has been a member of the Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences academia for the past 16 years. He holds a master’s degree in English, Literature, and Mass Communication. He earned his doctorate degree from CHRIST University, and his doctoral thesis was on the “Cultural Politics of Sports and Nationalism in Indian Popular Cinema.” He has worked as a journalist for the Deccan Chronicle, a daily newspaper in India.
PK has been promoting an academy-societal interface by conducting conferences, workshops, and field visits in areas related to ecology, interfaith dialogue, media literacy, and peace. He is an alumnus of the Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute and has done six courses related to different aspects of peace. PK believes in biocentric egalitarianism.
PK
KYOKO OKUMOTO (Japan) holds a PhD in the Arts and Literature from Kobe College Graduate School of Letters in Japan and an MA in Peace Studies from Lancaster University in the UK. She is a Professor of Peace Studies, Conflict Transformation, and Arts-based Approach to Peacebuilding Work at Osaka Jogakuin University (OJU), a women's university in Osaka, Japan, and is also a Dean of the OJU Graduate School of International Collaboration and Coexistence in the 21st Century.
Her research fields are conflict transformation, nonviolent intervention, facilitation and mediation, the arts, including literature and drama, and relations among the areas. She facilitates numerous peace training workshops at various places at all levels – from high school to university to elderly communities. With NGOs/CSOs such as Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute (MPI), Northeast Asia Regional Peacebuilding Institute (NARPI, a sister organisation of MPI), Peace Boat, Transcend, Nonviolent Peaceforce-Japan, Action Asia and IMPACT, Kyoko tries to explore ways to connect with other Asian—Northeast, Southeast and South Asian—communities, and beyond to build more peaceful societies where people can have creative dialogues among themselves and with their neighbors and communities. Kyoko is a devoted board member of the Peace Studies Association of Japan, where she served as the 25th President (January 2022 to December 2023).
KYOKO
JONATHAN “JON” E. RUDY (USA) is a global educator on the topics of human security, peace¬building, conflict transformation, and nonviolence. With more than 35 years of work in 30 countries in Asia and Africa, Jon’s recent training energies have gone toward human security and civil society. He is a 21-year veteran facilitator at the Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute and teaches regularly at the University of Hargeisa, Somaliland. Jon served as Peacemaker-in-Residence at Elizabethtown College’s Center for Global Understanding and Peacemaking from 2012-2019.
He was a Senior Fellow for Human Security at the Alliance for Peacebuilding and a Senior Fellow at the Social Enterprise Service Group as a subject-matter expert in peacebuilding. Jon is a Fulbright Specialist, having supported the peace studies program at the Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts in Pune, India, and is on the roster of UNDP ExpRes preapproved consultants in conflict resolution and peacebuilding. He is a core member of the Global Partners for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) Improving Practices Working Group.
Jon is a 2001 graduate of Eastern Mennonite Seminary and University in the USA with an MA in Religion and a Graduate Certificate in Conflict Transformation. He earned a Teaching for Higher Education Certificate from Temple University and has a BA in International Development, an AA in Industrial Arts, and a Minor in Communications from Bethel College in the USA.
Since COVID-19, Jon has facilitated Zoom-based peace education and human security-related trainings. Before the global shutdown, he facilitated workshops at the Initiatives of Change, Caux Forum on Just Governance for Human Security in Switzerland.
JON
JEREMY SIMONS (New Zealand) is a senior research fellow at the Te Ngāpara Centre for Restorative Practice, Victoria University of Wellington. From 2003 to 2008, he helped develop school-based restorative justice programs in Denver’s Public Schools. He worked in peacebuilding and transitional justice in Mindanao until 2017, and earned a PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies, focusing on Lumad Justice, in 2021.
He has over 20 years of experience as an educator, organizer, and community-oriented researcher. His current scholarship and research support restorative initiatives in education, justice sectors, and community contexts. Born and raised in the Philippines, he is curious about how culture interacts with restorative justice, peacebuilding, and community development.
Before moving to New Zealand, he spent 8 years in the southern Philippines as a trainer and accompanier alongside Indigenous, Muslim, and Christian dialogue experts. As part of a collaboration between community organisers, parents, and school leaders, he helped develop one of the first district-wide school-based restorative justice programs in Denver Public School in the early 2000s. He has facilitated victim-offender reconciliation programming, worked as a prison chaplain and jail outreach volunteer, and supports grassroots peace and transitional justice efforts.
JEREMY
FLORINA XAVIER (India) is the Regional Return and Reintegration Adviser of Act for Peace, where she is directly engaged with Sri Lankan refugees. She previously worked with refugees and internally displaced persons in Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan and held leadership positions in church-based organizations doing development and peacebuilding work. As a consultant, Florina has worked in the field of psychosocial support, which included training and intervention, gender-based violence and trauma healing training, and monitoring and evaluation workshops for international peacebuilding and faith-based organizations.
She has also served as the co-director of the Caux Scholars Program – Asia Plateau, which is a 21-day peacebuilding program held in Asia Plateau near Pune, India. In addition, Florina has also taught at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding and the Summer Peacebuilding Institute of Eastern Mennonite University, USA.
Florina holds a PhD in Social Work from Osmania University, an MA in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University, and an MA in Social Work from the University of Madras. A Fulbright scholar and an Oxford DfID fellow, she has constantly combined theory and praxis in her professional and academic life. Florina has taught at MPI since 2016.
