Search for Common Ground

Search for Common Ground Formerly PLC. We work in the world’s most challenge contexts and build lasting solutions that are based on the needs of communities. We are community leaders.
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We are Search for Common Ground, the world’s largest dedicated peacebuilding organization we work to transform violent conflict into peace, building healthy, safe, and just societies in the process. We engage with leaders and elected officials to advance dialogue and collaboration. We are youth activists. We are women. We are Peacebuilders. We have been doing this work for over 40 years, and we ha

ve developed our understanding of what peace looks like, being able to quantify our impact and design more effective programming. Founded in 1982 during the cold war
900 staff in 36 countries
90% of staff are local to country they work
38 million people engaged in programming in 2023

The World Cup asks us to celebrate a world connected by people, cultures, languages, and stories.World Refugee Day asks ...
06/20/2026

The World Cup asks us to celebrate a world connected by people, cultures, languages, and stories.

World Refugee Day asks a harder question:

Why do we celebrate people crossing borders when they’re wearing a jersey, but question them when they’re seeking safety?

The same diversity we cheer on the soccer field is often feared everywhere else.

Yet every day, refugees are building businesses, strengthening communities, raising families, and creating opportunities where others see only crises.

Refugees aren’t the story of what was lost.
They’re the story of what survives. And what gets built next.

Peace isn’t the absence of conflict. It’s the presence of connection.In our new Voices of Peace series, we’re spotlighti...
06/18/2026

Peace isn’t the absence of conflict. It’s the presence of connection.

In our new Voices of Peace series, we’re spotlighting people whose experiences have reshaped how they understand peace.

This month, world-renowned opera singer Ryan McKinny shares how parenthood, art, and deep listening taught him that lasting peace begins when we choose to see one another as fully human.

06/17/2026

For 90 minutes, the world watches the same game. In those moments, borders blur, rivalries pause, and we’re reminded that connection is still possible.

06/16/2026

Every match lasts 90 minutes. What if those 90 minutes could help us find common ground, too?

Welcome to 90 Minutes of Common Ground—our new series exploring how the world’s game brings people together across every divide ⚽️🌍

Before they were World Cup players, they were children with dreams.Children who deserved safety.
Children who deserved o...
06/11/2026

Before they were World Cup players, they were children with dreams.

Children who deserved safety.
Children who deserved opportunity.
Children who deserved a future.

This World Refugee Month, we celebrate four athletes whose journeys remind us of a simple truth: when people are given the chance to rebuild, they don’t just survive—they help shape our world for the better.

The women once told to stay quiet are now leading peace in the places conflict hits hardest. Across coastal Kenya, women...
06/10/2026

The women once told to stay quiet are now leading peace in the places conflict hits hardest. Across coastal Kenya, women are stepping into prisons, security spaces, and community forums as mediators, mentors, and peacebuilders.

What’s changing isn’t just who has a seat at the table, but who is redesigning the table itself. And that shift is transforming entire communities.

Peace doesn’t always look the way we expect. Sometimes it looks like women learning a new skill, starting a business, an...
06/09/2026

Peace doesn’t always look the way we expect. Sometimes it looks like women learning a new skill, starting a business, and building trust across community lines.

In Hagadera, what began as tie-and-dye training grew into livelihoods, friendships, and a future shaped together. Because when people have the opportunity to thrive, peace has room to grow.

For one month, billions of people from different countries, beliefs, and backgrounds gather around the same game. That’s...
06/08/2026

For one month, billions of people from different countries, beliefs, and backgrounds gather around the same game. That’s the quiet power of football: it creates spaces where connection becomes bigger than division. 

Across communities impacted by conflict, sport has helped rebuild trust, create belonging, and bring people back together again. The World Cup isn’t just a tournament. It’s a reminder of what’s still possible when people choose community over conflict.

This World Refugee Month, we’re celebrating the women in Burundi weaving more than baskets. They’re weaving income, conf...
06/04/2026

This World Refugee Month, we’re celebrating the women in Burundi weaving more than baskets. They’re weaving income, confidence, and new futures for their families and communities. 

What started as listening sessions around a radio became small businesses, shared knowledge, and renewed hope. Peacebuilding sometimes looks less like a conference room and more like women sitting side by side, creating something together.

Address

1730 Rhode Island Avenue NW Suite 1101
Washington D.C., DC
20036

Telephone

+12022654300

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