An invitation to peacebuilding : narrative inquiry into peacebuilders’ experiences across Korea and Japan

Abstract

The central topic of this research is meanings of peacebuilding, which are explored through a narrative inquiry that delves into experiences of individuals who have been engaged in peacebuilding initiatives as practitioners in the contexts that encompass Korea and Japan. The aim of the research is to delve into how peacebuilding can be understood and what it can entail through the lens of peacebuilders and their lived experiences, and further identify how education can come into play.

With this aim, the conceptual framework first looks into the foundational concepts of peacebuilding, with a focus on what it challenges and encourages, and then violence and conflict, as its key concepts. Then, it discusses education’s potential involvement in violence as well as peacebuilding, with the issues of power dynamics at the core.

As this research focuses on individuals’ experiences, it employs the narrative approach to examine personal experiences in depth. The data thus consists of individual in-depth interviews with four participants. Through narrative analysis with an approach to holistically consider the data content, personal narratives were produced as the outcome. These narratives are presented as the findings of this research, along with the further considerations on the common meanings of peacebuilding that emerged among and across the narratives.

The findings demonstrate that the understandings of peacebuilding built through narratives are meaningfully rooted in personal experiences, especially those related to violence and education. The findings also broaden the understandings of peacebuilding, suggesting transformative ways to integrate peacebuilding into daily life and work. Among the larger implications of this research is the significance of reimagining education with the perspectives of peacebuilding, to identify violent exercises of power, consider the need for changes, and put them into practice. This research invites the readers to become aware of their roles and take part in peacebuilding as a collective endeavour in their own contexts.