Middle School (6-8)

High School (9-12)

Supplies:

Internet access

From 1983–2009 Sri Lanka experienced a drawn-out civil war, the aftermath of which has continued to generate conflict between ethnic and religious groups in the country.

A former lawyer from Colombo, Sri Lanka’s capital, Dishani Jayaweera left the legal profession to follow a deeper calling—to work closely with people throughout Sri Lanka to create a more peaceful and just society.

Dishani, a Buddhist, founded the Centre for Peacebuilding and Reconciliation (CPBR) in 2003 with her husband, Dr. Jayantha Seneviratne. CPBR operates on the belief that building peace begins with individuals. CPBR supports young people and religious leaders, recognizing their influence on social attitudes and behaviors in Sri Lanka and their ability to bridge religious and ethnic divisions.

CPBR encourages personal transformations that, in turn, empower communities to seek large-scale change. CPBR engages participants in dialogue, trains participants in conflict analysis and transformation, and supports clergy in promoting tolerance among their religious communities. Through these interfaith efforts, CPBR builds understanding among Sinhalese Buddhists, Tamil Hindus, Muslims, and Tamil and Sinhalese Christians.

The power of CPBR’s work lies in their process. They practice what they preach by decentralizing decision-making and empowering community members to shape their projects. The CPBR team is intentionally diverse, and the entire staff and, under Dishani’s guidance, the entire staff works to develop deep relationships of trust with the participants in their projects, often traveling to participate in funerals, religious ceremonies, and other events of importance to the communities. This has created an authentic, large, and dedicated network of local peacebuilders and conflict transformers. Participants of CPBR often list Dishani’s (and Jayantha’s) personal commitment to the project and the respect they receive as motivation for their own work.

Dishani continues to develop innovative peacebuilding initiatives throughout Sri Lanka. Lately, she dreamed up new ways to engage young Sri Lankans through initiatives such as a peer coalition called Youth for Love and Life and a Voice of Images photography program. Dishani works personally with young people, focusing on building relationships as well as practicing dialogue, reflection, and skillsets for transforming conflict.

Dishani believes that anger is a normal part of life which should be identified, accepted, celebrated, and vulnerably shared. When experiencing anger, Dishani recommends that individuals be authentic, accept what they’re feeling, consider whether they want to channel anger into conflict transformation, and then decide on an informed course of action.

Share these maps of Sri Lanka with students.

1. How do the skills we’ve learned in this unit, such as managing anger and reappraisal, connect to Dishani’s story? How could these skills be used in other places across the globe? 

2. Dishani develops deep relationships with individuals in addition to communities. What value does the development of individual relationships have in peacebuilding efforts? 

3. How do you feel about Dishani’s perspective on anger? How do you think this approach has impacted her work in conflict transformation?

4. Everyone holds personal beliefs that inform their identity and approaches to life, and Dishani’s Buddhist faith informs her approach to peacebuilding. How might personal beliefs – religious or nonreligious – inform the way you think about peace and conflict transformation? 

5. How do religious or cultural identities play a role in this conflict? How do religious or cultural identities play a role in Dishani’s peacebuilding work?

1. Learn more about Dishani:

• Read a profile of the Center for Peacebuilding and Reconciliation on the Peace Direct website. 

• Watch a short video by the Coexist Foundation on Dishani’s peacebuilding work. 

• Listen to a podcast focused on Dishani’s story and peacebuilding work.  

• Explore CPBR’s website. 

2. One reason Dishani’s work is so powerful is her focus on relationship-building as foundational for peacebuilding. Ask students to find and analyze case examples (local, national, or international) that exemplify the importance of relationship-building in conflict transformation and peace negotiation.

3. Have students interview someone who was recently in a conflict (that they’re willing to talk about), or both people in the conflict. Students should go through each concept introduced in Unit III and ask how it played out during the conflict.

4. Dishani initiated a youth program centered around photography. Ask students to create and share a photo series capturing what peacebuilding looks like in their local community.