Dear friends,

Greetings. If your work and interest is focussed on peaceful change, under whatever heading, the attached Letter to Peacebuilders is for you.

We believe there is, at this moment, a window of opportunity for transformative peacebuilding to come of age, to be taken seriously by governments, social movements and business alike. While many injustices and conflicts across the world continue to resist conventional, often militarised solutions, environmental factors are introducing an additional and increasingly devastating new element for the future. There is a clear and urgent need for fresh approaches. However, the international peace and development community is in our view not currently capable of taking this opportunity. It is not simply a question of size or resources. Despite all the achievements to date, we believe much well intentioned work may be largely irrelevant to the change that is needed, at both local and global levels.

The Letter sets out the situation as we see it. It is informed by our own, varied experience and the voices and views of many organisations and colleagues we have worked with in different parts of the world. While we make a number of practical proposals as to what can be done, we are aware how limited these inevitably are. We hope that this Letter will stimulate conversations and encourage new and imaginative thinking, out of which fresh initiatives will come.

Please take time to read it, and to discuss it with colleagues. We hope you will send it on to others who may be interested. We invite you to leave your comments on the website, or write us at lettertopeacebuilders@gmail.com. Please tell us if anything you write should be treated in confidence.

Would you be interested in taking some of this thinking further, and turning aspects of it into action?

With warm wishes,

Simon Fisher and Lada Zimina

March 2008