Conflict has long been part of human history and violent conflict, as in war, it is not sterile in that the only people involved are armed, professional militaries, and combatants. Violence is perpetuated among and between people, but so is peace as well. Traditionally, peacebuilding practices engendered a top-down effect of dictating what and how it is to be done to establish peace. This habit has resulted in the Global West overriding local wishes and realities. In response to criticism, emancipatory peacebuilding has arisen to address these shortcomings by including bottom-up efforts and placing a lens on the local. More work needs to be done especially in focusing on locally defined peace and what the local society requires to support their needs and rights.

To achieve this the colonialist mindset must be set aside and different philosophies explored. For example, Indigenous teachings tells us that everyone and everything is connected. With this perspective, peacebuilding must be relational and inclusive at all levels of society and with all actors engaged in the peace operation. An actor engaging in the peacebuilding process must ensure they coordinate with other actors throughout. The actions of one affect’s another and vice versa. Working together toward a commonly defined peace goal allows their efforts to fix on a human rights lens. Where peace is among the people, their needs and rights deserve consideration and to be a central focus in the peacebuilding process. Transcending the colonialist ego and embracing complex relations throughout the peacebuilding process will go a long way in emancipating human rights and peace goals.