Welcome to our annual report. Scroll through to learn about our activities.
2024 was marked by a record number of violent conflicts, underscoring the importance of the work that we do. Read about how we intensified our peacebuilding efforts despite the challenges that organisations like ours currently face.
In 2024, our conflict transformation work placed a strong emphasis on our strategic priorities. We explored how National Dialogues contribute to mitigating climate-related social and political crises and how climate action can support peacebuilding objectives. We also examined the challenges and opportunities of providing remedies for climate-related harms, highlighting how the transitional justice and climate communities can learn from one another. In addition, we created a space for digital peace education aimed at strengthening media literacy among young people regarding disinformation and conspiracy theories.
We further investigated how the interplay between corruption, new accountability measures and peacebuilding efforts affect the sustainability of peace processes. Our work also focused on gender-inclusive conflict transformation, exploring how women ex-combatants use creative solutions to (re)mobilise peacefully in political spaces, and how women use faith to mediate protracted conflicts.
Furthermore, we analysed the role of nonviolent social movements in peace talks, demonstrating how their inclusion in negotiations can contribute to more durable peace agreements with less risk of conflict relapse.
In April 2024, we welcomed 350 high-level participants to the inaugural edition of Berghof Foundation’s flagship peace conference, The Berlin Moot. Over two days, policymakers and global experts from various disciplines as well as mediators and peace practitioners discussed topics ranging from shifting global power structures and emerging actors in peacemaking to innovating traditional peacemaking approaches.
We also pioneered an interactive and solution-oriented workshop format, PeaceLabs, where peacemakers were joined by neuroscientists and experts on climate, business and technology to create new approaches to peacemaking.
The Berlin Moot highlighted the necessity of engaging emerging mediation actors like China and the United Arab Emirates. It urged peacemakers to listen to climate scientists, human rights activists and business actors, among others, and to realise the potential of integrating fresh ideas into the peacemaking field. Strategies that emerged included addressing trauma in peace processes and applying artificial intelligence (AI) in negotiations, both of which can significantly enhance peacemaking efforts. Finally, the Berlin Moot called not only for the inclusion of women and grassroots actors but also for the field itself to be fundamentally reshaped. Read The Berlin Moot 2024 report.
Throughout the year, we continued to work on many conflicts around the world and witnessed significant developments in several countries and regions where we are deeply engaged as an organisation.
The situation in Ethiopia remained fragile in 2024, with dynamic conflicts unfolding across multiple regions. Despite initial progress, talks between the Ethiopian Federal Government and the Oromo Liberation Army stalled. In Tigray, the implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement proceeded slowly, and a deepening division within Tigray threatened to further destabilise the region. Meanwhile, the Fano insurgency in the Amhara region has intensified. National efforts, including the National Dialogue process, have yet to yield tangible results, and subnational conflicts continued to exert pressure on the country’s stability.
In 2024, we focused our attention particularly on those regions that were most affected by armed conflict – Tigray, Amhara, Oromia and Benishangul-Gumuz. We increased our support for developing and implementing dialogue processes and conflict transformation efforts on multiple levels with our regional partners. For instance, we supported the preparation and implementation of a comprehensive Track 2 Intra-Oromo dialogue process and worked with key Tigrayan stakeholders to develop strategies for sustainable peace in the region. In the Benishangul-Gumuz region, we established decentralised structures designed to facilitate community dialogues and reconciliation processes. In addition, we successfully piloted a women’s peace leadership programme.
Despite multiple unsuccessful peace initiatives, Sudan’s civil war continued to escalate throughout 2024, drawing in additional regional actors, expanding violence into new areas, and intensifying what has become the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.
Given the complex nature and trajectory of the war, our approach is rooted in the conviction that peace has to be built both from the inside out and the outside in. To this end, we support influential Sudanese Insider Mediators with reach to diverse groups to facilitate dialogue processes beyond the different fault lines. We linked their efforts to Track 1 processes seeking cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians and humanitarian access. We also strengthened coordination of international support actors for instance by hosting the Sudan forum facilitating joined understanding, information sharing and planning among peer mediation organisations and Sudanese stakeholders. Apart from process support, we developed peace education materials that include mental health and psychosocial support for young people, as they have been at the frontline of peaceful change and emergency response in the country.
To address rising tension in the Horn of Africa and address the interconnected regional dimensions of conflicts, we initiated a high-level strategic scenario planning process, sensitising regional and external decision-makers. It also informs our peace support work in the region and serves as a mechanism to anticipate and respond to emerging crises in the broader Red Sea neighbourhood.
In Somalia, internal political tensions between the federal government and the federal members states, combined with no clear way forward for the African Union forces in the country, have exacerbated the security situation across the country. Our focus regions of Galmudug, Hirshabelle and Southwest States have been highly affected by the continuing insecurity. Furthermore, local community conflicts and tensions continued to arise, mostly revolving around natural resources, which are exacerbated by the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation.
In 2024, we continued to support our local Insider Peacebuilders Networks through capacity-development trainings on environmental peacebuilding and the financial and technical contribution to their own community activities in towns around Hirshabelle and Galmudug. In cooperation with the networks, we also conducted several large-scale dialogue assemblies. Our bi-weekly radio programmes helped increase awareness on topics around peace, conflict, climate and environmental protection.
In Adale District, a conflict hotspot in Hirshabelle State, we initiated a sustained dialogue process using climate and environmental issues as entry points to address broader community conflicts. In Jowhar District, our team conducted extensive research to develop a Climate Security Action Plan together with the International Organisation for Migration in Somalia and the United Nations Environment Programme, analysing how climate and environmental risks impact stability and security. At the end of the year, we began working to extend our programming to Southwest State and added a new component focusing on Women, Peace and Security with the existing networks.
The political climate in Zimbabwe remains tense following national elections in 2023, and the international interest in supporting peacebuilding activities in the country is decreasing. As our programme in Zimbabwe came to an end in late 2024, we focused on ensuring the sustainability of the insider mediator network we built. The network selected leaders to take on administrative roles, and we provided them with leadership training to support their new responsibilities. Additionally, we connected the network with stakeholders at local, regional and international levels to strengthen its capacity and enable its continued operation and growth beyond our involvement.
The situation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region escalated further in 2024. The Israeli operation in Gaza that had started as a response to the Hamas attack on Israel in 2023 caused massive human losses on the Palestinian side and horrific suffering for hundreds of thousands of civilians, gravely elevated regional tensions and polarised world opinion.
Our dedicated team in Lebanon was strongly affected by the aerial bombardments and growing tensions in the country. While we had started in 2022 to upscale our office in Beirut to become a regional office, we made the safety and security of our team, and the necessary security protocols our focus. Despite the tense situation, our team proved remarkably resilient, and we were able to continue operations for most of 2024. We increased our work on improving intra-Lebanese relations – a crucial topic for the country.
To date, the Iraqi political leadership, with the support of its allies, has managed to avoid full-scale involvement in regional escalation dynamics. At the same time, Iraq is grappling with extreme weather events and climate-related security challenges, with the effects of climate change exacerbating existing conflicts and contributing to issues such as crop failure and increased water scarcity. Against this backdrop, we expanded our portfolio of activities addressing climate change and its impact on conflict dynamics in Iraq.
Our efforts focused on local mediation and dialogue formats to tackle climate security challenges. These initiatives included the development of resource and water-sharing agreements, joint monitoring mechanisms and social pacts, all designed to alleviate tensions between communities, particularly in response to climate change-induced internal displacement. In doing so, our work directly contributed to the implementation of the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) nexus. An additional opportunity arose from our local dialogue and mediation work in southern Iraq, enabling us to deepen our approach with a specific emphasis on youth. In partnership with Oxfam, we also developed a new pilot initiative to provide guidance for development actors on conflict-sensitive climate action.
In Yemen, the Houthi movement’s attacks on maritime trade have cast doubt on the future of the peace process, which had started to gain traction in 2023. Despite this political standstill, we continued to engage with Yemeni experts from across the political spectrum to prepare key negotiation topics. Our activities brought together local, national and international actors. In parallel, we facilitated informal workshops with Gulf actors and key state actors around the Red Sea. We also continued to work with political parties supporting the internationally recognised government and the Southern Transitional Council to enhance their preparedness for negotiations. At the governorate level, we continued to strengthen political dialogue and expanded our work to Taiz, with plans to start in Abyan. Furthermore, we scaled up our community safety work to the municipal level in five cities, implementing initiatives aimed at improving the safety of local communities.
After years of frustrating political deadlock, recent developments in Syria – most notably the sudden collapse of the Assad regime – have opened new opportunities for peace and justice. Building on our broad and long-term engagement in the country, we continued to support Syrian actors navigating this complex landscape and remained committed to fostering dialogue among the different stakeholders.
In 2024, we sustained our support for the Syrian Independent Advisory Group. This included enhancing its strategic engagement with international actors, such as China and emerging Middle Eastern powers, and refining a concept for social reconciliation adapted to current realities. Additionally, we expanded efforts to address language and culture-related barriers, conducting interviews with Syrian stakeholders and formulating actionable recommendations for international partners. Our initiatives also involved Syrian economists, both within the country and in the diaspora, to identify and promote localised economic opportunities. These endeavours aimed to strengthen community resilience and foster sustainable development in a fragile socio-economic environment.
As part of our Regional Mechanism for Security and Cooperation in the Gulf (and beyond), we focused on maritime security and disaster risk management. The initial meetings aimed to foster Track 2 dialogue groups composed of regional experts to address key security challenges. Considering the current context in the Middle East, where geopolitical tensions, resource scarcity and the effects of climate change are exacerbating security risks, extreme weather events and the vulnerability of critical maritime routes have heightened the need for comprehensive security strategies. We therefore sought to enhance regional cooperation in addressing these challenges and to recommend sustainable solutions for both maritime safety and disaster risk management in the region.
We also continued our dialogue with think tanks and experts from the MENA region on the role of China – discussions that were very well received. We held several policy-oriented exchanges with Chinese interlocutors, including think tanks and diplomats, on Syria, Yemen and the Middle East conflict. A workshop with think tanks from China will be held in 2025 in Beijing, focusing on the role and potential of Chinese mediation in the Middle East conflict.
Afghanistan faced escalating challenges and crises throughout the year. The country remained internationally isolated, further exacerbating an already dire economic situation. The worsening humanitarian crisis was compounded by the effects of the climate crisis, including droughts, irregular weather patterns and strained water resources, all of which intensified food insecurity.
Despite these challenges, our longstanding relationships enabled us to maintain and grow our network of Afghan, regional and international actors. We expanded our engagement throughout South and Central Asia, with sustainable peace and stability in Afghanistan featuring among the topics discussed. Recognising Afghanistan’s acute climate vulnerability and the critical interplay between environmental, conflict and humanitarian dynamics, we also laid the groundwork to support the country’s future resilience and adaptation.
In the Southern Caucasus region, 2024 was marked by ongoing bilateral negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. While some agreements were reached and peaceful border demarcation processes took place in certain areas, overall progress remained limited and far from a comprehensive resolution.
Without inclusive confidence-building measures and deeper societal engagement, peace efforts risk remaining short-lived or confined to elite-level agreements with little impact on the ground. To support dialogue and mutual understanding, we organised two workshops in Berlin that brought together civil society actors from Armenia and Azerbaijan, along with representatives of German civil society. Participants engaged with innovative methods to document and archive biographical memories and lived experiences and reflected how to apply those insights to the South Caucasus.
For almost a decade, we supported a large-scale Georgian and Abkhaz dialogue process addressing the region’s violent past. This initiative brought thousands of Georgians and Abkhazians together to share their memories and engage in joint reflection aimed at addressing past grievances. To enhance public access to this work, we launched a website in 2024 featuring some of the most moving stories from our long-term engagement in the region.
As war is still underway in Ukraine, the strain of living in a country at war has taken a significant toll on its people. Social tensions around war-related identities and differing visions for Ukraine’s future continue to be on the rise. In 2024, we worked on fostering social cohesion in local communities across Ukraine. Following a comprehensive assessment of community needs in Ivano-Frankivsk, we designed and facilitated workshops for community leaders on dialogue, non-violent communication and conflict resolution techniques. These workshops have played a key role in equipping local leaders with the tools to strengthen cohesion within their communities, address conflicts non-violently and strengthen democratic processes at the local level.
In addition, we worked to promote women’s leadership within Ukrainian institutions throughout 2024. We organised workshops for over thirty women diplomats from the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, helping them refine their leadership skills and advance professionally. These sessions covered a range of topics, encouraging participants to reflect on their personal leadership journeys and build networks of allies among their women colleagues.
In Germany, we expanded our work to counter disinformation, conspiracy theories and online hate. In 2024, we launched a new initiative to counter anti-democratic tendencies on social media and produced several podcasts on how to address conspiracy theories – including ‘Caught in the Net’, which offered guidance on countering extremist views online and was aimed at both young people and adults. Our network of multipliers facilitated workshops on these topics across Germany, both online and offline.
In the same year – almost 80 years after the end of Nazism – we launched the visual novel ErinnerungsZeit, accompanied by an influencer campaign on TikTok and Instagram. By highlighting diverse perspectives in remembering Nazi crimes, as well as the acts of solidarity and resistance that were seen in diverse communities persecuted by the Nazi regime, we sought to empower young people to stand up against discrimination and anti-democratic tendencies today. We will roll out a series of teacher training workshops in 2025.
Our Service Centre Peace Education scaled up its work in 2024, delivering over 100 workshops with school classes and teachers on how to integrate the topics of war, conflict and peacebuilding into everyday school practice. Using innovative formats, we created spaces for dialogue and reflection in response to the escalating war in the Middle East, and we developed a simulation game on peace processes in water conflicts. Our network of model schools for peace education was expanded to include all types of schools – from primary to high schools and vocational institutions.
Internationally, one significant workstream is the negotiation and mediation support we provided to the leadership of resistance and liberation movements. The network that we have built over the past 15 years convened for its annual meeting in Bangkok, bringing together representatives from several movements to discuss strategies for peace negotiations. The network continued to evolve and expand. New members have joined, benefitting from opportunities to prepare for negotiations and to develop strategies for pursuing non-violent solutions to their respective conflicts – many of which are rooted in claims of self-determination. We were encouraged by the growing sense of ownership demonstrated by network members, who actively suggest new members and contribute to the implementation of activities, e.g. co-hosting the annual meeting. Increasingly, the team focussed on providing process support to negotiations through assisting in negotiation strategy-building and coaching/mentoring of lead negotiators.
In addition, we continued our long-standing support to the network of women in and associated with resistance and liberation movements. We provided skills-based and thematic trainings aimed at fostering participatory and gender-inclusive approaches to peace processes. By creating space for peer learning and exchange, we brought together women from nine network groups, along with former members of movements who drew on their experiences from peace negotiations and transitional processes. Through a series of policy briefs and special events, we amplified the voices of these women as peace leaders and helped disseminate the lessons learned from the network. These efforts reinforced our commitment to inclusive peacebuilding and contributed to building a stronger platform for women’s engagement in political and peace processes.
We also published three innovative case studies and a policy brief on the roles of women as insider mediators in peaceful protest movements in Venezuela, Iraq and Thailand. On this topic, we have established a network of women activists from Sub-Saharan Africa, South-East Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe and the MENA region. In 2024, we provided tailor-made support to the members of the network, for instance by hosting two peer-exchange and training workshops in Berlin. To influence policy debates on this topic and increase the recognition of women activists’ contribution to conflict resolution processes, we hosted a series of high-level dissemination events, including one in collaboration with the International Peace Institute in New York during the week of the Open Debate on UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security.
Drawing on our extensive expertise in supporting negotiation and dialogue processes across various countries and regions, we piloted an eight-week online course on National Dialogues in 2024. The course brought together 30 international participants from diverse professional backgrounds, including ministries, civil service, civil society, academia, peace practitioners and INGOs. We combined an e-learning tool, live facilitated peer-exchange sessions and inputs from experts to delve deeply into how to prepare for, conduct and implement National Dialogues. Participants engaged with real-world case studies and explored current nexus areas such as climate change, protest movements and digitalisation.
In 2024, we published a new paper on transitional justice and National Dialogue processes as part of our publication series 'National Dialogues at crossroads'. The publication explores the interlinkages between National Dialogues and transitional justice, highlighting open questions on how both processes can be further integrated in practice to enhance their relevance and effectiveness.
The Global Learning Hub for Transitional Justice and Reconciliation, which we have the privilege to host, brings together German and international partners to jointly learn and advise on both practice and policy formulation in the field of transitional justice. In 2024, we organised a study trip that brought the entire partner network to Berlin, where we explored the many layers of Germany’s past and the needs for action arising from remembrance of the Nazi dictatorship, the Communist regime and from decolonial contemporary perspectives.
In collaboration with the United Nations Department of Peace Operations DDR Section, we deepened our engagement on the political transformation of armed groups, focusing on strengthening the capacities of ex-combatants and DDR practitioners to navigate the complex transition from armed struggle to political participation. Through targeted support to local actors, peer exchanges across regions and the piloting of tailored training modules, we created spaces for reflection, learning and strategic planning around post-conflict political engagement. Drawing from such experiences of concrete support activities, we created a range of knowledge products, including thematic primers and training curricula that aim to inform and guide future practice in this evolving field.
Our EMBRACE project advanced its interdisciplinary research into European Union (EU) democracy promotion and democratisation challenges across the EU’s neighbourhood. With 14 partner institutions involved in case studies in 12 countries, the project released a range of reports, offering empirically grounded insights and policy recommendations on how the EU can support democracy in its neighbourhood, taking internal dynamics into account. It engaged in-country stakeholders to validate the research findings, and it held its General Assembly in July, featuring a public seminar on EU roles in the Middle East and North Africa.
In 2024, we continued a new line of research that draws on insights from psychology and neuroscience to generate refined knowledge on high-level peace negotiations. A total of 40 interviews were conducted with negotiators, mediators and psychologists, exploring how to navigate the emotional and relational complexities of peacemaking, from managing trauma and difficult personalities to fostering trust, enabling mindset transformation and supporting re-humanisation.
Furthermore, we presented the publication 'The Burning Question. Climate and conflict – why does it matter?' at events in Berlin, Brussels, London and Geneva. In his book, Berghof’s former Executive Director Andrew Gilmour explores how climate change contributes to conflict and undermines prospects for peace. He also examines how we can ensure that our efforts to address the climate crisis advance sustainable peace. Building on his thorough understanding of global conflicts and drawing on a wealth of real-life examples, he addresses a wide range of political and practical issues and their cascading effects on human and national security.
This is just a glimpse of what we did in 2024. Find out more about our work and ongoing projects.
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Our work would not be possible without our many valued partners across the world. Together with various local organisations, multilateral agencies, government institutions, donors and important networks, we continue to strive for more space for dialogue, mediation and peace. Thanks to their support and trust, we advance the field of conflict transformation.
In light of the many crises in the world, investment in peace remains crucial. Berghof is grateful to longstanding supporters as well as new partners, and we welcome you to learn more and invest in our mission.
We closed the fiscal year 2024 with revenues of €22.3 million and a surplus of €3,127. You can find our annual financial statement for download below.
We are pleased to acknowledge our partners who substantially helped us in achieving our accomplishments in 2024, and express our appreciation to our key partners:
To the individuals and institutions who share our dedication to peacebuilding, we express our sincere gratitude for their support and partnership. We are especially pleased to have built new partnerships in 2024 for The Berlin Moot.
None of our endeavours would be feasible without the invaluable guidance of our Board of Trustees which has bolstered our work throughout the year, nor without our extraordinary team, which in 2024 was represented by a diverse body of over 120 people. In 2025, we are amplifying our positive impact on conflict-affected communities across the globe, and we welcome you to join forces with us. Your contribution is an investment in a more peaceful world, today and tomorrow.
Find out more about our work. Take a look at the annual reports from previous years and read stories about the impact of our work.
Photo: Session during The Berlin Moot on innovative peacemaking approaches. Photo © Constanze Flamme