About Alexa M
adrid
Alexa Madrid is a Programme Officer in the Foundation’s Sustaining Peace programme coordinating the Investing and Partnering with Youth for Peace project. She brings five years of experience in strategic partnerships and resource mobilisation for Sustainable Development.
Alexa previously served as Strategic Partnerships and Sustainable Development Goal Associate in the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office in Honduras. She has also worked for different non-governmental organisations in Latin America and Sweden.
Alexa holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations with a specialisation in diplomacy and development aid policies and an Erasmus Mundus Joint master’s degree in Latin American and European Studies from Universidad de Salamanca, Stockholm University, and Université Sorbonne-Nouvelle Paris III.
As a young woman, I care where I shop. What does that have to do with peacebuilding? More than you think. Recently, I walked into one of my favorite clothing stores and saw how this business was putting values into action by selling a special line of themed clothing to raise funds for a well-known non-governmental organisation (NGO).
That made me happy, and it also prompted some reflection. If more companies were to partner with peacebuilding organisations, the impact for peace and development could be enormous. We know that businesses (as in the example above) tend to partner with larger, more well-known NGOs, as people are more likely to support brands they recognise. It left me wondering about the smaller, youth-led organisations working on the frontlines of peacebuilding. How do they get support, visibility, and partnerships? These are the questions I’ve been working on over the past half year through Investing and Partnering with Youth for Peace (IPYP): how to advance real, equal partnerships between corporates and youth-led organisations.
Writing this on the International Day of Peace makes the reflection feel sharper. Peace is not only a global aspiration but a practical necessity, for communities working to heal divides, and for businesses seeking stability and growth. Businesses shape communities in many ways: through the jobs they create, the culture and media they influence, and the resources they mobilise. Their actions and choices can either reinforce division and conflict, or strengthen trust, inclusion, and resilience. With Official Development Assistance (ODA) in decline and growing calls to mobilise private finance towards implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, the role of private sector in peacebuilding has never been more critical. But beyond bridging the funding gap, it is important to recognise why peace matters for business itself: stability creates the conditions for growth, reduces risks, and enables investments to deliver lasting returns.
Finding the way for peacebuilders and private sector actors to work together is still far from straightforward. Not because either side is unwilling, but because there is no clear guidance on how each side should approach the other. The challenge is to build trust, align priorities, and rather than trying to speak the same language, make an effort to understand each other, so that partnerships can draw on the strengths of young peacebuilders and businesses.
Over the past months I’ve had the opportunity to engage with young peacebuilders and the private sector, and I’ve learned five lessons that, even if they don’t offer a complete roadmap, point to some ways to make these partnerships more effective.
Understand each other’s perspectives
The private sector is often treated as if it were one actor, but in practice it is a collection of very different players – from local entrepreneurs to big corporations. Each comes with its own incentives, priorities and ways of working. For young peacebuilders, this means knowing who within the private sector they seek to engage with and tailoring their messages to this audience. For businesses, it means recognising that young peacebuilders also bring diverse strengths, from grassroot knowledge to global advocacy. Partnerships work better when both sides understand who’s at the other side of the table.
Peace is good for business
Companies are eager to find solutions to their problems. Conflict creates risks, whether economic, reputational, and/or human, while peace creates stability, smoother supply chains and stronger markets. Many companies face difficulties when trying to translate conflict-sensitive principles into day-to-day actions. Here, young peacebuilders can be valuable partners, helping to put theory into action. At the same time, companies can take the lead in recognising that investing in peace is a form of long-term risk management and resilience building, not a case of charity.
The power of storytelling
Peacebuilding can sound abstract if you’ve never seen it up close. Storytelling helps translate peacebuilding into something real and relatable. Examples speak louder than theory: how a youth-led dialogue prevented local violence; how a women’s group negotiated with militant groups to retake control of their city’s water supply; or how inclusive education initiatives made communities safer. Stories like this show that peace is not abstract, it’s lived every day. For businesses, engaging with these stories, and creating space to hear them, can be an important way to better understand youth-led peacebuilding and its value.
Communication is key
Partnerships often fall apart when expectations are vague. Young peacebuilders need to be clear on what kind of support they are seeking: whether it’s financial investment, technical expertise, mentoring, or joint advocacy. For businesses, clarity makes it easier to see where strengths align. Businesses also have a role to play in mentoring and supporting peacebuilders in identifying and communicating their needs, while peacebuilders can help companies understand what kinds of contributions are most meaningful for advancing peace. A clear ask, developed together, transforms goodwill into actionable partnership.
Emotional connections advance partnerships
Behind every company are people. What sustains partnerships isn’t just contracts, but trust and genuine human connection. As a young peacebuilder once told me ‘We don’t want to be seen as passive beneficiaries. We are co-creators of peace’. For peacebuilders, this means engaging with companies not only as a funder but as partners who share responsibility for a better future. For businesses, it’s a reminder that decisions are often unlocked by relationships, not only by numbers on a balance sheet. Shared values and trust are the foundation for partnerships that last.
Building meaningful partnerships between young peacebuilders and the private sector is possible and urgently needed. It takes clarity, trust, and creativity, but most of all it requires recognising that peace is not the responsibility of a few, but the opportunity of all. The lessons above are intended to help guide the way.
On this International Day of Peace, I’m reminded that peace is built not only in negotiating rooms or at international summits, but also in everyday choices. For businesses, this means seeing peace not as a distant ideal but as the foundation of sustainable growth. For young peacebuilders, it means opening doors to more equal and innovative partnerships.
Working alongside young peacebuilders for the past months, I’ve personally seen their impact and determination up close. They are ready to partner, co-create and show that peace is everyone’s business. The next step is up to all of us: businesses, governments and peacebuilding actors, to open space, share responsibility and turn that readiness into lasting partnerships.