Conference Opening and Keynote by Thania Paffenholz

The conference opening and keynote speech by Thania Paffenholz will take place at Teatro Triennale, in Triennale di Milano.

Since 1923, Triennale Milano has been one of world’s leading cultural institutions, conveying the complexities of the contemporary world in a host of artistic forms: design, architecture, and the visual, scenic, and performing arts. Its aim is to find broader, more innovative ways of thinking, bringing the experiences of different cultures and languages together in a single place and time.

Keynote: Designing the Future of Peace?
Lessons, Challenges, and Possibilities from Peacebuilding Research and Practice

By Thania Paffenholz
PhD, Senior Fellow Graduate Institute International and Development Studies and Founder Inclusive Peace.

Thania Paffenholz is an award-winning and widely published peace researcher, international peace process adviser and mediator, thought leader, and public speaker. Her pioneering and critical work on peace processes — particularly on the role of civil society, women, participatory approaches, and sustainable outcomes — has had a transformative influence on peace research, mediation, and peacebuilding policy and practice worldwide.

In her practical work, she has contributed to more than 25 peace and political transition processes across the globe, engaging with conflict parties, mediators, governments, international organisations, armed groups, and civil society actors. 

She has helped shape international and national policy frameworks, resolutions, and strategic reviews, and continues to serve as a key adviser to governments and international institutions. 

Over the past two decades, she has held leadership positions in leading think-and-do tanks. She has worked with research institutes and universities internationally, served as a peacebuilding adviser to the European Union in the Horn of Africa, and held positions with the United Nations in various field missions. 

Thania holds a PhD in Mediation and Peace Studies, has published extensively, serves on international boards and panels, and teaches at universities and training institutions worldwide. She is currently a Senior Fellow at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. She holds Tanzanian, Swiss, and German citizenship.