Structural incentives sustain conflict; systemic change needed for lasting peace
Original framing: “Is war more profitable than peace? David Keen explains” — Al Jazeera
Conflict-affected communities often have deep knowledge of local peacebuilding practices, but their voices are systematically excluded from global policy discussions. Including these perspectives is essential for designing inclusive and effective peace strategies.
The profitability of war is not a natural outcome but a systemic feature of global power structures that benefit from crisis and conflict.
By examining the role of Indigenous peacebuilding, historical patterns of empire, and cross-cultural approaches to conflict resolution, we can see that peace is not only possible but economically and socially advantageous when supported through structural reform. Marginalized voices, scientific evidence, and artistic traditions all point to the need for a systemic shift away from war economies toward sustainable peace economies. This requires coordinated action across policy, education, and finance to dismantle the incentives that sustain conflict and to invest in long-term peacebuilding.