The Organizations of the IMSD

The Berghof Foundation is an independent, non-governmental and non-profit organisation supporting people in conflict in their efforts to achieve sustainable peace through conflict transformation and peacebuilding. The Berghof Foundation brings people in conflict together. It enables and supports learning processes that inspire the development of new perspectives, relationships and behaviour, thus opening possibilities for addressing conflict and finding ways of living together peacefully. 

The Berghof Foundation works with conflict parties, as well as governmental agencies and other likeminded partners. It relies on a broad range of tools, including mediation and dialogue facilitation as well as capacity building measures such as training and peace education. In addition, the foundation conducts research to ground our work in a solid understanding both of the conflict contexts and conflict transformation methods. 

Contact: Luxshi Vimalarajah (l.vimalarajah(at)berghof-foundation.org), Senior Advisor, Mediation and Development 

Website: www.berghof-foundation.org  

The Center for Peace Mediation (CPM) is an independent, practice-oriented research institution of the Institute for Conflict Management at European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder). The Center researches and supports the practice of peace mediation to make it sharper and more effective in addressing the complex reality of international conflict. The focus is on methodology, ethics and legal dimensions of peace mediation.

In addition to providing operational support to the Federal Foreign Office within the framework of the Mediation Hub, the Center specializes in the (further) development of practical methodology (with a view to interest analyses, process design, dilemma management and dealing with polarization) as well as training and consulting for diplomats, political decision-makers and civil society actors.

Contact: Prof. Dr. Lars Kirchhoff (kirchhoff(at)europa-uni.de) / Dr. Anne Holper (holper(at)europa-uni.de), Co-Directors

Website: www.peacemediation.de / www.ikm.europa-uni.de

CSSP develops and implements multi-track political mediation processes in transition and conflict regions, in cooperation with partners in the respective countries. In particular, the organization supports politicians, political bodies with a multi-ethnic constitution as well as civil society stakeholders in dealing with and transforming conflicts through dialogue, confidence-building measures and negotiations.

The non-profit organization with its headquarters in Berlin was established in 2005 as a “Lessons Learned” project emerging out of Prof. Dr. Christian Schwarz-Schilling’s work as an international mediator in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1995-2004). Since then, the organization has been engaged in mediation, mediation support and political dialogue and empowerment activities in Egypt, Tunisia, Nepal, the South Caucasus as well as in the Western Balkan region and in Eastern Europe.

Contact: Christoph Lüttmann (cluettmann(at)cssp-mediation.org), Managing Director

Website: www.cssp-mediation.org

Founded in 1998, inmedio - institute for mediation. consulting . development -  is a consultancy which delivers mediation services and conducts professional mediation training in German speaking countries as well as internationally in development cooperation and peacebuilding contexts. Among other activities, inmedio was involved in building up and supporting local insider-mediator poos and dialogue projects in Nepal, Egypt and Ethiopia in the recent years. Since 2017 the non-profit inmedio peace consult continues the work in the field of peace mediation. Inmedio is committed to contribute to the professionalisation of this field with a particular focus on implementation of multi-track approaches, synergy-oriented project planning (collective impact) and the nexus of dealing with the past and local conflict resolution. 

Contact: Dirk Splinter (splinter(at)inmedio.de) / Ljubjana Wuestehube (wuestehube(at)inmedio.de), Founding Directors

Webseite: www.inmedio-peace-consult.org

The Berlin Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF) was established in 2002 by the Federal Government of Germany and the German Parliament to strengthen international civilian capacities for crisis prevention, conflict resolution and peacebuilding. It is a non-profit limited liability company, whose sole shareholder is the Federal Republic of Germany, represented by the German Federal Foreign Office. From security training for conflict areas, to the secondment of civilian experts and to publications and policy advice, the Center for International Peace Operations provides “one-stop” services and expertise on peace operations. ZIF’s integrated approach combines training, human resources, international capacity development and analysis under one roof.

ZIF contributes to the areas of peace mediation and mediation support in different ways.

Contact: Alischa Kugel (icd(at)zif-berlin.org), Deputy Head, Team International Capacity Development, Operations Division

Website: www.zif-berlin.org