There is much to be grateful for this year I realize, as we celebrate the lives of great leaders in our midst and cherish their legacies. I watch the steady downpour outside my balcony in Chennai, India, that is leaving cities and towns waterlogged; pushing the people of this city to discover new depths of resilience and strength, and am reminded that it is this very spirit of the peacebuilders in the global MBBI community that makes it possible to continue the work of creating connected communities, of healing the collective trauma of populations, and of building new iterations of democracy globally and in the USA.

This time for giving thanks is the perfect one to express deep gratitude for the amazing team that makes it all possible. If you know them, send them a message, if you don't, I hope you will take a moment to get to know them. They work in all time zones irrespective of their home base, adapt to every communication platform in order to meet our members' and partners' needs, provide support and guidance with creativity and good humor, and redefine commitment and passion every day!

I am grateful for Su Flickinger's steady guidance on our projects over the years; Martin Scott's good-humored leadership of our partnerships; Ben Lutz's communications wizardry, Dennis Phua's quiet focus on business development and Veronica Jacob's innovative ideas for resource development. We are sorry to say goodbye to Veronica in this role and wish her well in all her endeavors. Marcella Calabi and Sunita Kumar came on board to make possible the first early warning platform in the USA that lead to the formation of the TRUST Network.

Please join me in recognizing this amazing group of individuals.

With optimism,

- Prabha Sankaranarayan, President and CEO

As we are wrapping up 2021, we are actively preparing for 2022. Globally and with our partners across the USA, MBBI urges its global community to connect across networks and leverage our collective impact to make positive and lasting change.

To kickstart to 2022, the year of Actions in Collaboration, MBBI is engaging in the National Day of Dialogue, (January 5, 2022) which is a series of film and social media content, and bridging resources. It is also the premiere date for the documentary film, Dialogue Lab: America, launching a powerful movement of empathy and action in pursuit of a better future for our nation.

MBBI is also joining forces with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's (WKKF) Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT) movement to engage our member community in racial healing as an opportunity to broaden and deepen our personal and joint commitment to social justice in equity, diversity, and inclusion. The 6th Annual National Day of Racial Healing (NDORH) (January 18, 2022) is an opportunity for people, organizations and communities across the United States to call for racial healing, bring people together in their common humanity and take collective action to create a more just and equitable world.

May these two events, and more to come, be the start of a fruitful year, a year of Actions in Collaboration.

Join us for the December C&Y ADR webinar, An Arts-Based Approach to Mediation on Friday, December 17th, 2021, at 6:00 PM EST (-5 UTC) led by Joan Marie Kelly. Please use the Time Zone Converter to determine when this engaging conversation will be in your time zone. Click here to learn more and engage in this exciting PeaceConnect session.

Engage in the first PeaceConnect session of 2022: Truthtelling, Mediation, and the Prevention of Mass Atrocities on Wednesday, January 12th, 2022, at 3:00 PM EST (-5 UTC) led by Kathy Kelly. Please use the Time Zone Converter to determine when this engaging conversation will be in your time zone. Click here to learn more and engage in this exciting PeaceConnect session.

Join Mossarat Qadeem for: Localizing UNSCR 1325 in the Context of Religion and Culture in Pakistan on Tuesday, February 1st, 2022, at 9:00 AM EST (-5 UTC) / 7PM Pakistan Time (+5 UTC). Please use the Time Zone Converter to determine when this engaging conversation will be in your time zone Click here to learn more and engage in this exciting PeaceConnect session.

Join Suzanne for the final of the three PeaceConnect sessions: Gender Diversity on the International Landscape on Thursday, February 10th, 2022, at 12:00 PM EST (-5 UTC). Please use the Time Zone Converter to determine when this engaging conversation will be in your time zone Click here to learn more and engage in this exciting PeaceConnect session.

Log in to view the Member Portal! MBBI members have access to the robust Member Portal that showcases the resources, accomplishments, history, and aspects of each of MBBI's projects, working groups, regional groups, and interest groups. If you are curious about what the other MBBI initiatives have done or want to learn more on how to get more involved, the Member Portal has all of this information in one accessible place.

Once you log into your membership, there is an option to take you directly to the Member Portal. Email info@mediatorsbeyondborders.org for any questions that you may have. Not a current member? Join Us today.

Click here to learn how YOU can become more engaged and help build a more peace "able" world.

Sincerely,

Benjamin Lutz, Communications & Operations Manager
Mediators Beyond Borders International
People building peace.
mediatorsbeyondborders.org/

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