Dialogues for Post-Conflict Futures
Conversations to guide sustainable futures and social innovation in conflict-affected regions
The Dialogues for Post-Conflict Futures Webinar Series initiative brings together individuals with lived experience and deep expertise across diverse global conflicts to create a platform rooted in principles of listening and deep understanding before intervention.
We convene practitioners, grassroots leaders, researchers, and affected communities to explore how infrastructure, humanitarian recovery, and sustainable development can be effectively implemented in conflict-affected regions.
Rather than imposing external frameworks, the series centres on-the-ground voices and locally grounded knowledge. It creates space for conversations that challenge dominant Western development paradigms and expand how we define impact and recovery.
At its core is a belief that deeper understanding, built through open dialogue, can lead to more sustainable solutions and drive a paradigm shift around how impact is conceived and delivered.
This series is shaped by a set of core principles that inform both its content and approach:
Understanding before intervention
Prioritising deep, contextual understanding of root causes over surface-level or short-term development solutions.Decentring dominant models
Recognising that Western frameworks of growth, profit, and progress do not universally translate, and making space for alternative, locally grounded approaches.Critical engagement
Actively interrogating development narratives, including practices such as greenwashing, pinkwashing, and performative sustainability.Amplify lived experience
Elevate the voices of those directly impacted by conflict and displacement, moving beyond simplified narratives to engage with complex structural and cultural realities.Foster collaboration
Create opportunities for practitioners, researchers, NGOs, and social impact entrepreneurs to exchange ideas, insights, and practical solutions.Bridge global and local perspectives
Connect discussions to global frameworks such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals, while exploring pathways defined by local contexts and communities.
Format:
The series runs as a curated programme of 3–4 sessions per term, with each session lasting one hour.
Sessions are primarily hosted online via webinars with the following structure:
A 10-minute opening from a featured speaker or partner organisation
A moderated dialogue exploring key themes and tensions
An open Q&A with participants
Resource sharing and continued discussion, supporting ongoing collaboration beyond the session
Sessions are co-developed in partnership with invited speakers and organisations.
If you would like to get involved, either in developing a session, moderating, or more, please reach out to Mia Fulford: mgf36@cam.ac.uk