For all of humanity’s technological achievements there are many areas where progress has been slow to non-existent; these include learning to share the earth’s resources fairly, learning to deal with the real threats of global heating and war, and learning to deal with conflict in general. It is not that the knowledge in how to do these things does not exist, to a considerable extent it does, but the ‘knowledge of that knowledge’ is missing along with the energy and political will needed – apart from the selfish and vested interests which are happy with the Titanic-iceberg-bound status quo.This is where INNATE comes in or tries to come in through networking, information and training. Yes, INNATE is a small entity trying to relate to a wider constituency and what we can do is limited. But we are about creating awareness of nonviolent approaches which can have very real effects at all levels of life.

In relation to information produced, the usual 10 full issues of Nonviolent News were produced in 2025 along with 2 news supplements the months there was no full issue. And as usual there were web, email and (shorter) paper editions of this publication. We were pleased that in addition to the regular columns from Larry Speight and Billy King, Kate Laverty joined us as a columnist this year and we have other contributors – articles always welcome for consideration.

INNATE has two websites, the main website at www.innatenonviolence.org and the Flickr photo site at https://www.flickr.com/photos/innateireland There is much more material on the ‘main’ website than just Nonviolent News, e.g. 120+ downloadable posters for home printing. The photo site has the best part of 3,000 photos, a total which should be well surpassed in 2026, and these are included in 57 different albums, some subject oriented and others focused on a particular organisation; going to the appropriate album is the easiest way to find photos you might be looking for or want to see. Contributions of photos are welcome.

In 2025 we embarked on a training series on different aspects of conflict for the Migrant Centre NI Peacebuilders’ Project. This will continue in 2026 and includes understanding conflict and helping prevent it through good communication and decision making, as well as conciliation, negotiation and mediation. We are happy to explore training options with anyone and there is a ‘DIY’ workshops section on the main website for people to do their own exploration and training. INNATE can provide training or training support on a wide variety of areas including different aspects of conflict, nonviolence, campaigning, decision making, and monitoring (work in 2026 may include the last of these – we initiated monitoring of contentious situations in the North at the end of the 1980s).

There are many other aspects of work and interaction which are not covered here. While public events were lacking in 2025, the first part of 2026 will remedy that including a webinar on violence and nonviolence at the start of the Troubles in the North ‘with people who were there’.

INNATE moved physical address this year without any disruption but most information flows, in and out, are electronic. INNATE exists on a financial shoestring, is entirely voluntary, and depends on subscriptions and donations to continue. A financial statement is available on request. There is the opportunity for anyone anywhere to be involved with work supporting INNATE, and most meetings are held remotely; if you might be interested in looking at involvement, we would be delighted to talk.

Coordinator, INNATE, February 2026

Violent conflict continued to very much be a feature of the year 2023, and climate heating denial and drifts to the right politically were also significant features internationally. In Northern Ireland conflict was limited to political stalemate. Sometimes witnessing to nonviolent and green alternatives in the midst of strong counter-blasts is as much as can be done; at other times a peace stand can make a real difference. And we believe that it will make a difference in the long term even if the going is currently difficult.

In relation to INNATE’s work, Nonviolent News was published in its full 10 monthly issues, with news supplements for the other two months. https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/category/nonviolent-news/ Issues for the email and web editions were typically 12 pages but ranged from 11 to 19 pages; the paper edition is just the first two pages of news. There is a huge amount of other material on the website and some of it was listed in Nonviolent News in early 2023; https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/2023/02/01/archival-documentary-and-campaigning-materials-available-from-innate/

The INNATE photo and documentation site https://www.flickr.com/photos/innateireland continued to build; there are now nearly 2,700 photos group in 55 ‘albums’ (material on a particular topic). One significant new album in 2023 was coverage of the “people’s forums” in the Republic on neutrality and the so-called Consultative Forum on International Security Policy.

In relation to the above, StoP/Swords to Ploughshares Ireland, an anti-militarist and arms trade network which INNATE was involved in setting up in 2020 on an all-island basis, produced a very detailed and important report on the Irish government ‘Forum’. https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/StoP-Report-Forum-on-International-Security-Mark-2.pdf This showed clearly that it did nothing like what the government said on the tin that it would do, and certainly did not justify the proposed change to the ‘Triple Lock’ (government, Dáil, UN) on deployment of Irish troops overseas. StoP continues to meet regularly and plan activities.

INNATE also produced a couple of mini-posters on the Triple Lock theme (available at https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/posters/ ). INNATE made a lengthy written submission to this ‘Forum’ and the coordinator protested at being excluded from making a verbal contribution with the unique contribution which would have been made – those involved in this exercise were largely handpicked to give the answers the Minister wanted.

It was a quiet year in relation to some aspects of INNATE’s work including training, public meetings and visitors though INNATE members are also very involved with other activities. INNATE continues to try to relate to a wide variety of groups and issues. The number of visitors, wishing to speak about the North and/or INNATE’s work and vision, are perhaps starting to pick up after Covid. The fact less queries come in to INNATE than some years ago is assumed to be because of the fairly comprehensive nature of INNATE’s online material (in its fields of reference). We were involved with one programme for NVTV, the Belfast community television station.

Meanwhile peace movement materials from INNATE covering nearly fifty years and which were donated to PRONI, the Public Record Office in the North, are now being catalogued there.

While there is no change expected in the near future, during 2024 INNATE will be discussing with others ‘in the field’ about longer term plans to ensure the continuation of some of INNATE’s functions such as the monthly dissemination of news on peace and related topics in Ireland, and the photo and documentation site which is run on Flickr. There is of course the opportunity for anyone anywhere to be involved with work supporting INNATE, and most meetings are held remotely on Zoom; if you might be interested in looking at involvement, we would be delighted to talk to you about possibilities

Rob Fairmichael, Coordinator, February 2024

Peace seemed a long way away with war in Europe (Ukraine) as well as many other parts of the globe, Northern Ireland still not at peace within itself, and the Republic getting sucked deeper and deeper into the morass of the arms trade and EU militarisation. Sometimes all that it is possible to do is state clearly that ‘there is an alternative’ and work, and hope, that people can see that alternative before it is too late. Already it is too late to avoid some drastic effects of global warming.

In terms of public presence, we organised a demonstration to call into question Thales arms production in Castlereagh, Belfast https://www.flickr.com/photos/innateireland/51943904438/in/dateposted/ on St Patrick’s Day – this well attended event received additional attention because of the war in Ukraine (it was organised before that started) but one TV interview conducted during it was never aired, presumably because of an – accurate – description of corruption by Thales). However we did in mid-year run a discussion programme for community TV station in Belfast NVTV, and we hope to do more in this regard. https://www.flickr.com/photos/innateireland/52245726256/in/dateposted/ We were also involved in promoting a picket of an Irish government arms event in Dublin organised by Afri; see https://www.flickr.com/photos/innateireland/52408699982/in/dateposted/ and accompanying photos.

Early in 2022 INNATE handed over the coordinatorship of StoP/Swords to Ploughshares which INNATE had been involved in founding a bit more than a year previously. StoP is a an all-island network on the arms trade and demilitarisation and it continues to meet regularly online and organise webinars including a very useful one on ‘human security’. https://www.facebook.com/SToPIreland and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpcK1QYLk6M

INNATE completed the transfer of most of the peace movement archives it held to PRONI/Public Record Office for Northern Ireland. A full list of the material transferred is available on request. However a more extensive list of online materials on the INNATE websites was produced (https://innatenonviolence.org/ as the main website and https://www.flickr.com/photos/innateireland as its photo and documentary site). This listing has been included in Nonviolent News and is on the website at https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/INNATE-online-listing-2023-for-web.pdf .

Nonviolent News was produced monthly in its usual 10 full issues and two news supplements (for January and August). https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/category/nonviolent-news/ The INNATE photo and documentary site now has upwards of two and a half thousand entries with many new additions during the year, both contemporary and archival, and this site has now had well over half a million opening of photos (you can see photos and a caption without opening them to see more detail).

Another production, at the start of the year was a 15-page publication, “Peace groups in Ireland through the years”. This is not intended as an exhaustive history but rather a listing since the 19^th century with brief facts plus details about where to find further information, i.e. to signpost where to find out more for those interested, and the link is at https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/pamphlets/ – it will be updated as needed.

INNATE ran a workshop on ‘Nonviolent struggle in the global South’ for the One World Festival in the North; a report appears at https://innatenonviolence.org/wp/2022/11/03/the-effectiveness-of-violence-and-nonviolence/ The coordinator gave a keynote talk at the Afri Hedge School in TUD Blanchardstown on “The war in Ukraine, Irish and EU responses, and possibilities for peace”.

As with so many voluntary, political and community groups, you may get to see ‘the duck gliding serenely by’ – but not the energetic paddling going on under the water. INNATE is sustained by a small number of activists but in the Zoom and internet era ‘anyone anywhere’ can be involved – please get in touch if you might be interested in being involved in any way or have suggestions for work to be done. And as usual INNATE exists on a very frayed financial shoestring – and all work is done voluntarily – so subscriptions and donations of any size are very welcome.

– Rob Fairmichael, Coordinator, February 2023