This research and engagement initiative supports the development of innovative, community-centered approaches to peace and public security in Colombia, with a focus on the violence-affected regions of Chocó and Nariño. Drawing on field visits, engagements with key stakeholders and community consultations conducted in mid-2024, the initiative explores how Colombia can operationalize an integrated peace and human security approach to reduce violence, center local agency, and connect national peace efforts with local realities.
The report (English/Spanish) sets out a framework for addressing the layered peace and security challenges faced by communities in Colombia’s Pacific region, especially Indigenous and Afro-descendant populations. It reflects both national-level discussions and the specific challenges and opportunities of two regions – Nariño and Chocó.
To inform how peace and protection are delivered in areas still grappling with organized violence, the report proposes:
- Developing community-informed peace and security metrics and indicators
- Advancing the operationalization of human security through localized pilot efforts that inform national policy-level adaptations
- Designing territorial ceasefires and de-escalation efforts that enable the local co-construction of peace
- Strengthening women’s agency and inclusion by analyzing how armed groups use gender-based violence as social control and incorporating those insights into new peace and security frameworks
- Convening a regional meeting of defense ministers to promote a rights-respecting security agenda across Latin America
- Strengthening transformative communications for a rapidly evolving context
- Supporting governors to highlight the security–development–biodiversity nexus
- Advancing financing and development strategies for territorial peace and security
- Elevating community actions into a national "Visioning Process" to build legitimacy for local and national peace initiatives
- Supporting a Peace and Human Security Forum to pioneer a Global South approach to peace and security
The initiative is led by Civic Engagement Project (CEP) and Conflict and Civicness Research Group (CCRG) at LSE IDEAS, and is part of a growing partnership aimed at bridging research, policy, and practice in conflict-affected contexts. Other CEP-CCRG projects include the Afghanistan Research Network.
Fieldwork was done in collaboration with the Colombian organization, Corporación Grupo para el Desarrollo Social (Social Development Group) and Ficonpaz.
The project and report was funded by the Open Society Foundations. The content and views expressed herein are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Open Society Foundations. This report is adapted from a previous memo written in October 2024.
Read the report here in English.
Read the report here in Spanish.
Dr. Marika Theros, principal investigator, is Policy Fellow at the Conflict and Civicness Research Group at LSE IDEAS, the Director of the Civic Engagement Project, and Co-Founder of the Civic Ecosystems Initiative.
Andrea C. Guardo, co-investigator, is a policy adviser and international development practitioner on human rights,civic space, peace and security. Previous work experience includes OSF, USAID, the U.S. Institute of Peace, CIVICUS, the Colombian Ministry of Environment, Housing and Territorial Development and the Ombudsman's Office of Colombia.
Ben Acheson, co-investigator, is a security and mediation expert, and former NATO official. Other previous experience includes Head of Emerging Threats at Meta, Conflict Adviser in the OSCE, and adviser to the President of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with Iraq.
The five-person team that undertook the field visit includes the authors of this report plus Fiona Asuke from Open Society Foundations and Judith Palacios from the Social Development Group (SDG). The collective expertise and engagement of the team during the field visits and consultations provided critical insights for developing the recommendations presented in this report.