{"id":31400,"date":"2017-01-12T11:08:08","date_gmt":"2017-01-12T16:08:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=31400"},"modified":"2017-04-10T12:58:02","modified_gmt":"2017-04-10T16:58:02","slug":"liberian-alumna-researches-youth-conflict-develops-fledgling-plans-peace-dialogue-institute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2017\/liberian-alumna-researches-youth-conflict-develops-fledgling-plans-peace-dialogue-institute\/","title":{"rendered":"Liberian alumna researches youth in conflict, develops fledgling plans for peace dialogue institute"},"content":{"rendered":"

In Gwendolyn Myers\u2019 native Liberia and surrounding West African countries, \u201cyoung people can be used as perpetrators of violence and conflict,\u201d she says. \u201cThey are used as weapons. But they can also be used as messengers of peace, if they are prepared to recognize the triggers and indicators of violence, and then address and resolve the situation peacefully.\u201d<\/p>\n

Empowering youth to transform their society has been Myers\u2019 work for many years. \u201cPeace is personal,\u201d says the 2014 graduate of the Women\u2019s Peacebuilding Leadership Program<\/a> at Eastern Mennonite University. \u201cI am always spiritually compelled to reach out and give a helping hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Myers returned to EMU in December 2016 to present a capstone project she developed while participating in a two-year fellowship with the Center for Women, Faith and Leadership Program<\/a> at the Institute for Global Engagement, Washington D.C., in collaboration with Pepperdine University.<\/p>\n

The project focuses on violence reduction and conflict transformation in the youth population, building upon the foundation laid by her nonprofit organization Messengers of Peace (MOP) Liberia<\/a>, in which youth develop life skills through coaching, mentoring, advocacy and volunteering for peace and development. Myers is both founder and director.<\/p>\n

\"Gwendolyn<\/a>
Professor Roxy Allen Kioko talks about research methodology with Gwendolyn Myers after her presentation.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ultimately, Myers wants to establish an institute of peace dialogue, which would formalize the work and build capacity. Youth are the country\u2019s future, she says, and despite a civil war and challenges like porous borders, high corruption, limited education and poor infrastructure, she remains positive about Liberia\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

\u201cYoung people can no longer be bystanders or used to perpetrate violence,\u201d she says. \u201cThey are not victims but contributors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mobilizing youth is also the focus of Myers\u2019 work as regional coordinator for West and Central Africa by the United Network of Young Peacebuilders<\/a>, headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands. In these capacities, she has participated in high-level meetings with UN leaders, African Union, Liberian government officials and regional officials.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always a highlight to see a WPLP graduate return to campus having made great strides forward in her professional career and peacebuilding work,\u201d said Leda Werner<\/a>, WPLP director. \u201cThe research Gwen presented points directly to the necessity of her own work with youth to reframe messages of violence to those of peace. According to the findings she presented, Liberia is potential ground for the spread of violent extremism\u2014meaning that now more than ever her work to engage youth in peace messaging and peacebuilding is needed. I look forward to Gwen\u2019s development of a peace dialogue center as an approach to preventing increased violence and extremism in her country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Launched in 2012, the WPLP program has graduated 42 women from Africa and the South Pacific. The fourth WPLP cohort, comprised of eight Kenyan women<\/a>, began their studies last summer at the Summer Peacebuilding Institute. After coursework, an online praxis workshop and implementation of an original intervention project, they will complete a graduate certificate in peacebuilding leadership in December 2017.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In Gwendolyn Myers\u2019 native Liberia and surrounding West African countries, \u201cyoung people can be used as perpetrators of violence and conflict,\u201d she says. \u201cThey are used as weapons. But they ... read more about Liberian alumna researches youth in conflict, develops fledgling plans for peace dialogue institute<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31402,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[266,12503,17562,12499],"tags":[15942],"feature":[],"class_list":["post-31400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-cjp","category-digest","category-spi","tag-roxy-allen-kioko"],"yoast_head":"\nLiberian alumna researches youth in conflict, develops fledgling plans for peace dialogue institute - EMU News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2017\/liberian-alumna-researches-youth-conflict-develops-fledgling-plans-peace-dialogue-institute\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Liberian alumna researches youth in conflict, develops fledgling plans for peace dialogue institute - EMU News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In Gwendolyn Myers\u2019 native Liberia and surrounding West African countries, \u201cyoung people can be used as perpetrators of violence and conflict,\u201d she says. \u201cThey are used as weapons. 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