Peacebuilders Volunteer Position Summary

The International Center for Ethno-Religious Mediation (ICERMediation) is launching the Living Together Movement to promote civic engagement and collective action. Focused on nonviolence, justice, diversity, and equity, Living Together Movement will address cultural divisions as well as promote conflict resolution and peacemaking, which are the values and goals of the ICERMediation.

Through the Living Together Movement, our goal is to repair our society’s divisions, one conversation at a time. By offering a space and opportunity to have meaningful, honest, and safe discussions that bridge gaps of race, gender, ethnicity, or religion, the project allows for a moment of transformation in a world of binary thinking and hateful rhetoric. Taken on a large scale, the possibilities for repairing our society’s ills in this way are immense. In order to make this happen, we are launching a web and mobile app that will allow meetings to be organized, planned, and hosted in communities across the country.

Who are we?

ICERMediation is a 501 c 3 nonprofit organization in a special consultative relationship with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). Based in White Plains, New York, ICERMediation is dedicated to identifying racial, ethnic and religious conflicts, working on prevention, strategizing solutions, and bringing together resources to support peace in nations around the world. Collaborating with a roster of practitioners, experts, and leaders in the space of conflict, mediation, and peacebuilding, ICERMediation looks to build ties between and among ethnic and religious groups to maintain or develop conditions of peace and de-escalate conflict. The Living Together Movement is a project of ICERMediation that aims to embody those goals in a nation-wide, community engagement effort.

The problem

Our society is growing increasingly divided. With greater proportions of our day-to-day lives spent online, the misinformation that finds its way through echo chambers on social media has the power to shape our worldview. Trends of hatred, fear, and tension have come to define our era, as we watch a divided world split even further apart on the news, on our devices, and in the social media content that we consume. Set against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic where individuals have been locked indoors and isolated from those beyond the borders of their immediate community, it often feels like as a society, we have forgotten how to treat each other as fellow humans and have lost the compassionate and empathetic spirit that unites us as a global community.

Our goal

To combat these current conditions, the Living Together Movement aims to provide a space and outlet for people to understand one another and come to mutual understandings rooted in compassion. Our mission is rooted in:

• Educating ourselves about our differences
• Cultivating mutual understanding and empathy
• Building trust while dispelling fear and hatred
• Living together in peace and saving our planet for future generations

How will community peacebuilders achieve these goals? 

The Living Together Movement project will host regular dialogue sessions by offering a place for city residents to gather. In order to rollout this opportunity on a national scale, we need part time volunteers who will serve as Community Peacebuilders, organize, plan, and host the Living Together Movement meetings in communities across the country. Volunteer Community Peacebuilders will be trained in ethno-religious mediation and intercultural communication as well as given an orientation on how to organize, plan and host the Living Together Movement meeting. We seek volunteers skilled in or with interests in group facilitation, dialogue, community organizing, civic engagement, civic action, deliberative democracy, nonviolence, conflict resolution, conflict transformation, conflict prevention, etc.

By providing a space for raw and honest conversations, compassion, and empathy, the project will celebrate diversity while achieving a goal of building bridges across individual differences in our society. Participants will listen to the stories of fellow residents, learn about other points of view and life experiences, and get the chance to speak about their own ideas. Combined with featured talks from invited experts each week, all participants will learn to practice non-judgmental listening while working to develop common points of view that can be used to organize collective action.

How will these meetings work?

Each meeting will be broken down into sections that include:

• Opening remarks
• Music, food, and poetry
• Group mantras
• Talks and Q&A with guest experts
• General discussion
• Group brainstorms about collective action

We know that food is not only a great way to provide an atmosphere of bonding and conversation, but it is also a great way to access different cultures. Hosting the Living Together Movement forums in cities and towns across the country will allow each group to incorporate local food of a variety of ethnic backgrounds into their meetings. By working with and promoting local restaurants, participants will expand their horizons and community network while the project simultaneously benefits local businesses.

Plus, the poetry and music facet of each meeting allows Living Together Movement to interact with local communities, education centers, and artists by featuring a diverse range of work that explores heritage to promote preservation, exploration, education, and artistic talent.

Other projects from International Center for Ethno-Religious Mediation

Because of the ICERMediation’s experience working in this sector, Living Together Movement promises to be an effective and successful campaign project that will garner participation across the country. Here are some of the other projects from ICERMediation:

• Ethno-Religious Mediation Training: Upon completion, individuals are equipped with the theoretical and practical tools to manage and resolve ethno-religious conflict, as well as analyze and design solutions and policies.
• International conferences: At the annual conference, experts, scholars, researchers, and practitioners speak and meet to discuss conflict resolution and peacebuilding on a global scale.
• World Elders Forum: As an international platform for traditional rulers and indigenous leaders, the forum encourages leaders to build synergies that not only express the experiences of indigenous peoples, but also bring about modes of conflict resolution.
• The Journal of Living Together: We publish a peer-reviewed academic journal of articles that reflect various aspects of peace and conflict studies.
• ICERMediation Membership: Our network of leaders, experts, practitioners, students and organizations, represent the broadest possible views and expertise from the field of ethnic, racial and religious conflict, interfaith, interethnic or interracial dialogue and mediation, and plays a vital role in promoting a culture of peace among ethnic, racial and religious groups.

Important Notice: Compensation

This is a part time volunteer position. Compensation will be based on experience and performance, and will be negotiated at the start of the program.

Instructions:

Selected Volunteer Community Peacebuilders should be ready to participate in ethno-religious mediation and intercultural communication trainings. They should also be open to receive an orientation on how to organize, plan and host the Living Together Movement meeting in their communities.

Requirements:

Applicants must have a college degree in any field of study and experience in community organizing, nonviolence, dialogue, and diversity and inclusion.