Participating in the 2025 CSO-UN Dialogue on Peacebuilding in Geneva was a profound reminder that the pursuit of peace is as much about systems as it is about people.

With over 200 participants from more than 90 countries, the Dialogue brought together civil society actors such as grassroots peacebuilders and youth representatives, together with United Nations officials. The event’s theme, “Operationalizing a Whole-of-System Approach to Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace,” spoke to the need for coherence across local, national, and global spheres; and it confirmed that many of the most complex challenges of our age need to be addressed within a framework that recognizes the need for integration at various levels and the fundamental unity of humankind.

In a world of interconnected crises, efforts to prevent conflict and sustain peace cannot function in isolation. They must be coordinated, adaptive, and grounded in the lived realities of communities everywhere. This idea reaffirmed that peace is built not as separate elements but as an integrated whole—requiring levels of engagement and cooperation that humanity is yet to attain.  

Throughout the Dialogue, the importance of local-to-global connectivity repeatedly surfaced. Participants emphasized that peacebuilding strategies must be rooted in local experience, while also linked to multilateral frameworks that work across borders. This includes strengthening channels for systematic engagement between communities, civil society networks, and the UN system, so that local knowledge shapes policy and policy sustains local efforts with adequate resources and legitimacy. Frustrations with fragmented systems of coordination were voiced, yet so was the conviction that a more robust whole-of-system approach could address these gaps, if institutional mechanisms were reoriented towards genuine partnership.

One theme that was mentioned several times at the Dialogue was concern on whether peacebuilding is being overshadowed by militarization and defense priorities. Various panelists expressed that, while the rhetoric for peace remains strong, actual investments, financially and institutionally, often favor security over sustainable peace efforts. Other recurring topics included engagement of youth throughout the process of decision-making, and improving mechanisms for implementation of the peacebuilding architecture. In the discussions at the Dialogue, peacebuilding was seen as proactive, participatory, and rooted in trust, not reactive or top-down.

These themes raise a range of important questions. How can the UN better support responses tailored to local conditions? How can trust in national and international institutions be rebuilt? And how can resources, knowledge, and lived experience flow both from communities to global policymaking and back again? Such questions should be at the heart of continued discussions following up on the Dialogue.

The focus on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) reminded me of how closely justice and unity are tied in peacebuilding. These frameworks insist that peace is not possible when half of humanity is marginalized or when young people are excluded from decisions that shape their futures.

What comes to my mind is the vision that “justice demands universal participation,” a principle rooted in the Bahá’í teachings, which emphasize that society progresses only when all have the opportunity to contribute to its advancement. 

Central to a framework oriented towards building and sustaining peace are concepts and methods of capacity-building, consultation, and the integration of knowledge and action at all levels of society—concepts which Bahá’í communities and many others are learning about around the world today.

These principles resonated with the Dialogue’s emphasis on trust, local ownership, and coherent systems of engagement. Participants from different localities and experiences engaged in discussions reflecting elements of these very principles: building on one anothers’ insights, pairing local experience with policy recommendations, and calling for institutional reforms that honor the dignity and agency of communities.

As we look toward next steps in the peacebuilding architecture, these elements, rooted in justice, unity, and participation, will be indispensable for translating commitments into a lasting peace.

Desta Mesbah

Bahá’í International Community Delegate to the 2025 CSO-UN Dialogue on Peacebuilding