Building Afghan Peace from the Ground Up

What is the role of local leaders and of civil society across the region in resolving conflicts in their area, and how can they be constructively engaged with international and national authorities?  Can such a bottom-up approach complement and strengthen top-down efforts in addressing the regional dimensions of the conflict in Afghanistan-Pakistan?  Despite the efforts and expenditures of the international community and the government in Kabul, security in Afghanistan remains elusive, Kaldor and Theros argue, often because in many Afghan provinces foreign and government forces are seen as an intruding presence. However, civil society initiatives at the grassroots local level can build a cooperative framework for resolution of the Afghan conflict that can facilitate larger solutions.