INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY AND FORUM ON PEACE MEDIATION AND NATIONAL DIALOGUE - CAUX 2015

With the theme “North Africa and Sahel”, the International Summer Academy and Forum 2015 of the Institute for Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding offers its participants  from 20 - 25 July 2015 an overview of mediation and dialogue within the North Africa and Sahel region.

Find out more about the programme here.

2015 is being quoted as one of the most important years yet in international governance, as the World meets twice, first in September in New York to agree on the newly proposed UN Sustainable Development Goals and then during the United Nations Convention Framework on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) 21st conference of the parties (COP21) in December in Paris where countries will establish a binding climate agreement, limiting countries’ greenhouse gas emissions. Both these international summits have Sustainable Development at their heart and share the idea that combatting poverty and climate change must be dealt with together. In the added context of the Food and Agriculture Organizations’ (FAO) International Year of Soils, land degradation is therefore considered one of the most important issues of the 21st century, providing food security and also carbon sequestration. In 2011, Luc Gnacadja former UNCCD Executive Secretary said that only “six to ten inches of top soil separate mankind from extinction”. Today, this is relevant more than ever.

Indeed, while the World is tackling three crises at once, economic, social and environmental and with the world population expected to reach 9 billion by 2050, there is a much greater risk. Resource scarcity is becoming a driver of migration and conflict, and thus restoring land provides not only food security, but has been proved to also prevent war. In a more dangerous geopolitical context, building trust between communities is therefore of utmost importance. Since 2011, restoring land to build peace has been the message of the Initiatives for Land, Lives, and Peace (ILLP), working together with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCDD) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Through an international forum, the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security (CDLS), ILLP has been successful at gathering stakeholders to tackle desertification in a holistic and inclusive manner, to address sustainable land management, and to prevent conflicts, simultaneously, under the same framework.

The CDLS welcomes a wide mix of individuals from different United Nations organizations, from several dozen NGOs, from civil society at large, with the exclusive participation of governments, students, farmers, policymakers, finance and business communities. By adopting a wide approach, combining the environment, development and humanitarian agendas, the message of this year’s edition of the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security is clear: to place land as high as possible on the SDG and climate agendas, in order to ‘ground’ sustainable development and root it firmly in the soil, in the literal and true sense of the word.

This year, there will be a strong emphasis on the importance of a relationship-based approach to scaling up land restoration. Building bridges across fields of expertise and otherwise closed silos is a concept very much rooted in the Initiatives of Change and ILLP approach and is being increasingly recognized as relevant. The event will begin on the evening of the 10th July and will extend over five days until the morning of the 14th, with panels taking place in the morning and a selection of workshops in the afternoon with a wide range of individuals with technical knowledge of sustainable land management, water, agriculture, policy, trade and economics, and organizations who will present solutions.

The conference will also have an exciting evening programme: an initiatives fair of NGOs on the 11th, a fireside conversation with youth and environmental leaders on the 12th, the book launch of ‘Land Restoration: Reclaiming Landscapes for a Sustainable Future’ and the exclusive world premiere of the film ‘Ethiopia Rising’ by Mark Dodd (author of The Man who Stopped the Desert) on the 13th.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=143&v=Jbw85rcKr_c

 Buy the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Land-Restoration-Reclaiming-Landscapes-Sustainable/dp/0128012315

 Read more about SDGs here: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/focussdgs.html

‘I was brainwashed and I cannot deny that I had to get rid of it [hate] first to understand others,’ were the opening words of Aysenur Kormaz from Turkey, setting the context for a wider discussion on the ‘qualities of a change-maker’.  

Professor Eugene Sensenig-Dabbous, Notre Dame University, Lebanon stated that young Lebanese people today are losing hope. He illustrated three practical examples of combating this loss. He spoke of the need to ‘work on truth telling’, as the first step towards creating dialogue.

Professor Andrei Zubov, historian and political scientist from Russia, told of the fear of imprisonment in his country for speaking freely on political issues. Dismissed from his university for speaking out against Putin’s military intervention in Ukraine, he spoke of his personal experience as a political activist for peace: ‘Don’t be afraid to choose a difficult path…whatever good is supposed to be made through you will be made through you…I believe everybody can do the same as I have done’.

Having dedicated her life to working with Muslim women’s and children’s rights, Professor Anjum Ali from Richmond, VA’s Community College, told of the challenges of speaking the truth as a Muslim when ‘your religion has been hijacked by extremism and violence’. Stressing the importance of understanding towards the other, she said: ‘the plague of extremism is very much tied to a lack of empathy…and a lack of securing human rights.’

All speakers spoke movingly of the personal risk involved in being a ‘change-maker’, whether facing entrenched hatred, working against a government or living in a country as an outsider. Using networks to support the change-making process, Prof. Dabbous said, would enable all to be effective change-makers.

 ‘The challenge of trust-building’ was the theme of today’s Just Governance conference. Prof. Katherine Marshall, University of Georgetown, USA, defined it as working towards ‘a safe and ordered society so people can flourish’. She highlighted that legacies of resentment, and their spillover into violence, can be major obstacles between civil society and governments.

Dr Sylvester Turner, theologian and anti-racism activist from Richmond, USA spoke of ‘the persistent ugly issues of race’ and said that understanding history is crucial to ‘building a bridge to carry weight to get to the other side’. Building trust means being willing to take risks, ‘seeking to do what is right over who is right.’

UN mediation expert Brendan McAllister highlighted the complexity of trust-building, pointing out that ‘there are many dynamics in conflict - trust is one of them.’ He said that trust-building is often tied up with identity: ‘some identity can be reliant on the continuation of the conflict.’

‘Crisis has brought about fear of one towards the other’, said Mme. Fauré Samaké Bintou, lawyer from Mali, speaking of how Mali’s conflict has resulted in deep divisions and lack of trust in leadership. Her grassroots work with women aims to reconstruct trust on an individual level in order to rebuild it on a larger scale.

Somalian MP Mohammud Gure stated that peace is the most precious commodity to man and shared his experience negotiating between opposing communities in Somalia: ‘Building trust starts well before negotiations start.’

Many questions were raised including: how can we promote peace in an atmosphere of trust rather than one based on a nation’s self-interest?  This is made all the more timely by tomorrow’s arrival of Michael Møller, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Journalist and author Michael Smith urged the need for ‘conscience-based decision-making’ in banking, business and the economy when he launched his new book Great Company in Caux, Switzerland, on 28 June. He was interviewed in front of conference participants by South African whistleblower Wendy Addison, whose story is one of many in the book, during the annual Caux conference on Trust and Integrity in the Global Economy (TIGE).

Smith said he had written the book out of ‘appreciation and celebration for all the people who have told their stories here in recent years. The book is not really my book but their book, their stories.’ They are of people who have stepped outside ‘the Machiavellian notion that the end justifies the means’. Rather, Smith argues, the means determine the ends, as the financial crash of 2008 so dramatically illustrated. ‘The way we do things is as important as what we do,’ he said.

As well as the annual TIGE conferences, in the Swiss Alpine village of Caux, the book also draws on the Asian work of Caux Initiatives for Business (CIB) and its international conferences held biennially at Asia Plateau, the Indian centre of Initiatives of Change.

Great Company is as much about the geography and psychology of capitalism as it is about conscience, courage and integrity. It is his third book on this theme and the first since the financial crash. Since then, Smith says, ‘the evidence of the extraordinary power of human and, indeed, spiritual motivation to change things for the better has been surprising.’ He gives the narratives of those who have shown integrity and leadership in an era when profit at all cost too easily dominate business models.

Social entrepreneurs are naturally motivated by a sense of social conscience. But what about personal conscience, he asked. The lack of it had led to currency manipulations, Ponzi schemes and corruption. We needed to rediscover the moral philosophy of Adam Smith, the founding father of economic thought.

Two chapters are dedicated to banking, the financial crisis and its consequences. ‘We all remember 9/11,’ he said, ‘but we should equally remember 9/15/2012 which saw the crash of Lehman Brothers.’ That was the nadir of the financial crash, which pushed 100 million people into poverty. It is time for organizations to rethink their purpose ‘beyond maximizing returns’, Smith said. He quotes bankers of conviction who call for  ‘a whole new culture of customer, community, character and care’. Banks had lost their ‘sense of stewardship and service to customers and the wider community.’

Smith, who is Head of Business Programmes at Initiatives of Change UK, dedicates a chapter to ‘beheading the snake of corruption’. Much of the book is concerned with showing that character and personal conviction to do the right thing are needed. This is not just a talking-shop for Smith. Rather, he tells stories of personal transformation as a sign that alternative models abound beyond the bottom line of shareholder value. He outlines five pillars of trust as a starting point: purpose, sustainability, stewardship, cooperation and integrity. From the personal stories of international hotelier Lawrence Bloom, who helped to transform the environmental impact of the global hotel industry, to whistleblower Wendy Addison, involved in the largest corporate collapse in South African history, character and choice stand out.

Such individuals show that it is possible for executives and organizations to move from ‘acquisition to contribution’, Smith said. ‘These are stories that have had an impact on economic transformation.’ This can also be observed in the rise of social enterprises and other economic models mandated to serve the common good. A paradigm shift is taking place in the world from Corporate Social Responsibility to Corporate Sustainability.

Family background played a part in why Smith wrote the book. His great-great grandfather had founded a woolen textile mill in Bradford, Yorkshire. But international competition combined with unwise decision-making had seen the liquidation of the company in the 1950s. Smith reflected on ‘human motivations in running an organization, which create destinies. There is a huge price to pay for the wrong tone at the top,’ he said.

Journalists, he concluded, are encouraged to be skeptical if not cynical. ‘But there is room for a journalism of appreciation and encouragement. This is what the stories of TIGE are about.’ They needed to be globalized.

Saturday 4 July 2015

The role of civil society in the struggle for justice, integrity and democracy was today’s opening plenary topic, complementing the larger conference theme of 'building trust for ethical and inclusive governance.' A diverse assembly of over 200 delegates from all continents came to debate and advance the need for Just Governance in countries that have been exposed to oppression, corruption, conflict, or are suffering the aftermath of civil war.

Bedan Mbugua, founder of Kenya’s Fountain Media Group, was imprisoned twice in Kenya for his exposure of corruption. In his opinion, the role of media should be to 'celebrate the good and provide solutions', and to raise and address issues of corruption. 'We realise that women are a power base to combat corruption', he said. Today BBC World News (2 July 2015) carried a report on the Kenyan government’s nationwide crackdown on the illegal alcohol that kills hundreds of Kenyans every year. This is a response to the ‘Mothers Against Drug Abuse’ campaign initiated by Fountain Media.

Dr Carl Stauffer, the Caux Scholars programme Academic Director, offered key thoughts on the essential qualities of 'leadership' in paving the way for good governance. In the role of 'provocateur' Just Governance is about unmasking the 'powers that be', with civil society institutions often being the only structures that possess enough 'moral and ethical fibre' to 'speak truth to power'.

Ihor Koliushko, Head of Board for Ukraine’s Centre for Political and Legal Reform, spoke about civil society in Ukraine being familiar with opposing the government and its oppression of the people. At a certain point civil society must realize the importance of collaborating with the government to bring about change, but how do you implement reforms in a state of conflict?

Daphrose Barampama, International President of Creators of Peace, Burundi – a program part of Initiatives of Change International promoting peace in Africa’s Great Lakes region - reminded us that Just Governance is not only for governments, but something we must all embrace on a personal level. In particular, what can women do to take part in supporting society? 'We all act as if the other were the obstacle to peace, but what if this other were me?'.

Archana Rao, Associate Director of Grampari – an organization working towards rural development in India - presented her vision of a just and sustainable society. Grampari works with disempowered youth and women to 'co-create governing systems'. She posed the question: ‘How do we create large scale compassion?’ and presented Grampari’s Aquifer project, enabling villages to work together to ensure safe drinking water.

Avo Sevag Garabet from Lebanon briefed the audience on the Armenian genocide, explaining how his typical Armenian upbringing in Lebanon included the narrative that Turkish people were enemies. He began questioning the cause of this deep hatred when he heard about the story of an Armenian/Turkish dialogue through a youth hike to Musa Dagh, one of the Armenian villages that successfully resisted the Ottoman army.

The Just Governance conference aims to enable sustainable development in order to establish new frameworks and structures for civil society, with a vision of a more equitable future. It was agreed by all panelists that Just Governance is required at all levels of society - from individuals and local communities to NGOs and government itself.

You can now watch the interview with Sunil Mathur, Managing Director and CEO of Siemens Ltd Southeast Asia and speaker at the opening session of TIGE 2015, on YouTube.

The 9th TIGE Conference ended and left the Caux Conference Centre filled with extraordinary life-stories full of courage and determination.

Speakers included Sunil Mathur the CEO of Siemens LTD in India, Swiss businesswomen of the year Jane Royston, and Emmanuel Mutisya who delivered an inspiring story of fighting corruption in Kenya. 

Wendy Addison, founder of Speakout-Speakup, and Alia Benomar, shared their stories as whistleblowers. They both had to face harsh consequences but never gave up. They continued fighting for what they believed in, even if it meant giving up the life they had known thus far. Addison reached the bottom when she found herself begging on the street to feed her 12-year-old son, as finding a job after being labelled a whistlelower had become impossible. Ben went against her own family as she found out something wasn't right in her family flour-milling business in Morocco. Ultimately both found a way; Addison, after a long journey, created a company to encourage and support other whistleblowers. Ben, despite her family being torn apart in the process, decided to sell the old family business, only to create another one with her mother and brother, keeping the faith in family-run businesses with trust and integrity.

Ahmet Shala, former Ambassador and Economics Minister of Kosovo, closed the conference with a moving and motivational speech: "Make a Choice, take a chance and you will see the change you want to see." Even after losing half of his family to the war in Kosovo, ambassador Shala never gave up and still believes that peace and transformation is ever more important than before. He called for the support of participants and organizers in creating an institute for peace-building in Kosovo, towards economic development and healing the wounds of history.

Participants had the choice of attending a variety of practical workshops, including Spiritual intelligence for leadership, Business and human rights, Knowledge flows in organisations and how to lead change. For the first time there was also an action-oriented leadership training that aimed to improve participants collaborative skills, strengthen leadership confidence and acquire stakeholder engagement competency – the ‘Impact Leadership’ track was delivered by Business School Lausanne and LiFT. 

Not only was the mind energised, so was the soul with daily morning yoga sessions, group silent reflection and ‘Inner leadership’ sessions that looked at one’s purpose, character and competencies. 

TIGE yet again challenged the status quo and not only showcased compelling stories of change but also equipped participants with leadership tools to create a more just and sustainable economy.

TIGE is now emerging around the world! Inspiring conversations were happening throughout the conference about TIGE National Chapters being established in Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Australia, Switzerland, USA, UK, Mexico and Scotland – watch this space!

The conference on Just Governance for Human Security has brought 230 people from over 40 countries to Caux. When asked in the opening session why they had come, many spoke of the urgent need for just governance. Vigorous applause greeted the comment of a South African lawyer who said that FIFA’s corruption was being exposed, and this should lead to a much wider onslaught on corrupt practices. A women’s leader from Mali said, ‘We have come with our fears, and we want to learn how to construct a post-conflict country.’ A Ukrainian said, ‘Our country is at war, and we need solutions.’

For conference co-convenor John Bond, climate change was the priority. ‘For our very survival, we Europeans need to take responsibility for the wellbeing of the African farmer driven into poverty by climate change. That demands a huge shift in our mentality. We still blame Africans for their poverty, while massively exploiting Africa’s resources for our own benefit.’

Mohan Bhagwandas, Vice-President of Initiatives of Change International, pointed out that the 500 years of leadership of the West in world affairs is giving way to that of other regions. ‘The old systems of ethnicity and divisive politics has to give way to an inclusive agenda for the good of the human family,’ he said. ‘That is the significance of this conference.’

by Esme McAvoy

Sunil Mathur, CEO and Managing Director of the German engineering giant Siemens Ltd South Asia, opened this year’s Initiatives of Change TIGE (Trust and Integrity in the Global Economy) annual conference by sharing his company´s journey through a major corruption crisis that threatened to cripple the whole organisation. The company has, incredibly, turned that crisis into an opportunity for fundamental, value-led change. Siemens is now ranked by Dow Jones as the world’s No 1 company for best compliance.

For Mathur, the issues at the heart of this week’s TIGE conference 'have never been more relevant than they are today'. He has worked for Siemens in various capacities for 25 years and yet even he was not prepared for the revelations of large-scale corruption that hit Siemens in 2006. Corrupt practices involving bribes to win new business contracts were alleged to be systemic throughout the Siemens organisation. 'The news hit us straight between the eyes. I was then working in the UK and we were stunned. Almost overnight, we had the Securities and Exchange Commission and the German Authorities against us. It was the last thing we imagined given the size and stature of the company.'

Ethics have always been central to Siemens corporate philosophy. Over a century ago, Siemens’ founder was quoted as saying, 'I won’t sell the future for a quick profits,' and many of the company´s biggest projects are about improving quality of life for citizens around the world, whether in designing more liveable ‘smart cities’ or designing hi-tech solutions to improve healthcare and energy efficiency. So what went so wrong?

For Mathur, it was, counter-intuitively, the proliferation of guidelines and policies that played their part: 'We had a guideline and policy or procedure for everything! But, in making so many guidelines and policies, we had lost our values. Our values were only on paper. They were not lived out in the fabric of the organisation.'

The response to the crisis from Siemens leaders was, crucially, upfront and honest: 'We have made mistakes and now we will clean our house up,' Mathur said. 'But little did they know what this would mean.' The entire board of Siemens resigned and the company was without any functioning board for an unprecedented 60 days. The company appointed a new CEO, importantly an outsider, who vowed that, 'Only clean business is Siemens business.'

Meanwhile, the company set to work on establishing global agreements on the murky areas of client relations and expenditure. Wining and dining clients was immediately forbidden and all sponsorship was stopped. 'Sales forces out there thought we’d lost it,' Mathur admits. 'They said, "How can you win client trust without taking them to dinner or to cricket?"'

The company has cut back on its multitude of procedures and policies, instead putting the emphasis on individuals to make good decisions based on personal integrity. The company now has four simple questions employees can ask themselves before making a decision, such as 'Is this the right thing for Siemens? Is it consistent with Siemens values and mine?' and, importantly; 'Is it something I am willing to be held accountable for?' Such simple but effective self-questioning builds trust in an organisation and helps people act from a more ethical position.

The in-depth scrutiny and subsequent implementation of changes were painful, costly and time-consuming for Siemens but incredibly effective. Agreements were met with authorities in a record-breaking 18 months and the company wasn´t excluded from public contracts. The company paid out a hefty 2billion Euros in penalties and legal fees but Siemens was widely praised for its remediation efforts by the regulatory institutions. The real recognition externally, however, came with its ranking in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index in 2009; Siemens was ranked No 1 under the category of compliance and risk management and has proudly maintained that position every year since - an astonishing turnaround for a company mired in corruption just three short years before.

Siemens has now started sharing their experiences in these areas of compliance and driving values-led change with other large corporations. 'It´s no longer just about getting results but how you get your results that is more important,' says Mathur. 'Policies and guidelines can only take you so far. What really counts is your value-system. Individuals living their personal values in work can make significant changes within any organisation, no matter how big. Large doors open on small hinges.'