WATERING THE BANYAN TREE (2020-2023)

Traditionally, the Banyan tree provides shelter and and a gathering space for problem-solving dialogue. The Watering the Banyan Tree project works in that spirit.

Since the February 2021 military coup, our networks in Myanmar have been intimately affected by the persecution of activists, ongoing violent conflicts, and COVID-19. Yet, the project team has been able to build on civil society’s sense of unity, across ethnic and religious divides, in the face of these challenges.

We created a new plan together that prioritized participant safety — combining online workshops with localized in-person events. Here are some of the tangible project results:

• Ongoing resources specifically for peace work in Myanmar—including a Peace Practitioners’ Handbook and digital learning platform, Sangha Talk dialogues among monks and nuns, and a Digital Peace Club for youth leaders
• Nine “creative influencing” campaigns designed and led by community-based organizations—with support from the project’s trainings in using the arts for advocacy and outreach
• More than 75 new dialogue facilitators who received in-depth training, then facilitated more than 30 dialogues among hundreds of diverse participants so far
• A series of community-based activities, based on needs identified in dialogues—including trainings in psychological trauma and digital security under the junta; peace “edutainment” shows; & children’s libraries and reading circles
• New peace leadership skills and alliances built among young pro-democracy activists, and progressive Buddhist monks and nuns—critical constituencies for peacebuilding in Myanmar.

As the project draws to a formal close in early 2023, we are working to make the resources created through this project available to continue supporting peacebuilders in Myanmar. Read our project manager’s reflections here. 

Through a combination of online skill-building and localized community work, participants in this project continue to work toward a future based in freedom from oppression and respect for Myanmar’s rich diversity.