The intercommunal organisation responsible for implementing the highly successful peace education programme ‘Imagine’ briefed diplomats on Thursday on the importance of education as a confidence-building measure (CBM) in Cyprus.
The Association for Historical Dialogue and Research (AHDR) and the German Ambassador Dr. Hans Peter-Jugel – whose country funds ‘Imagine’ – hosted resident diplomats for a discussion at the Home for Cooperation in the buffer zone, providing an overview of the role of education in building trust, mutual understanding and a culture of peace on the island.
During the event, AHDR Director Loizos Loukaidis and Dr. Peter-Jugel underlined the importance of sustained diplomatic engagement in supporting education-driven confidence-building efforts.
The German Ambassador highlighted that ‘Imagine’ is not symbolic – it is confidence-building in action, adding that the strength of the programme lies in the trust that AHDR has built across communities, trust that has been maintained even in politically challenging periods.
“By working together, we can ensure that this programme continues to contribute meaningfully to trust-building and to the long-term prospects of peace on this island,” he said.
Building bridges from grassroots
During the dialogue with diplomats, the ‘Imagine’ programme’s current status, achievements, and future direction were explored. AHDR’s Co-President Dr. Kyriakos Pachoulides stressed the importance of the role of civil society in being at the forefront of change, especially when things get stalled. He added that ‘Imagine’ continues despite political challenges since this is the role of civil society – to create bottom-up opportunities to build bridges through education and pave the way for coexistence. AHDR’s other Co-President Ms. Hale Silifkeli concurred, adding that teachers’ pivotal role and participation have helped keep the project alive all these years.
Cooperation to support education as a peacebuilding tool
According to an AHDR press release, the gathering entailed a constructive exchange on strengthening education-driven peacebuilding efforts, and was attended by ambassadors and representatives from a wide range of diplomatic missions and institutions, including the embassies of Germany, the Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovakia, Sweden, Norway, Japan, Brazil, British High Commission and the European Commission. It also laid the groundwork for future cooperation in support of education as a tool for peacebuilding in Cyprus.
AHDR expressed its “sincere gratitude” to the German Embassy and to the German Federal Foreign Office “for their continuous support of its activities”.
Next steps for ‘Imagine’
‘Imagine’ has brought together more than 8,000 students and 2,560 teachers from both communities since its launch in 2017. The project was agreed within the bicommunal Technical Committee on Education and implemented by AHDR. However, the programme’s intercommunal activities were seriously hindered by the decision of then Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar to pull out of the programme in 2022. The focus now is on whether his successor Tufan Erhürman will return to the peace education programme.