Kathmandu, 26 June 2026 – The Natural Resource Conflict Transformation Center-Nepal (NRCTC-N), in coordination with the Central Department of Conflict, Peace and Development Studies (CPDS), Tribhuvan University, successfully organized a interaction workshop bringing together leading representatives from academia, policy makers, government, development partners, and civil society to strengthen collaboration for sustainable peacebuilding in Nepal.
The workshop served as a dynamic platform to enhance understanding of NRCTC-N's innovative Multistakeholder Conflict Transformation Movement and to facilitate dialogue on the evolving peacebuilding landscape, emerging challenges, and strategic priorities for the future.
A total of 34 participants attended the event, representing university, the Provincial Assembly, the National Association of Rural Municipalities in Nepal (NARMIN), the European Union, the United Nations, The Asia Foundation, the Association of International NGOs (AIN), and several national and international organizations working in governance, conflict transformation, and peacebuilding.
The program began with a presentation by Advocate Deepak Raj Bhatt, Program Manager of NRCTC-N, who introduced the organization's vision, mission, major accomplishments, and the innovative Spider-Web (Makura) Model for transforming natural resource-related multistakeholder conflicts through dialogue and collaboration. The presentation showcased successful community-level interventions that have strengthened trust among stakeholders, promoted inclusive decision-making, and contributed to sustainable peace across Nepal.
The presentation was followed by an engaging discussion on partnership opportunities, the changing dynamics of peacebuilding in Nepal, and collaborative strategies to address emerging conflicts. Participants highly appreciated NRCTC-N's community-based peacebuilding initiatives and welcomed its effort to create a common platform where academia, policymakers, development partners, and civil society organizations could jointly explore practical solutions to contemporary peacebuilding challenges.
Throughout the dialogue, participants emphasized that trust-building remains the foundation of sustainable peace. They highlighted the importance of nurturing a culture of dialogue from the academic level to equip future generations with constructive communication and peaceful conflict transformation skills. Participants also reflected on recent social and political developments, including the emergence of youth-led (Gen-Z) movements, noting increasing polarization, declining tolerance for differing perspectives, and growing expectations for immediate results. These trends, they observed, reinforce the need for long-term, dialogue-based peacebuilding approaches.
The workshop identified several emerging priorities for Nepal's peacebuilding agenda, including food security and public health, land-related conflicts and the challenges faced by landless communities, rising unemployment, increasing human-wildlife conflict, climate change adaptation and equitable access to climate finance, technology-induced violence and misinformation, political conflicts associated with federalism, and the need for stronger legal and policy recognition of multistakeholder conflict transformation approaches.
Participants unanimously recommended institutionalizing such dialogue forums and organizing them on a regular basis, recognizing that peacebuilding is a continuous process requiring sustained collaboration and engagement. They also encouraged expanding these dialogues beyond Kathmandu Valley to strengthen participation from provincial and local stakeholders. All participants expressed their commitment to fostering future strategic partnerships with NRCTC-N in advancing Nepal's peacebuilding agenda.
The discussion further underscored the importance of promoting intergenerational dialogue to bridge generational divides, enhance mutual understanding, and address emerging social challenges arising from changing values and perspectives. Participants concluded that achieving lasting peace in Nepal requires not only continuous dialogue but also broader institutional and structural reforms that promote inclusive governance and collaborative conflict transformation.
The workshop was moderated by Dr. Pitambar Bhandari, Head of the Central Department of Conflict, Peace and Development Studies (CPDS), Tribhuvan University. The program concluded with closing remarks and a vote of thanks delivered by Mr. Chup Bahadur Thapa, Executive Director of NRCTC-N, who expressed sincere appreciation to all participants for their valuable contributions and reaffirmed the organization's commitment to strengthening peacebuilding through innovation, partnerships, and multistakeholder dialogue.
