John Palfrey, MacArthur President, introduces our Peace Program to strengthen the peace and security ecosystem, creating new opportunities amid rising global challenges.
Central to our mission is a belief in peace: that the world is more peaceful when people are free from fear, conflict, violence, and war. Today, we affirm this commitment to help advance the conditions and people working toward safer and more hopeful societies.
We are living through a moment of profound global transition. The systems and norms that have shaped international cooperation since World War II are shifting in ways that engender both uncertainty and possibility.
While many changes—from shifts in global power dynamics to pullback of foreign policy commitments—pose real risks, they also create a rare opening: a chance to reimagine and rebuild the systems that underpin global peace and security. It is in this context that we are announcing a Peace Program: an effort designed to strengthen the peace and security ecosystem at a critical juncture.
Challenges and Opportunity
Climate change spurs migration and food insecurity, leading to conflict. Our multilateral systems are increasingly unstable, with long-standing international institutions struggling to function effectively and major powers competing to reshape the global order. Militarism is on the rise, as governments prioritize defense spending over diplomacy, conflict prevention, and human rights.
Across the peace and security field, leaders are actively developing new visions, strategies, and collaborations to respond to this moment.
These trends are closely tied to a broader crisis of democracy, where U.S. national security approaches designed to fight terrorism in a post-9/11 landscape have, in many cases, contributed to democratic backsliding and the erosion of civil liberties. From the growth of artificial intelligence to limits on freedom of speech, we are experiencing significant shifts on every front. In each case, these changes threaten to weaken the fundamental systems—including government, media, technology—that should always serve the people and advance peace.
Yet, amid these challenges, there is reason for optimism. Across the peace and security field, leaders are actively developing new visions, strategies, and collaborations to respond to this moment. What is needed now is sustained investment in the field that supports this work.
The Peace Program intends to invest in the people, institutions, ideas, knowledge, and networks that help societies address conflict, strengthen democratic resilience, and build more effective forms of international cooperation.
As a Field Support Program, rather than focusing narrowly on individual issue areas or projects, the program aims to take a holistic ecosystem approach designed to ensure the field's impact and effectiveness. We recognize that meaningful change requires strengthening the networks and infrastructure that enable innovation, collaboration, and long-term impact, and ensuring that the underlying ideas and frameworks are relevant for today’s world.
We intend to pursue longer-term general operating grantmaking, grounded in two-way trust and greater degrees of flexibility. Our grantmaking is not intended to be a guarantee of indefinite support—we are being intentional about building deep and longer-term relationships.
Collaboration and Dialogue at a Critical Moment
This approach is grounded in a period of listening and learning. Over the past two years, MacArthur Staff have engaged deeply in the peace and security field through ongoing relationships with peer funders, grantees, and practitioners, as well as consultations with leaders across the ecosystem. These conversations have surfaced both the scale of the challenges facing the field—particularly in light of shrinking investment in global aid and development from private and public sources—and the resilience and creativity of the people doing the work.
The Peace Program intends to invest in the people, institutions, ideas, knowledge, and networks that build more effective international cooperation.
“A vibrant horizontal architecture is rising before our eyes,” Melanie Greenberg, Managing Director of Programs at Humanity United, said. “Social movements and peacebuilding communities are finding one another in new ways across geographic divides, forming powerful networks for healing, justice, advocacy, and reimagination. Supporting these networks will amplify the power and agency of proximate actors, sparking social transformation well beyond the local level.”
Importantly, this dialogue is only the beginning. Our grantee partners and the broader community of practitioners and leaders in the peace field will play a critical role in shaping what comes next. We plan to hire a Director and team to guide and develop a strategy; the program is intended to be an evolving effort that will create space for shared learning, collaboration, and adaptation.
Our engagement in this space builds on decades of commitment to international peace and security. Since the 1980s, the Foundation has supported research, policy innovation, and cross-border collaboration aimed at reducing conflict and advancing more cooperative forms of security. That history—along with the relationships and credibility it has fostered—ground us to contribute meaningfully at this pivotal moment.
Our grantee partners and the broader community of practitioners and leaders will play a critical role in shaping what comes next.
Additionally, the Foundation has continued our connection to the field by supporting organizations focused on innovation, collaboration, and long-term approaches to solving problems, including Search for Common Ground, International Crisis Group, and Girl Security.
Alexandra I. Toma, Executive Director of the Peace and Security Funders Group, noted that: “Peace, democracy, and security rise and fall together. As we contend with the highest levels of violent conflict worldwide since World War II, this bold commitment to support a critical field hungry to make change gives others permission to follow with innovation and additional funding.”
Periods of disruption are rarely easy. But they are often the moments when the most significant progress becomes possible. By investing in the people, infrastructure, and ideas that can shape the future of peace and security, we have an opportunity to respond to today’s challenges and help build a more just and peaceful world for generations to come.
