The Pause That Changes Everything

Why Inner Awareness Matters in Peacebuilding—and in Whatever You Do

How presence and inner awareness can transform the way we engage with conflict, evaluation, and human connection.

Throughout my career, I have evaluated programs, analytical frameworks, and policies addressing human security, gender equality, governance, the rule of law, and civil society engagement. Much of this work focuses on transforming systems, structures, and relationships to reduce the risk of violent conflict or address specific tensions.

Over time, however, I’ve come to recognize a critical and often overlooked dimension of peacebuilding: the inner state from which actions arise — and the energy that flows from that state.

In complex environments, our attention is easily drawn to external change—new strategies, actors, and policies. Yet the effectiveness of these efforts depends on something quieter and more fundamental: the quality of awareness we bring to each moment as peacebuilders and development practitioners. Through years of fieldwork, evaluation, and teaching, I’ve seen how cultivating presence—the capacity to be fully here, without judgment or reaction—can shift not only how we perceive situations, but how we engage with them.

This insight has grown from direct observation in my ongoing presence practice — noticing how moments of conscious breath, pause, and awareness transform perception. When I meet a challenging situation with presence rather than reaction, I become more attuned to what is: the facts, the thoughts generating emotional undercurrents, and the assumptions shaping my interpretation. I also notice the subtle movements of my ego — the impulse to defend, control, or prove — and the conditioned responses that follow. A simple pause creates space for clarity and compassion. It softens resistance, reveals deeper understanding, and invites more conscious action — allowing a more benevolent energy to flow into the situation, the person, or the task at hand.

Over the years, I’ve been gradually integrating practices of self-observation and awareness into my everyday life and professional work — in evaluation activities, data collection, facilitation, training, and classroom teaching. This inner dimension fosters deeper listening, reduces defensiveness, and allows dialogue to flow more openly and authentically across differences.

At its core, peacebuilding is not only about transforming systems. It is about transforming the quality of human interaction within them. By grounding ourselves in awareness and presence, we become instruments of the very peace we seek to build.

Reflection Prompt

Before responding—in a conversation, an email, or a meeting—take a conscious breath. Bring your attention to the inhale and the exhale. Notice what shifts when you respond from presence rather than from conditioned thinking. What patterns or impulses do you observe within yourself?