SeeD’s long-time partner, Interpeace, developed a methodology called, Frameworks for Assessing Resilience (FAR). FAR is used to better understand, address and assess the key sources of fragility and resilience within conflict or violence-prone countries. We used our evidence-based methods to help design the FAR programme, which was piloted in three countries – Timor-Leste, Guatemala and Liberia.
Consultations highlighted the importance that Guatemalans place on organized political action as a manifestation of resilience. In this respect, resilience is conceived as a set of capacities mobilized in response to particular obstacles or sources of conflict in order to achieve a specific outcome or goal. In the Guatemalan context, it is important to distinguish between specific manifestations of violence and more structural factors that contribute to entrenched violence and poverty. The FAR research in Guatemala therefore sought to identify the resilient actions and capacities of individuals, communities and groups in relation to these varied sources of conflict, as well as the meanings attributed to these actions and capacities. It showed that collaboration between different sectors of society are an important source for sustaining, while misinformation fuelled socio-environmental conflicts. These findings were shared with public officials, the private sector, and civil society groups involved in finding solutions to ongoing conflicts over natural resource management.