This book shifts the focus of peacebuilding away from nation-states and international organisations to make a powerful argument that sustainable peacebuilding is the work of ordinary people. It brings together work done in Gaza, Ghana, Mexico, Morocco and Zimbabwe, alongside work with refugees in Scotland, to argue for a place for successful intercultural relations as a central aim of peacebuilding, moving beyond the more usual focus on economic development. With a particular emphasis on addressing gender-based violence and the role of women in peacebuilding, together with a central role for arts and culture as a means of resistance and social change, the chapters represent the fruit of collaborative work across geographical and cultural borders, between artists, activists and academics, bringing a wide range of disciplinary perspectives to bear on situations of violence and precarity. In a world where peace work can feel increasingly futile, this book makes a powerful case for the crucial role of local action and cultural work and play in the creation of a better future.  

The book will be open access under a CC BY ND licence.

This important book highlights the vital role of cultural rights and gender equality in sustainable peace, drawing on decolonising and restorative paradigms to create cultures of peace using the arts. It offers original conceptualisations and theorisations of methods used to sustain cultures of peace in contexts of extreme violence and precarity in the Global South. * Francis B. Nyamnjoh, University of Cape Town, South Africa *
I wholeheartedly endorse this important collection. It provides compelling testimonials from women in patriarchal communities around the world who have suffered under gender-based violence against women, but who have found a way through creative arts to gain voice and visibility and fight for sustainable peace. It deserves to be read, shared and discussed! * Hans Ladegaard, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University *
This book unpacks the complex nature of 'peace' through a decolonial lens by shifting power, voice, and agency in knowledge production to the Global South. The contextual stories demonstrate how diverse cultures of the Global South apply their own experiences of language, music, dance, poetry, and drama to create and sustain peace. * Mary Setrana, University of Ghana *

In this edited collection, Hyab Teklehaimanot Yohannes, Alison Phipps, and Tawona Sitholé draw together a series of compelling chapters which raise challenging, but deeply necessary, questions and affirmations on the kinds of contributions and capacities that cultural interventions are poised to make in response to violence in all its articulations.

Hyab Teklehaimanot Yohannes is a Lecturer in Forced Migration and Decolonial Education with the UNESCO Chair for Refugee Integration through Education, Languages, and Arts at the University of Glasgow, Scotland.

Alison Phipps holds the UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Education, Languages and Arts at the University of Glasgow, where she is also Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies and Co-convener of Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network (GRAMNET).

Tawona Sitholé is a Lecturer in Creative Practice Education with the UNESCO Chair for Refugee Integration through Education, Languages, and Arts at the University of Glasgow, Scotland.