Scaling social change across contexts can take multiple forms. For instance, several Sadaka Reut activists discuss how they take the messages of partnership core to the organization’s work to other contexts where they are active. In this sense, scaling geographically is not necessarily coupled with a growth in members or supporters, rather it means taking one’s experiences from an organization’s  work in one place and building on them to change other spaces. Emma Johnson also notes that learning about Hutus and Tutsis working together in post-Genocide Rwanda as a teenager, “was the beginning of my youth work journey. That’s when I knew that I had something within me that really wanted to pursue this.” Her experience speaks to the way that core messages can spread when others are inspired by them.

Transnational scaling can also mean using the experiences and expertise learned from one conflict situation to help build peace elsewhere. In other words, growth of a movement  can happen not only within a single geographical context but also by taking ideas developed in one conflict area and applying (or adapting) them to other places. For instance, Robi Damelin of the Parent’s Circle/Family Forum in Israel/Palestine notes the application of the group’s Narrative Project to other conflict situations and suggests that it can be used to spread a message about the importance of peace in contexts around the globe. 

Another way of utilizing a transnational scaling strategy is by bringing in individuals from other contexts to help activists think creatively about broadening their impact. In Northern Ireland, Avila Kilmurray discusses the importance of hearing from activists based in other parts of the world in order to learn from their experiences of peacebuilding: 

We also made a point of bringing in speakers from the Middle East, from Nicaragua, you know, from different situations to sort of say, ‘Well, okay, this is what we were able to do in Nicaragua, this is what we were able to do in South Africa,’ and it created the space for people to think about other ways of doing things. 

Finally, work being done in other contexts can help build a movement from the inside out. Bronagh Hinds of the Northern Irish group DemocraShe gives the example of sending a select group of women civil society leaders from Northern Ireland to the United States for capacity building, in the form of mentoring by lobbyists and advocates. Her example shows how transnational connections can be a tool for training and directly increasing leader’s capacity. 

Challenges you may encounter using this tool

• Although sharing lessons across contexts can spark new ideas, it is rare that a tactic or strategy from one place can be directly transferred without adaptation to another. As with peacebuilding writ large, there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to social change. Context must always be considered and adjusted for.

• Any cross-cultural interaction has the potential to highlight or even exacerbate inequitable power dynamics. Be sure that spaces created for sharing lessons and expertise are structured to emphasize the unique contributions and perspectives of all activists and peacebuilders involved regardless of their background or years of experience.

• Engaging with new members across contexts typically involves a substantial investment of monetary resources. Finding funding sources to pay for travel or to develop tools in multiple languages can be challenging, particularly for smaller community based organizations.