The Konrad Adenauer Foundation Morocco-Mauritania, the Center for Studies and Research on Hebrew Culture and Law in Morocco, and the Morocco House for Peace organized an international symposium around the theme “Building a New Vision of Peace: A Prospective and Holistic Approach.” Held in a spirit of dialogue and critical reflection, this event brought together academics, experts, and institutional representatives to examine the foundations of sustainable peace in light of the Moroccan context.
The opening session was inaugurated by Steven Höfner, Resident Representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, who emphasized that peace cannot be the exclusive domain of political decision-makers. He stressed the need for cross-sector involvement, mobilizing social, intellectual, and cultural spheres in a collective effort to consolidate an inclusive coexistence.
In the first presentation, Éric Dugas, professor and director of the Department of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences and disability officer at the University of Bordeaux, highlighted the need to reconfigure dominant peace paradigms. Contrasting the competitive zero-sum logic with a cooperative, positive-sum approach, he advocated for systemic inclusion based on expanded empathy. According to him, this transformation requires the active recognition of otherness and a social architecture capable of transcending fragmented interactions.
Abdellah Ouzitane, founding president of the Center for Studies and Research on Hebrew Law, explored the spiritual and diplomatic dimensions of peace by referring to Morocco's historical role in promoting a balanced Islam, supported by Maliki legitimacy and Sufi heritage. He highlighted imam training programs in Rabat as instruments of proactive religious diplomacy and praised the royal Atlantic Sahel initiative as a contemporary extension of Africa's ambition for stability and integration. He reminded the audience that peace, to become real, requires not only time but also collective imagination and sustained political commitment.
Artist and singer Hicham Dinar presented the role of zaouias as spaces of cohesion and interfaith coexistence. He particularly emphasized the Zaouia of Essaouira as a living laboratory of coexistence, illustrating the possibility of harmony founded on compassion and spirituality. He called for these models to be reintegrated into public discourse as a cultural response to the rise of intolerance.
Mohammed El Abassi, engineer and founding member of the CRDHM, concluded the series of interventions by questioning classical security frameworks. He opposed the fortress logic—rigid but reassuring—to that of the network—open but vulnerable. He proposed a third way based on education and moral resilience, highlighting the risks of a security obsession disconnected from fundamental human values.
The meeting ended with a shared realization: peace cannot be sustainable without inclusion. It requires a systemic vision, diplomacy rooted in history, and an empathy-centered approach. In this respect, the Moroccan model, strong in its spiritual and institutional heritage, emerges as a source of inspiration in a world marked by multiple tensions—geopolitical, digital, and cultural.