Developing meaningful and sustainable peacebuilding efforts is challenging in times of budget cuts, volatile environments and increasingly politicized views of peace. Yet amid uncertainty and change, the need for safety, dignity and wellbeing remains constant, particularly for civilians living in conflict-affected areas. In Ukraine, placing social cohesion at the center of community-level efforts has created fertile ground for peace: despite a precarious situation, these initiatives persist and continue to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bah\u00e1\u2019\u00eds recognize the importance of \u201csustained effort to build communities that offer hope in place of despair,1<\/sup> unity in place of conflict.\u201d As in many peacebuilding efforts undertaken by Bah\u00e1\u2019\u00ed communities, individuals and local action have been central to progress. When people come together in a spirit of unity,2<\/sup> and take practical steps to improve their surroundings, they can focus their energies on contributing to the wellbeing of others. With this base, they create the relationships and habits of cooperation on which peaceful communities depend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Irpin, the opening of the VOLIA Community Center in September of this year offers a tangible example of what these efforts can achieve and reflects how sustained grassroots engagement can develop into a lasting resource for peace for entire communities. This new community center is the result of more than two years of locally rooted activities, growing participation and relationships built around a shared desire to contribute to community life, even as the conflict rages on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Today, funding comes from efforts initially taken to assist Ukrainian refugees here in Switzerland and has gradually developed into a bridge to support initiatives in Ukraine. Creative workshops and study groups organized by Bah\u00e1\u2019\u00eds and their local contacts bring people together to envision a secure and peaceful future. Local organizations and institutions support these initiatives. The Irpin refugee center, for example, opened its doors to conduct activities, as its members saw the significance of creating opportunities for connection, unity and joy among displaced Ukrainians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the Bah\u00e1\u2019\u00eds pioneering this work in Ukraine, one of the clearest indications of impact is found in relationships that have deepened and in shifts in how people envision their future. Community centers are still rare in this region. But the hope and aspirations born of this community-building work revealed just how much a place like this was needed. Such changes in attitudes and vision are difficult to quantify. Peace cannot be understood simply as a measurable output, but as an ongoing process of building trust, fostering participation and enabling people to take ownership of their communities. These are the foundations that strengthen resilience and enable communities to shape their own future. VOLIA’s example in Ukraine suggests that even in a volatile environment, small acts of participation can add up into lasting impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For those back in Switzerland interested in learning about experiences of life and community-building in Ukraine, Bah\u00e1\u2019\u00ed pioneers in Irpin regularly present this progression and share stories and reflections in punctual online gatherings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [1] The Universal House of Justice, \u201cRidvan Message.\u201d April 2024. The Bah\u00e1\u2019\u00ed World Centre.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n [1] Unity is defined here as love, and implying diversity, not uniformity. Writings and Utterances of \u2018Abdu\u2019l-Bah\u00e1.<\/em> Part II, 1901, pp. 140,148.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Developing meaningful and sustainable peacebuilding efforts is challenging in times of budget cuts, volatile environments and increasingly politicized views of peace. Yet amid uncertainty and change, the need for safety, dignity and wellbeing remains constant, particularly for civilians living in conflict-affected areas. In Ukraine, placing social cohesion at the center of community-level efforts has created … Peacebuilding in Irpin \u2014 From the Individual to The Community<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8096,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":""},"categories":[111],"tags":[],"issue":[559],"acf":[],"author_meta":{"display_name":"\u00e0 propos","author_link":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/author\/apropos\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/WB_Bahai_194-600x332.jpg","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["Reports<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Reports<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":0,"relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 15 hours ago","modified":"Updated 15 hours ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on September 29, 2026","modified":"Updated on September 29, 2026"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on September 29, 2026 8:24 am","modified":"Updated on September 29, 2026 8:24 am"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8023"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8023"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8023\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8116,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8023\/revisions\/8116"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8096"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8023"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8023"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8023"},{"taxonomy":"issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koff.swisspeace.ch\/apropos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue?post=8023"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}