Syracuse, New York (Feburary 18, 2013) — An article released today by Syracuse University News highlights the work of Anthropology Associate Professor A.H. Peter Castro, who is a collaborator in the Near East Foundation’s Resources, Economic Security and Peace project in Darfur.
Professor Castro helped NEF develop a training manual which will impact an estimated 180,000 people in their recovery efforts. In 2012, he traveled to Central Darfur and served as lead trainer at a workshop for community leaders seeking strategies in natural resource conflict resolution.
“In the past people had ways of resolving these conflicts, but due to changes in governments many of the customary mechanisms have been eliminated,” Castro says. “They have traditions of mediation but this training gives them techniques, procedures and tools. This project of the Near East Foundation is one of first to be doing this kind of work.”
Syracuse University’s Program for the Advancement of Research on Collaboration and Conflict (PARCC) is one of NEF’s partners in Sudan and in other places in the Middle East and Africa. Through grassroots initiatives, NEF aims to create pathways to peace and help communities move beyond conflict.
