Grace Initiative Global and Yale Divinity School: UN CSW 70 Side Event:

Restorative Justice Strategies for Haitian Women Internally Displaced

17 March 2026 at the Scandinavia House, New York,

The Haiti Healing Project:

Restorative Justice Strategies for Haitian Women Internally Displaced

As international and regional stakeholders intensify efforts to restore stability in Haiti, including the deployment of security operations to address armed violence, displacement patterns remain fluid and deeply gendered. Experience from comparable stabilization contexts indicates that enforcement measures—while necessary—can coincide with increased civilian displacement, often outpacing the development of adequate protection, justice, and accountability mechanisms.

This discussion envisages restorative justice strategies as a complementary component of stabilization and humanitarian responses. It explores how survivor-centered, non-carceral approaches can mitigate harm, strengthen accountability, and preserve dignity for internally displaced women, particularly where formal judicial institutions are inaccessible, overwhelmed, or non-operational. Restorative justice is not proposed as a substitute for criminal accountability, but as a pragmatic and protective mechanism that can operate alongside security and humanitarian efforts to reduce cycles of violence and vulnerability.

While international security measures are essential to address urgent threats, durable peace requires systems that uphold dignity, rebuild relationships, and reinforce community-based protection mechanisms. This proposed project envisages:

Principles Survivor-Centered Approach: The project prioritizes victim healing over perpetrator rehabilitation (also very important), focusing on restoring dignity, agency, and economic empowerment for internally displaced Haitian women Holistic Integration. Successful humanitarian response must integrate four pillars: trauma healing, restorative justice, community dialogue, and food security through women-led agriculture Restorative Justice Framework. This is Distinguished from transitional justice (national-level Truth Commissions) and criminal justice (punishment-focused), restorative justice emphasizes personal and community healing, asking "who was harmed?" and "how can relationships be repaired?"

Food Systems as Social Infrastructure: Agriculture and food sovereignty serve as entry points for rebuilding social fabric, economic capacity, ecological stewardship, and community cohesion in fragile environments Trauma-Informed Justice: Recognition that trauma shapes how survivors remember, speak, and trust—requiring safe spaces, trauma narrative therapy, and do-no-harm approaches Faith-Based Community Support: Faith communities provide trusted structures that function during crisis, offering spaces for restorative circles, economic empowerment through savings groups, and intergenerational attitude change Bottom-Up Participation: Haitian voices, needs, and resilience must be centered in all project design through participatory mapping and partnership with local organizations. It incorporates an African Ubuntu Philosophy: Community-centered approaches rooted in "I am because we are" recognize that healing happens in relationship and that outside interventions must respect inherent dignity within affected communities

How the small state of Vermont is trying to become a leader in refugee resettlement

JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:

The U.S. immigration debate has largely focused on the illegal entry of migrants through the U.S. southern border. Most come from Central and South America. The people who often get left out of conversations about immigration are refugees - people fleeing war or persecution. Vermont has a big refugee problem, despite being one of the smallest states, and it's working to resettle hundreds of people from Haiti, Eritrea and Afghanistan. NPR's Sergio Martínez-Beltrán has our story.

SERGIO MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN, BYLINE: The community library in Manchester, Vt., is a beautiful building on a quiet road. Lush trees adorn the surroundings here. This library is one of the informal meeting points for the recently arrived Haitian refugees. Jean Gerard Jusmi (ph) is one of them.

JEAN GERARD JUSMI: Vermont is very quiet. Yes, it's very quiet. I can say very organic, too.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: Jusmi comes here for the free Wi-Fi. He enjoys volunteering at the local community garden, growing lettuce and tomatoes. A high school math and physics teacher back in Haiti, Jusmi here works in a hotel during the day and at a New England bistro at night, making salads and desserts. He says he left his homeland in April, due to growing lawlessness and gang violence. Basic government services once again collapsed.

JUSMI: There is a bad situation in Haiti. (Inaudible) the gangs there - you know, bad situation right now.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: According to the United Nations, gang violence has displaced nearly 600,000 Haitians this year alone. More than 200,000 Haitian migrants, like Jusmi, have resettled in the U.S. Vermont is a state that has put out a welcome mat.

TRACY DOLAN: So it's the right thing to help people and to give them refuge.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: Tracy Dolan is the director of Vermont's State Refugee Office.

DOLAN: There are more refugees around the world than there have ever been. Most never get the chance to actually find safety beyond a temporary camp in another country.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: Since October of last year, the U.S. has resettled over 86,000 refugees from around the globe. That's the biggest resettlement since 1995. Vermont has already settled about 300 refugees this year. They have a goal of 400 by the end of September, but Dolan says there's a problem.

DOLAN: Housing has been the biggest challenge, both the cost of it - it's expensive - but primarily the availability.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: A housing assessment made by the state government said Vermont needs up to 36,000 additional year-round homes in the next five years to meet overall housing demands. So resettlement agencies have had to get creative to find housing. Assisted living facilities, restaurants and hotels in Manchester have offered rooms free or at a reduced price for refugees who work there. Yvonne Lodico is the founder of Grace Initiative Global, one of the nonprofits resettling refugees in Vermont.

YVONNE LODICO: So we have been able to meet our housing challenge almost all through the support of employers.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: Still, Lodico says her agency is also looking to rent a house with multiple rooms, as more and more refugees are resettled here.

LODICO: The challenge to that will be, of course, putting the right people together. We cannot have some people who don't eat pork with people who do eat pork, for example.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: Lodico says those religious and cultural differences need to be taken into consideration. Her agency has been able to bring nearly a hundred refugees to Vermont since last year, most of them Haitians. Jean Gerard Jusmi is part of a hotel maintenance crew here. His employer gave him his own small room in a building on the property.

JUSMI: I come to work in the United States to help my family, my wife, my kids. You know, I have two kids. They stay in Haiti.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: He says he's grateful for the opportunity and the help that he's received from the community.

JUSMI: I really like Vermont. I don't want to leave Vermont. I don't want to quit Vermont.

MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN: Jusmi says his next goal is to bring his wife and two children to his adopted hometown. Sergio Martínez-Beltrán, NPR News, Manchester, Vt.

National Public Radio Interview with Grace Initiative Global in Manchester VT

How the small state of Vermont is trying to become a leader in refugee resettlement

SEPTEMBER 16, 20246:15 PM ET

HEARD ON ALL THINGS CONSIDERED

Vermont is trying to become a leader in refugee resettlement. Many employers say migrants are needed to fill open jobs. But there are some serious challenges that could get in the way.

For World Refugee Day: A Discussion on the Challenges and Perils Refugees Face and Recommendations for Safety, Objectivity, and a Path for Self-Sufficiency

Manchester Community Library, Manchester, VT

June 24, 2023 - 2:00-4:00 PM

Grace Initiative Global organized a discussion on World Refugee Day, which is an occasion to build understanding and empathy for refugees’ plight and to recognize their resilience in rebuilding their lives.”[1] This critical discussion took place at the Manchester Community Library on June 24, 2:00-4:00 PM. 

Overview:

A refugee is a person who has fled their own country because they are at risk of serious human rights violations, armed conflict/gang violence and or persecution. The devasting impact on human security due to economic collapse, natural disaster or climate change can also compel people to flee. Some refugees no longer feel safe and might have been targeted just because of who they are or what they do or believe – for example, for their ethnicity, religion, sexuality, or political opinions.  

Refugees flee because the threat to their safety and lives is so great that they feel that they have no choice but to leave and to safety outside their country. This is most often due to failed states, civil war or a sovereign which ignores or carries out severe human rights violations against its own citizens, and who cannot or will not protect them from those dangers. Under international law, which is supreme law, refugees have a right to international protection.

Purpose:

Although refugees flee because of real dangers to their lives, their path for safety and security, is laden with perilous challenges including criminality, discrimination, gender-based violence, environmental threats, and exclusion.  In addition, some refugees, especially women and girls, risk falling prey to human trafficking and other forms of exploitation.  In fact, if their countries were considered safe, most who flee would prefer to develop their lives in their home countries. To this end, we held a discussion  to discern strategies for security, objectivity, and a path for self-sufficiency. 

Grace Initiative Global called for: Empowering the Marsh Arab Women (the oldest indigenous group in the world) to counter the impact of climate Change

 (Parallel event held on March 23, 2022)

Decreased water and food availability, as well as extreme temperatures, are expected to negatively affect food, water, social and health security, impacting the most vulnerable – women and girls. 

Given its unique hydrological limitations, Iraq is one of the most vulnerable countries to  climate change impacts in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, particularly due to its arid and downstream location.[1] Iraq is highly vulnerable to changes in precipitation levels. Moreover, the low water level in southern Iraq coupled with sea-level rise in the Persian Gulf has led to the intrusion of soil in Shatt El Arab and groundwater resources, increasing the salinity of water and causing serious damages to the surrounding lands. This situation creates extreme challenges to the people in Marsh Lands, especially the women.2

We examined our proposed project for establishing a community center for women to receive advanced warning and information on water flows, extreme heat.  In addition to information, the Center would facilitate engagement and information regarding climate, extreme heat and water and pollution as well as water reduction. The programme focuses on women and girls’ leadership for engagement and empowerment.  

[1] Salma Kadry. Gender and Water Dynamics in Iraq: Towards Inclusive and Sustainable Water Responses,    

(Ebarlament – Cultures of Democracy, 2021), p. 5. Accessed at https://elbarlament.org/wpcontent/uploads/2021/06/article-II.pdf  2 UNDP.  “Ahwari women, The beating heart of the Iraqi marshes” (March 8, 2021).    

Accessed at https://www.iq.undp.org/content/iraq/en/home/stories/2021-stories/03/ahwari-women.html 8 Brian Fagan and Nadia Durrani. Climate Chaos Lessons on Survival from our Ancestors, (New York: Public Affairs, 2021), p. 55. 9 Kadry, p. 2.  

Grace Initiative Global organizes important discussion on peacebuilding : Applicable to all internationally - even the United States. Program delivered on GNAT.org

Peacebuilding is an activity that aims to resolve injustice in nonviolent ways and to transform the cultural & structural conditions that generated violence. It is not just a question of national capacity in terms of understanding, education, expertise as in the traditional international peacebuilding strategy, but rather a recognition that resolving grievances, injustices, frustration. 

According to the UN: Most peacebuilding happens once conflict – i.e. major, large-scale violence – has ended. But some peacebuilding tasks can start even during conflict. For example, in pockets of peace, civil society organizations, local government or traditional actors may be promoting conflict resolution mechanisms, or seeking to provide basic services or develop livelihood opportunities.

Contributions from Yale Divinity School, UN DPPA, Goddard College, Jerusalem Peacebuilders, Sant Egidio, experts Robin Lloyd (WILFP USA), Maj. General Michael Smith (ret), Dr. Abraham Joseph.

On March 23, 2021, the Grace Initiative Global, organized a virtual session during the 65th UN Commission on the Status of Women conference. Our session focused on:  Addressing and Preventing Gender Based Violence through Empowerment and Generation Equality.

The session took into consideration the limitations of Covid, and held a global CSW event. Our session included a worldwide perspective embracing dedicated and compassionate experts representing organizations in Vermont, in Geneva, Brazil, Iraq, Colombia and Uganda.   Our experts discussed the sobering situation of Gender Based Violence (GBV) for women and girls globally, which intensified with the Covid Pandemic.

Women learn to sew masks, which are provided to the Iraq’s Ministry of Education for ensuring the good health of school children.

WITH THE INNOVATION OF MERCY HANDS FOR HUMANITARIAN AID, GRACE INITIATIVE GLOBAL SUPPORTS WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN IRAQ - ENSURING GOOD HEALTH AND EARNING A LIVELIHOOD - DURING THE PANDEMIC 2020

International IDEA, Yale Divinity, Grace Initiative Global

AGRICULTURE, FARMING AND FOOD SECURITY

& PEACEFUL SOCIETIES

Agriculture, Farming and Food Security

Peaceful and Inclusive Communities

UN Headquarters: Conference Room 8 

3 October 2019 - 10:00 am to 1:00 pm 

In the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development[1]the international community set out to transform our world by tackling multiple challenges through holistic and synergistic mechanisms to ensure well‐being, economic prosperity, and environmental protection. Agriculture and sustainable farming represents an integral component for the global community to realize the 2030 Agenda’s interrelated transformational goals. 

In the Secretary-General’s report on Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition noted that most of the world’s 570 million farms are small and family-run; with family farms cultivating about 75% of the world’s agricultural land.[2] Also, the  UN Decade of Family Farming (2019–2028) calls for Governments to develop public policies and investments to support family farming from a holistic perspective, to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and “To Leave No One Behind.” 

UN CSW 63

Iraqi Women Building Peace and Security

Grace Initiative Global co-sponsors - High-Level UN Side Event 

by Elizabeth Corredor

Ph.D. Candidate Rutgers University, Political Science

On Friday March 15, 2019, the UN Commission on Status of Women (CSW) sixty-third session, UN CSW 63featured a high-level event: “Iraqi Women at the Helm of Rebuilding, Peace and Stability” at UN Headquarters in New York. The co-sponsors for this unique and critical side event comprised: the Permanent Mission of Iraq to the UN, Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN, the SRSG on Sexual Violence in Conflict, the UN-WomenIraq Country Office; and, the Grace Initiative Global. The panel exemplified Iraq’s laudable commitment for empowering women in peace-building - ensuring Iraq’s transformation to a sustainable peace and a more secure future.

Grace Initiative Global founder, Yvonne Lodico, opened the event with a quote from Nobel Peace Laureate: Nadia Murad who stated during her acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize, “Women must be involved in building lasting peace among communities. With the voice and participation of women, we can make fundamental changes in our communities.” Ms. Lodico pointed out that this was especially profound in view of the tragic shooting of the mosque in New Zealand that took place on March 14. These attributes underscored the goals of this high-level event, which illuminates Iraq’s collective and holistic efforts to transcend the destruction and horror of violent extremists, by ensuring that women are a vital part of the peace-building efforts.  

Speakers included: Mayor of Bagdad H.E. Ms. Thikra Alwash; Permanent Representative of Germany to the U.N. H.E. Ambassador Christopher Heusgen; Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs of the League of Arab States H.E. Sheikha Hessa Bint Khalifa Althani; Under Secretary Gender SRSG on Sexual Violence in Conflict H.E. Ms. Pramila Patten; Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Iraq H.E. Ms. Hala Saleem; President of High Council of Women Affairs Ms. Bakhshan Zangana; Director General of Women Empowerment Dr. Ibtisam Ali.  The resounding theme of the session was fostering women’s empowerment and addressing systemic discrimination to achieve sustainable peace and reconciliation. 

Each speaker addressed issues related to women’s participation, protection, and prevention ensure their inclusion in peace building processes.  

Participation

Despite the growing presence of women as government representatives in Iraq, women remain largely unrepresented in the peace process. The adoption of the Iraqi National Action Plan in accordance with UNSCR 1325 is a promising start and makes Iraqthe first Middle Eastern country to adopt a national action plan. Nonetheless, it remains a top priority to further recognize women not just as passive victims, but also as talented leaders and publicly recognized agents of change within their communities.

Protection

Iraqi women are some of the world’s most vulnerable people with regards to sexual violence, domestic violence, and systematic discrimination. The dire need to update Iraq’s laws to on sexual violence to meet international standards was emphasized, as was the fact that most, if not all, perpetrators of sexual violence in Iraq go unpunished. Session speakers stressed the need to update Iraqi law so that it meets the at least the minimal standards of international law. Such changes are

Required in order to eradicate the pervasive discrimination against women in Iraqi culture.

Prevention

A final resounding message focused on the need to craft policy that focuses on the rebuilding of lives in addition to systems and infrastructure. A key priority is making vital medical and mental health services available for women and for the children born and raised in war. Additionally, economic empowerment opportunities promise to strengthen women’s positions within their communities. Ultimately, policies need to focus on realizing and building upon the capabilities of Iraqi women.

Lastly, H.E. Bhar Aluloom, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq to the UN, closed the session, thanking all the speakers and emphasizing the utmost importance of women’s inclusion for sustainable peace and security for Iraq, and praising the international community’s support for this great fundamental goal. 

Burlington Forum on Coexistence

the 70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Episcopal Church Cathedral Church of Saint Paul

2 Cherry Street

Burlington, VT 

December 7, 2018 9:00 AM-1:00 PM

In honor of the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights, a milestone document that proclaimed the equality, justice and human dignity for all people - we are organizing the Burlington Forum on Coexistence at the Episcopal Church Cathedral Church of Saint Paul in Burlington on December 7, 2018, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.  This Forum followed the spirit and rationale of the Boston Forum on Coexistence in a Democratic Society held on December 8, 2017.  

During the Boston Forum, the participants agreed that we should build upon the goals and outcomes of that Forum and hold fora in other parts of the United States. Therefore, drawing upon this inaugural Forum, we propose a series called the Forum on Co-Existence in a Democratic Society.  This Forum emphasized the recognition and respect of the dignity of every person, a principle underscored in the Universal Declaration.  Regrettably, this fundamental right diminishes when it comes to accepting difference due inter alia of gender, race, religion or nationality. 

To this end, the purpose of the Forum is to promote a platform for dignity, respect and coexistence, and a road map for addressing the continuation of a heightened hatred, anger, exclusionary outcry. We look for paths of healing and for nurturing positive discourse, with a commitment to fundamental human rights, dignity, respect, and coexistence.  

On December 10, 1948, in the wake of the horrors of WWII, the International community convened to commit to respect the dignity of all humankind.  We hope to revive this spirit of commitment to human rights on the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights during the Burlington Forum on Coexistence.

About the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights represented a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on December 10, 1948 as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages. Learn more at http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/.

About The Episcopal Church in Vermont

The Episcopal Church in Vermont comprises 45 congregations across the Green Mountain State that share in the mission to pray the prayer of Christ, to learn the mind of Christ, and to do the deeds of Christ. The congregations live into this mission through ministries of Formation, Liberation, Communication, Connection, and Celebration. The Episcopal Church in Vermont is a member of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Learn more at https://diovermont.org/.  

Featured Speakers

·       The Rev. Nicholas Porter, co-founder, Jerusalem PeaceBuilders

·       Jeff Mandell, program director, Kids4Peace - VT/NH Chapter

·       Rabbi Amy Small, Ohavi Zedek Synagogue

·       Yvonne Lodico, founder, Grace Initiative Global

·       Syed Meesam Razvi, Executive Director, Alliance for Research and Scholastic Heritage

·       The Rev. Dr. Arnold Thomas, pastor, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Underhill, VT

·       Maurice L. Harris, diocesan communications minister and co-convener of the Racial Reconciliation/Healing Network, The Episcopal Church in Vermont

·       The Rev. Earl Kooperkamp, treasurer, and past President, Vermont Interfaith Action; rector, Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, Barre, VT

·       Mark Hughes, co-founder and director, Justice For All

·       Bor Yang, executive director & legal counsel, Vermont Human Rights

[1]https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg16

The Permanent Mission of Iraq, the Grace Initiative, the Yale Alum Non-profit Alliance (YANA) New England                                   

United Nations Commission on Status of Women

                                                               March 22, 2018

                                                              12:30pm -2:00 pm

                                                    United Nations Church Center

                                                            777 UN Plaza, New York, NY

Restorative Rural Agricultural Development

for Empowering Women and Girls and Advancing Peacebuilding

UNCSW focuses on an Alternative Approach for Empowering Women and Girls in Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention through innovative community agricultural practices. Our approach is called a Restorative Rural Agricultural Development (RRAD). The programme focuses on women and girls’ leadership for rebuilding communities through healing and engagement combined with agricultural practices that comprise a purpose of fostering sustainable and resilient communities for an enduring peace.

Restorative rural agricultural development builds from the necessity for healing and for rebuilding of relationships, communities and societies after conflict, violence and extreme poverty. Its goals are transformational with objectives of community reconciliation, sustainability, and resilience.   

Agenda

Ms. Sahar Alsahlani, Al-Khoei Foundation                 Welcome

Ms. Yvonne Lodico, Founder, Grace Initiative            Welcome

Ms.  Jessica Scott, UN SDG Academy                                   Moderator

Ambassador Isaiah Chabala,                                      Visionary Empowerment for Zambia         

Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

Ms. Zaytoon Faraj,

Iraqi Delegation UN CSW                               Iraq’s Strategy for rural women and girls     

Ms. Rita Reddy, UN DPKO Adviser                             Discussion on Women  in Timor-Leste

Former, Gender Adviser, UNMIT                              

Former, Director of Civil Affairs,

UNAMID

                                                                                                                                             Yvonne Lodico                                                             Introduction to Vermont goals for women (YANA VT)                                                                      and rural development

Representative Amy Sheldon                                     Legislative initiatives for inclusive,

Middlebury/Addison                                                   sustainable development.

Ms. Heidi Lynch                                                           Community Supported Agriculture (CSA),

Vermont Farmers                                                       as a provider of health care                                                                                                                                 

Ms. Amy Frost                                                            CSA and Social Justice

Circle Mountain Farm

Ms. Sahar Alshlani                                                      Conclusion

The Initiative for Governance, Reconciliation and Coexistence (Grace Initiative) is convening a Forum to address intensifying differences in the US regarding the rule of law, fundamental freedoms, and inclusion.  The Forum draws from a recent Pew Research Study that recently found that Americans are more divided than ever over about social issues such as safety net, race, and immigration. To develop policy and to protect fundamental freedoms and rights, we need to find common ground for addressing collective challenges in our democratic society.

Our goal is to develop a strategy for a road map for coexistence in one of the world’s oldest democracies – the US. We hope to take up concerns, hopes and fears.  The Forum will provide a platform for strategies for promoting dialogue, countering extremism, and fostering healing to halt the rise of divisiveness. Also, we will examine how the globally endorsed 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals, especially for peaceful and inclusive societies, applies in the US.

This Forum will comprise of international and national experts in democracy, coexistence, immigration, psychology, and social justice. Speakers include:

Dr. Massimo Tommasoli, Permanent Observer at the United Nations for International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA); Dr. Theodore Johnson, Brandeis University, The Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Associate Professor in Conflict Resolution and Coexistence; Rabbi Or Rose, Director, The Miller Center for Interreligious Learning & Leadership, Ms. Marion Davis, Massachusetts Immigration and Refugee Coalition (MIRA Coalition); Mr. Syed Meesam Razvi, al-Kohei Foundation;  Representative from the Mayor’s Office.  Also, Greta Hagen of UU Urban Ministry will welcome everyone.

Please RSVP at: contact@grace-initiative.org. No cost, but donations welcomed.

The Retreat on Sustainability in Vermont
30 Sept - 1 Oct 2016

In collaboration with the Permanent Mission of Thailand, The Group of 77, The Initiative for Governance, Reconciliation and Coexistence - Grace Initiative Global. The Retreat took place over a two-day period in Manchester , Stratton, Rupert, Vermont.