By Kerri Kennedy and Jessica Chiu

You’ve probably never heard of France Remy. France lost her home in the 2010 earthquake that devastated Haiti. While reconstruction efforts focused on relieving the immediate needs of earthquake survivors, France saw another problem growing in the camps: widespread violence.

David Niyonzima on the traditional role of elders as peacemakers

Listen to David Niyonzima, founder and director of the Trauma Healing and Reconconiliation Services (THARS) in Burundi, on the traditional role of elders as community peacemakers. David's work involves leading workshops on trauma healing and providing community spaces for peaceful dialogue and reconciliation.

This June, QUNO was pleased to host a visit from Adrien Niyongabo, Coordinator of Healing and Rebuilding our Communities (HROC) in Burundi. HROC emerged from Alternatives to Violence, a conflict resolution program developed by Quakers and prisoners in the United States and Canada. Quakers in Burundi, recognizing the need for reconciliation and healing between Hutu and Tutsi communities, have been conducting three-day HROC workshops to help participants cope with trauma and restore relationships.

Gaza 14 June 2012: Fifty international charities and United Nations Agencies have unanimously called for the lifting of the blockade of Gaza. The organizations have published a simple three line statement to mark the fifth anniversary of the tightening of the blockade of the Strip.

It reads:

For over five years in Gaza, more than 1.6 million people have been under blockade in violation of international law. More than half of these people are children. We the undersigned say with one voice: “end the blockade now.”

15 relief agencies warn humanitarian needs in Somalia must not be ignored as over 2 million still in dire need of assistance

As the post-earthquake situation in Haiti continues to evolve, AFSC is adapting to changing needs. After over a year working in the camps with displaced people, we are developing a teacher training program in partnership with the St. Charles Borromee school.

We asked Carmen Ortiz, AFSC’s Haiti Program Director, to answer a few questions about this new phase in her work:

Throughout the Horn of Africa more than 12 million people are facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today. Somalis are fleeing the effects of conflict and famine – more than 1,200 people each day – and arriving in Kenya. AFSC is working to meet the needs of newly arrived refugees in the camps in Dadaab.

In the last few weeks, AFSC has worked with our partner Handicap International to purchase walkers and wheelchairs to assist refugees with physical difficulties. This allows them to better access food, water and other necessary items to survive.

An escalating food crisis is taking place in the Horn of Africa, creating a situation where at least 10 million people are in need of emergency relief in the region. United Nations officials are calling this "the worst drought in the area in 60 years."

The American Friends Service Committee is working in the Dadaab refugee camp on the Somalia-Kenya border and with local partners inside Somalia to support lasting peace efforts before this food crisis began. Now, our work is adapting to help people survive the humanitarian crisis.

Somalia is experiencing the worst drought in decades. The Somali people are facing one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world today. One in every three children living in South-Central Somalia is malnourished according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The drought’s impact has been exacerbated by the increase in food prices and ongoing violent conflict. The violence makes it incredibly difficult to deliver vital supplies of food, water and emergency provisions inside Somalia.