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eace has frequently been confused with just the absence of violence. In fact, it requires a lot more. Peace means fairness, justice and accountability. Ceasefires may silence guns for a while, but violence may always return until there are challenging sources of unrest. Poverty, inequality, exclusion from society and degradation of the natural world are not social problems alone; they also precipitate instability. Violence cannot then stand alone. It often has roots in unmet needs of humanity, flawed governance and structural injustice.
Peace, thus, must be addressed across its various dimensions. It starts with inner peace and goes through peace with others and out further to peace with the environment. These dimensions are connected. Violence at borders disrupts societies; conflicts dismantle infrastructures; environmental degradation creates shortages and shortages fuel unrest. Poverty and inequality fuel cycles of frustration and violence. Peace thus needs to go with sustainable development. Human progress cannot take root in violence-plagued or unstable societies. Sustainable Development Goal 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions), therefore, properly indicates that peace and security are a necessity and not an option; they are at the very heart of the development agenda.
For a very long period, development used to be measured mainly through numbers: per capita income, GDP growth rate, literacy rates and school enrolments. Whilst valuable, they only tell part of the story. A country may record good economic growth while its citizens are trapped in poverty, exclusion or deprivation of liberties. Economist Amartya Sen challenged this simplistic model of development. In his seminal book, Development as Freedom (1999), Sen argued that real development involves extending the freedoms and capabilities of people. For Sen, economic freedom, social freedom, political freedom, openness and security are complementary. Wealth creation is part of what development involves; it’s also empowering people to live with dignity and make their own choices and build their destinies.
Such an approach diverts us from cold numbers. We are reminded that schools are neither about best enrolment numbers nor quality of learning at worst; healthcare is neither about hospitals, it’s about accessibility and fairness; political systems are neither about elections, they are about fairness, accountability and justice.
Peace is at once the base of development and one of its consequences. Unless peace has fairness and inclusion integrated into it, it becomes fleeting. To sustain peace, societies should at all times aim at reducing inequalities. Gender inequality, social class division, territorial exclusion, religious sectarianism, discrimination because of caste and race and ethnic discrimination are all dangers of social fragmentation. These are addressed with more policies than a society with both prosperity and fairness as its highest ambitions. When people feel forgotten, excluded, or demeaned, peace becomes volatile. When societies ensure dignity, fairness and opportunity, peace becomes lasting.
Schools are neither about best enrolment numbers nor quality of learning at worst. Healthcare is neither about hospitals; it’s about accessibility and fairness. Political systems are neither about elections; they are about fairness, accountability and justice.
This is why peace can and should be an end and a means. It’s a means because with peace we can promote and preserve education, development and prosperity. It’s an end because it represents the ideal of a fair world where citizens can enjoy their freedom from want and fear.
Brundtland Commission’s iconic definition still guides us: sustainable development is “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” Three mutually reinforcing components are the foundation of this vision: economic growth, environmental protection and social fairness. Economic growth generates productivity, jobs and livelihoods and thus preserves human dignity. Environmental protection preserves ecosystems, biodiversity and natural resources for future generations. Social fairness ensures social inclusion, health and education, gender and social justice; and human rights.
These components are interdependent. Economic growth that destroys nature is inefficient. Environmental protection at the cost of social injustice may elicit resentment. Social injustice with no means of survival will stagnate. Sustainable development requires a balance. Enhancement of one component cannot endure while others are left behind.
Education plays a key part in this vision. It’s a path to a job as much as a way of unlocking broad liberties. Education enables people to question, innovate and construct a society. When paired with inclusiveness and fairness, education presents a compelling tool for reducing inequality. When restricted or withheld, it maintains injustice and exclusion. That’s why peace and development are dependent upon investment in fair and inclusive systems of learning. Schools and universities can and should do more than educate people; they should create critical thinking and a capacity for empathy and civic responsibility.
A dream of peace and development equals a just society. A just society values freedom, protects the vulnerable and ensures that future generations inherit opportunity and hope, not scarcity and strife. Peace is no abstract ideal; it’s practical, possible and fundamental. Peace and sustainable development underpin and are the results of one another. Without peace, development has failed. Without development, peace cannot last.
As we face global issues - climate change, inequality, displacement and conflict - peace and development become that much more interlinked. If we are to move beyond rhetoric, we must build systems that ensure fairness, accountability and dignity for everybody. Only then can we build societies founded on justice.
The writer is aneducationist and asocial historian. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shahidksiddiqui/;Website: www.https://drshahidsiddiqui.com/