Peace Cafe

The Peace Café is a signature event series of the IHEID Peacebuilding Initiative (PBI), offering a unique platform where students can engage directly with experienced peacebuilders. It serves as an informal, yet impactful, space for discussion and learning. The Café sessions focus on current trends in peacebuilding, allowing students to stay updated on evolving challenges and approaches in the field.

What makes the Peace Café particularly valuable is the personal interaction it fosters between students and practitioners. Peacebuilders share their own experiences and personal stories, providing insights that go beyond academic learning. This approach gives students not only knowledge but also wisdom drawn from real-world peacebuilding efforts.

The special edition, part of Geneva Peace Week 2024, enhances this experience further by situating the discussions within the broader context of global peace efforts. The goal is to inspire and equip future peacebuilders with the tools and perspectives needed to navigate the complex field of peace and conflict resolution.

This edition is a special opportunity for participants to connect their classroom learning to real-world application, network with professionals, and reflect on their own potential roles as peacebuilders.

Speakers

• Janine Bressmer, is The New Humanitarian’s Impact Editor, where she
focuses on empowering ethical journalism. She holds a PhD in
International Relations from the Geneva Graduate Institute,
where her research on humanitarian security management in
Ethiopia and Switzerland highlighted how security practices
perpetuate colonial legacies and result in exclusions and
violence within urban landscapes. In her work she advocates for inclusive
methodologies that challenge the colonial
gaze and aims to empower marginalised
voices in shaping alternative narratives. She
has collaborated with photojournalists on
aid security practices in Addis Ababa and
has consulted for organisations such as the
ILO and OCHA in Burkina Faso, Colombia
and Ethiopia.

Moderator

• Vedika Pillai, Masters Candidate at the Geneva Graduate Institute

Live streaming and interpretation

This event is only offered in-person without interpretation

Main Organizers

• Student Peacebuilding Initiative
• The FAB Geneva Graduate Institute