Strengthening local organizations is based on carrying out peacework along five key dimensions: psychological, intellectual, cultural, economic and political.
On the psychological level, populations in crisis and war zones are traumatized and affected to the depths of their being. The activities of SCP/EED partners reinforce in these local populations self-esteem, courage, the will to take charge of themselves and to want to change things. In this way, they manage to inspire hope in traumatized people and increase their commitment to the search for peace. By relieving suffering, by providing appropriate health care, humanitarian activities integrated into the development of the community and into local cultures are the best psychological support for populations in distress.
On the intellectual level, the promoters of violence do not hesitate to use manipulation and denunciation, thus using the populations for their purposes of destruction and promotion of violence. To reduce the extent and damage of manipulation and reduce rumors that kill, SCP/EED partners work to increase the analytical capacity of populations, strengthen their knowledge, facilitate the emergence of critical thinking, create spaces for reflection and analysis of the context.
At the cultural level, the contexts of violence are characterized by the breakdown of communities and the development of identity withdrawals and individualisms likely to reinforce the fragmentation of society, a situation favorable to the escalating brutality and devaluing of human life. SCP/EED partners work for more respect and solidarity between people and communities sharing the same vital space, develop instruments and spaces for communication between actors in conflict, provide verifiable information, invent mechanisms for creation and sharing a common vision. They also work to overcome certain traditions favorable to domestic violence and encourage the conception of new cultural and spiritual values that promote social peace and commitment to social transformation. War and acute conflicts destroy the mechanisms of wealth production and place populations in a situation of dependence.
In the Economic field, the SCP/EED partners strengthen the means of production through access to micro-credit, support for inputs, materials and the promotion of small farms and economical.
Politically, destabilized areas are plagued by irresponsible, power-hungry politicians who use and abuse their position to perpetrate violence and suffering for personal gain.
