The Platform Peaceful Conflict Transformation (PZKB) is a network of German organisations and individuals for the promotion of civil conflict transformation. As such it pursues the goal of preventing, resolving and working on violent conflicts. Since its foundation in 1998, the Platform has been working for the prioritisation and increased application of diverse approaches of civil conflict transformation. To this end, it is necessary that non-governmental organisations become more involved and that the capacities of societies for constructive conflict management as a whole are strengthened.
The Platform offers its members the space for such engagement. It connects and strengthens the civil society community, sets new topics in the social and political sphere and creates spaces for the exchange of information and cooperation between civil society and political stakeholders.
The platform also serves as a clearing house for the exchange of experience and knowledge on civil conflict transformation. In cooperation with the platform members, the staff offers support in finding experts.
Currently, around 110 individuals and 60 organisations, groups and institutions are involved within the platform. Our members come from different fields of work, but mainly from peace work, conflict transformation/mediation, human rights work, humanitarian aid, development cooperation and academia.
The platform offers its members a variety of opportunities for joint initiatives and cooperation, for example in the form of events and background discussions, or project and working groups. At the annual plenary, the current challenges of civil conflict transformation are analysed from a practice-related and scientific perspective in order to develop political and societal action plans.
The Platform is financed by membership fees and project grants. Donations to support the work of the network are very welcome and are tax deductible.
The minimum annual membership fee is:
for individuals 80 €
for organisations from 90 €
Further details on membership can be found in the membership forms.
For those interested in supporting the work of the Platform without being able or willing to actively participate as a member, we offer supporting memberships. The staff can provide further information.
The Charter was adopted when the Platform ZKB was founded in 1998 and still serves as its unifying policy document today. Every new member agrees to the Charter.
On the threshold of the 21st century, the world is facing intolerable levels of violence, especially in intra-state conflicts. Reducing and overcoming this violence requires, as a matter of priority and increasingly, the development of diverse approaches to civil conflict transformation. To this end, it is necessary that non-governmental organisations become increasingly involved and that the capacity in society as a whole for constructive conflict management is strengthened.
Platform ZKB is a member of FriEnt together with the Berghof Foundation. The Working Group on Peace and Development is an association of state organisations, church aid agencies, civil society networks and political foundations. FriEnt stands for joint learning and opens the space for critical reflection between state and civil society actors in order to discuss current peace and development policy challenges at eye level.
The Platform ZKB is a member of the Advisory Board for Civilian Crisis Prevention and Peacebuilding. The Advisory Board pools and develops civil society and academic expertise and provides confidential, expert support and conceptual development for the Federal Government's engagement in civilian crisis prevention, conflict management and peacebuilding. Within the framework of its mandate, it accompanies the implementation of the guidelines "Preventing Crises, Resolving Conflicts, Building Peace" adopted in 2017.
Since March 2019, Platform ZKB has been a member of the European Peacebuilding Liaison Office (EPLO) in Brussels. EPLO is an independent civil society platform of European NGOs, NGO networks and think tanks working for peacebuilding and the prevention of violent conflicts. The Platform's representation at EPLO is closely accompanied by the Working Group Peacebuilding in Europe.
The ZKB Platform is a member of the 2030 Agenda Network, which advocates for the ambitious implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in and by Germany. In this context, the Platform is particularly committed to the peace dimension of the Agenda and the implementation of Goal 16, "Peace, Justice and Sustainable Institutions". The Network develops its own concepts and proposals to ensure that the Sustainable Development Goals are achieved quickly and lobbies political decision-makers for a shift towards sustainability. Once a year, members of the network publish the machbar report, which examines sustainability issues from different perspectives.
