Reflective Structured Dialogue: A Dialogical Guide to Peace-building

Introduction

Background to the Development of this Guide

“Through this approach we will have more people in the stream of work that we do and become better equipped with the know-how, skills and techniques. But most important, together we will sow a seed that will germinate and become a source of the antidote to terrorism, fanaticism, bigotry and extremism." Imam Sani Isah, Interfaith Mediation Centre

The work of the Interfaith Mediation Centre (IMC) has addressed the challenge of building peace for 20 years. IMC does so by using a faith-based approach to promote acceptance of religious, cultural, gender and other social differences through the use of dialogue and non-violent problemsolving methods.

Our strategy acknowledges the fact that people in Africa are passionate about their religion and nearly all belong to one religion or another. Nigeria is unique in being the largest country in the world with a population that is delicately balanced between Muslims and Christians. Our approach draws on the moral authority and influence that religious leaders have on their communities and sees faith as the master key.

In 2009, a Public Conversations Project (PCP) staff member had the opportunity to hear about the work of IMC while on visit to Kaduna. He was deeply impressed with the IMC staff and their impact in building peace in northern Nigeria, and thus the seeds of collaboration were born. On his next visit, in 2010, several IMC staff responded with enthusiasm to a workshop on PCP’s Reflective Structured Dialogue (RSD) approach, and this, coupled with PCP’s respect and appreciation for IMC’s faith-based dialogue approach, initiated the process of developing an integrated dialogic approach to peacebuilding.

IMC has had a history of promoting healing and trust-building activities in Sudan, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Malaysia, Chad, Bosnia, Burundi, Kenya, Uganda, Croatia, Northern Ireland and the US. Similarly, PCP’s RSD approach has been taught and utilized in 15 countries, including Burundi,
Liberia, Greece, the Philippines and Nigeria.

Who This Guide is Intended to Serve

We developed this guide to help facilitators bring together Christians and Muslims in workshops, dialogues, mediations, meetings, interventions or mentoring groups. It can be used with any group of people who are drawn to its purposes, including traditional and religious leaders, women, youth, people with disabilities, community members, and civil servants.

**View or download the entirety of the guide, here.