Women + Business = Peace

by Paige Churchman (New York City)

The Business Council for Peace, affectionately known as Bpeace (“Be Peace”) to its members, is a couple of hundred businesswomen and a few men who work with women in regions of conflict to build businesses and thus foster peace.

Bpeace describes itself as apolitical, but its members do share the belief that entrepreneurship can be a foundation for hope and stability in areas ripped apart by violence. This idea of “women + business = peace” came from Anne Glauber, a senior vice president at the public relations agency Ruder Finn, and Dr. Noeleen Heyser, who at that time was the executive director of UNIFEM, the UN’s development fund for women. The year was 2002, and Glauber and Heyser were two of 700 women who had gathered in Geneva for the first summit of the Global Peace Initiative of Women.

“The conflicts fueled by men,” said Glauber, “Must be countered by a new process of peace fashioned and implemented by women. It is time and it is critical for women to assume a larger role and responsibility.” Women’s natural and practiced skills in mediation, compromise, relationship building, Glauber felt, could be put to use to build a different paradigm for conflict resolution and peace building in war-torn areas. A way for women to start claiming their power could be through the economy, and women where Glauber comes from knew something about that.

UNIFEM had already begun to explore ways to involve businesses in a better vision for the world, but for Noeleen Heyser, this was about more than money. A recent trip to Rwanda had changed her in a way she’d never anticipated. It wasn’t the machete scars on the women she met. It wasn’t that they thought the world had forgotten about them. What cracked Heyser open in a new way was how the Rwandan women had adopted the orphans of their enemies. And they weren’t just taking on one or two children, some women now mothered a dozen kids. They told Heyser they came to a point where they could cry no more and they realized they had a choice: stay in their pain or transform it. “I thought knew all about forgiveness,” said Heyser, “And they taught me more.”

This is what got me―that the gifts flow both ways. I was one of the smattering of businesswomen among the 700 delegates in Geneva. Our snazzy corporate garb, which normally helped us blend in, stood out in a sea of white robes, dull robes, glittering saris, big splashy African cloths, and the simple shirts and trousers of delegates like Jane Goodall. But being good businesswomen, we were bubbling with long lists of practical ideas for how our businesses could promote peace. Glauber gave us a vehicle that enabled all our ideas to actually do something for the world. A business council sounded like a fine idea, but first we’d have to create it.

And so we did. It was an idea whose time was ripe; members flocked to us. UNIFEM helped us target where we could do the most good: Afghanistan and Rwanda. We set up action teams, wrote plans, went on missions and saw immediate successes. First out the door were the beautiful baskets woven by hand in traditional Rwandan patterns by the women Heyser had met. A Bpeace member christened them “Peace Baskets,” and we used her crafts business to bring them to market. Bring them to market we did. Other members jumped in with some great media connections to spread the word for us. The baskets sold like crazy. It was a dream come true. Except for one problem. How could a few dozen women sitting in a field in Rwanda painstakingly weaving baskets by hand fill thousands of orders?

Today problems like that have been worked out. Where Bpeace is most effective is in transferring strategic thinking, training and mentoring. Now Bpeace looks for what it calls “the fast runners,” the women most likely succeed, the emerging entrepreneurs. It takes a good look at the region to determine what where the potential for new businesses is. The fast runners become part of a comprehensive three-year program. The first year is dedicated to mentoring and training. Year two is about building her business, helping her increase demand and increase capacity. In the final year, Bpeace works on promotion and influence―making her an “easily recognizable and respected personality locally and internationally thus inspiring other women to build businesses.”

Bpeace also has worked out how best to use its diverse membership of over 400 members (full disclosure: I left Bpeace in 2004). Each member decides how she or he wants to contribute. Some members relish on-the-ground experience. They want to see Rwanda or Afghanistan. They want to meet the women. Members like this go on Bpeace missions or become traveling mentors. But most members contribute without leaving their home bases. Founding member Toni Maloney pegged herself as that kind of member, but you never know. She quickly surprised herself by leading Bpeace’s first mission to Afghanistan in 2003. She now serves on the governing board, which also includes a filmmaker, an attorney, a retail consultant and various executives. Bpeace was born from a heart-felt vision that continues to evolve and grow.