A People-Centred Approach to Regionalism
In a region as vibrant, diverse, and interconnected as Southasia*, the yearning for peace and progress transcends political boundaries. And yet, the people of this region, home to nearly two billion — continue to face barriers to mobility, healthcare, education, and opportunity due to entrenched political divisions and state-centric approaches to diplomacy.
As we mark four years of the Southasia Peace Action Network (Sapan), we invite you to an urgent and timely conversation:
Sunday, April 27, 2025
🕙 10 am ET | 2 pm UTC | 7:30 pm IST | 8:00 pm BDT
Register to join us on Zoom
The event, titled “The Southasian People’s Path to Peace and Cooperation: How to Move Forward?”, seeks to centre the real aspirations of the region’s people. While politicians argue over power, the public seeks peace, mobility, and collaboration — not conflict.
Sapan has, over the past four years, worked to amplify these voices. From highlighting the importance of soft borders and people-to-people dialogue to pushing for reforms in climate policy, gender justice, and disarmament, we have built a narrative that reflects the lived realities and shared hopes of Southasians.
In this online seminar, activists, academics, civil society leaders, and policy thinkers will come together to reimagine what cooperation could look like — from the ground up.
Key questions we’ll explore:
- How can Southasians work around political impasses and push forward people-first cooperation?
- What role can economic integration play in de-escalating tensions?
- Can shared climate vulnerabilities become a catalyst for collaboration?
- How do we reframe security away from militarisation toward human well-being?
Key speakers
Sara Hossain, a senior advocate at the Supreme Court of Bangladesh
Ahmed Rafay Alam, lawyer and climate activist
Lalita Ramdas, an advisory council member of Sapan, and an activist
Event host: Khawar Mumtaz, feminist activist and a founding member of Sapan, Lahore
Discussion moderator: Khushi Kabir, feminist activist and a founding member of Sapan, Dhaka
Closing Remarks: Namrata Sharma, journalist and a founding member of Sapan, kathmandu
This event is open to all who care about peace and justice in Southasia. Let’s come together — across borders and boundaries — to imagine a better tomorrow. Not in our names. Not in isolation. But together, as Southasians.
*Note on ‘Southasia’: Writing it as one word reflects an intentional effort to imagine the region’s interconnected past, present, and future, without undermining current national identities. As Himal Southasian describes, it’s a nod to the “historical unity of our common living space.”
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