Liza Wilkinson Portrait Peacebuilder

Liza Wilkinson

Country/region: Northern IrelandConflict: Protestant & Catholic groups, peacebuilding in Pakistan, Balkans, Afghanistan and SudanOrganisation: TIDES Trainings & ConsultancyField of work: Dialogues, conflict resolution, peace with social justice training, family and community work

Liza has an established reputation gained over twenty years, in inter-community work across many of the most contentious interfaces in Northern Ireland both as a Mediator, facilitator and Trainer. Liza’s work has helped people elevate their behaviour away from violence. Her lifelong commitment to bring about sustainable peace is delivered through her own systemic approach to practise, dialogue, relationship building and educational programmes.

Liza joined TIDES in 2003 from the Corrymeela Community where she was the Family & Community worker; TIDES grew out of the Corrymeela Community and was set up to ‘Build Capacity for Peaceful Change’ with individuals, communities, organisations & institutions.

Peace through the delivery of an innovative range of people-centred mediative trainings, to improve good relations and develop conflict resolution and management skills of those affected by the conflict.  This capacity building process took individuals and those in a position of responsibility and influence through a transitioning process so that a legacy of peace could be developed.

TIDES believes in building local expertise, ensuring everyone is heard, has a voice and the ability to change their own situations in a non-violent way. Training those who will become leaders in their own communities and mentoring them through a process of implementation.

Both training and mediation was delivered throughout the conflict period in Northern Ireland and continues to develop the voices of individuals and communities which need to be heard to sustain what is still a very fragile peace process across the region.

Since the Peace agreement in 1998 this work has continued to build relationships within communities and create institutional change.  Working with a range of statutory institutions one of the largest segregated social housing schemes in Northern Ireland, to embed Good Relations at the heart of their policy and practice.

Liza as part of TIDES team also shared this knowledge and expertise with other International conflict regions.  Working with aid agencies to negotiate the transport of vital supplies, training those active in international civil wars in conflict resolutions and mediation skills so that they could transition from violence.

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