Programme
DAY 1 | Wednesday 6th May
09:30 – 13:00
WORKSHOP
Tech-Enabled Peace: Digital Strategies for Transformed Foreign Policy
Can digital technologies support peace processes? This seminar explores the increasing role of AI in foreign policy, with a particular focus on armed conflicts and peacebuilding. Particular attention will be given to understanding both the opportunities and risks that AI presents for actors and institutions already involved in diplomacy and peace processes.
10:00 – 13:00
CLOSED-DOOR
What Role For DDR in Ending Wars?
Insights From Ethiopia
Disarmament, Demobilisation and Rehabilitation (DDR) is often positioned as a bridge between war and peace, yet it is also one of the most politically and operationally demanding parts of a transition. This closed-door action talk will bring together key stakeholders to discuss what DDR can realistically deliver in Ethiopia.
15:00 – 17:00
WORKSHOP
Reclaiming DDR Through Women’s Eyes
Women’s perspectives in Disarmament, Demobilisation and Rehabilitation (DDR) are paramount to end wars in some regions. This seminar connects “ending wars” to the lived realities of women in conflict and post-conflict settings and to the choices that shape reintegration, safety, and dignity.
14:00 – 17:00
TRAINING
Peace and Conflict Narratives in Journalism
How is peace narrated in conflict times? The training analyses the story of conflicts from the victims’ point of view and focuses on the ethical duty to communicate peace. The event will be held in Italian.
17:30 – 18:30
EXHIBITION OPENING
HE[R]EAL: Reclaiming DDR Through Women’s Eyes
The exhibition is a UNDP–FBA global multimedia initiative designed to foreground women’s and girls’ diverse roles and experiences in Disarmament, Demobilisation and Rehabilitation (DDR) and peacebuilding, and to stimulate dialogue among governments, practitioners, donors, and other stakeholders.
DAY 2 | Thursday 7th May
09:30 – 16:30
CONFERENCE
Ending Wars. Shaping New Paths To Peace
The challenge of bringing wars to an end and building lasting peace has never been greater. The conference will explore what it truly means to “end wars” in the present era: not only stopping violence, but transforming the systems and conditions that sustain it.
DAY 3 | Friday 8th May
09:15 – 16:00
SYMPOSIUM
Advancing Mediation in a Multipolar World
While global power dynamics evolve and wars intensify, mediation remains an indispensable instrument of international peace and security. This symposium focuses on strengthening mediation as a professional, institutional, and strategic tool for conflict prevention and resolution.
18:00 – 19:00
PUBLIC EVENT
Piazza Coperta, Salaborsa
Closing Talk
The closing ceremony marks the 10th anniversary of Agency for Peacebuilding, offering a public event in Italian to reflect on the meaning of “ending wars” with experts in an accessible and engaging way.
The event will be held in Italian.
Visioni di pace: perché i diritti si fermano alla frontiera
Costanza Spocci dialoga con Remon Karam
Cosa succede quando i diritti smettono di essere universali e diventano privilegi legati a un confine? In questo dialogo pubblico a conclusione del Bologna Peacebuilding Forum, la giornalista di RAI Radio Costanza Spocci dialoga con l’attivista Remon Karam per esplorare le crepe di un sistema globale che fatica a garantire diritti tra processi migratori e guerre.
SIDE EVENTS: BPF 2026 EXHIBITIONS
HE[R]EAL – HER REALITY: Ending Wars Through Women’s Eyes
Step into the often-unseen realities of women and girls in contexts of conflict and transition, where their roles, voices, and experiences remain too often overlooked.
Through a powerful selection of impactful photographic visuals, the exhibition reveals stories of resilience, complexity, and agency beyond stereotypical representations.
Developed in collaboration with:
ENDING WARS /
IMAGING PEACE
Historical peace posters in dialogue with contemporary photography, the Ending Wars/Imaging Peace exhibit explores peace not as a final outcome, but as a process to be declared, defended, practised, and sustained in everyday life.
Developed together with:
