Environmental Peacebuilding and Communities

Date & Time
Jun 9, 2026 | 7.00 - 8.30

Link
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_zj5Vrt50Se6O56-ZJn49jg

Participants
Chair: Celestine Procter, King’s College London (United Kingdom)
Johanna Garnett, University of New England - Armidale (Australia)
Zainab Nuhu, Bayero University, Kano (Nigeria)
Farah El Dessouky, Independent (Egypt)

This panel centers community voices, agency, and locally grounded solutions in environmental peacebuilding processes. The various models highlighted provide examples of alternative and community-led development approaches that bring to the fore the voices of community members that are often overlooked or silenced. For example, in Myanmar, a grassroots youth organization emphasizes localized action, environmental adult education, and permaculture-based approaches that address ecological violence while fostering long-term reimagining of human–environment relationships. Another approach utilizes the “community loop” model to demonstrate the role of local communities as arbiters of change, particularly through the mobilization of labor in addressing plastic pollution in the Nile and promoting circular economy principles. The panel also highlights transdisciplinary, participatory approaches that use arts-based practices to surface unspoken views and foster cross-group understanding.

Future Imaginaries: Grassroots Environmental Peace in Post-coup Myanmar

Johanna Garnett, University of New England - Armidale (Australia)

The Citizen Lab Initiative of the Prosperity and Peace Pathways Project

Zainab Nuhu, Bayero University, Kano (Nigeria)

Closing the Loop: Community-Led Plastic Recovery and Social Peace on the Nile

Farah El Dessouky, Independent (Egypt)