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Fragile Island of Peace

A documentary trailer that explains the transformative peacebuilding process Burundi’s leaders went through that changed them and their nation — how it happened, what worked, what lessons can we learn from it.

Fragile Island of Peace

Over a ten-year period in Burundi, skilled peacebuilders worked with over 8,000 leaders at all levels of government and civil society from presidents to police chiefs to train them in leadership, communication and conflict resolution skills. In a nation of 8 million, that’s 1 in every 1000 people. These leaders have in turn, used those skills to transform the country. The path chosen by Burundi’s leaders and the peacebuilders they worked with for 10 years was unusual in its scope. The film will bear witness to what was done and its value as a model.

Through compelling interviews and anecdotes from Burundians and peacebuilders, this film will illuminate how peoples’ minds and hearts changed through rebuilding relationships and trust. It will travel from individual narratives to the wider implications, illustrating how these personal changes have played out nationally, through policy changes, activities, curriculum reform, and innovative leadership. The story Fragile Island of Peace seeks to tell is complex and flawed, as is the fragile peace Burundi has managed to achieve; peace that is often threatened by political unrest as well as the country’s wrenching poverty. Those conditions make it even more important to capture what happened during the peacebuilding process.

Our team has begun work on this important film, but there is much more to do. We are actively seeking funds from foundations and individuals to complete it. Our first goal is to gather the funds to do the initial shooting in Burundi.

Contributions in any amount will be deeply appreciated (and fully tax deductible).  It will help us launch a film that tells a powerful story about the possibility of peace in a war-torn region of the world. We invite you to join us in taking a stand for more peacebuilding and less war.

Please click here to make your tax-deductible donation

Watch the new trailer below. 

Fragile Island of Peace Trailer from Jamil Simon onVimeo.

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