Looking back at an exciting and challenging year, and ahead to action for peace in 2026.
Wishing everyone a happy and peaceful Christmas from Peace Hub. Our coordinator will be away from 19th December to 6th January 2026, so apologies if we are not able to respond to messages during that time.
Looking back at 2025
2025 was a big year for Peace Hub as we celebrated our 10th anniversary, with friends old and new sharing their vision for peace.
At the same time, we launched our new model of working, taking peace to where people are, rather than expecting them to come to us.
We have been pleased that this new way of working has given us more flexibility to work with partners and make connections across themes. We:
- explored being Changemakers with Ella Baker School of Organising;
- celebrated the projects of Junior Peace Ambassadors and helped primary school children reflect on Hiroshima with Peacemakers;
- marked Refugee Week and explored the connections between climate justice and migrant justice with Birmingham City of Sanctuary;
- resisted the DSEI arms fair and built peaceful community along the way with Quaker Roots and Peace Pilgrimage;
- heard personal stories of funeral inequality and how we can call for better government support with Quaker Social Action;
- and we continued to make connections across all these issues with the climate crisis (which is the water we all swim in) with our friends at Footsteps, Birmingham Friends of the Earth and Brum Climate Justice Coalition.
If your group or organisation are interested in exploring how we could work together to build the movement for peace & social justice, we’d love to hear from you.
2025 was also a year in which under-currents of racism and repression of dissent came to the surface for many of us. A police raid on a Quaker Meeting House reminded us of the importance of freedom of assembly and expression. And we shared resources in response to a rising sense of anxiety about the platform that racist rhetoric and symbols are being given in the media and in public spaces.
Looking ahead to 2026
To face up to these fears, building connection and mutual support feels more important than ever. That will be the focus of our work in 2026, with more events and actions focussed on the intersections of issues, and more opportunities to build community as we go.
Two dates for the diary to take action on the arms trade, here in Birmingham:
Communities not Bombs
14th Jan 2026, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Online ,
Join Peace Hub and Stop SDSC to explore how can say Yes to economic justice and No to the arms trade.
After two years of protest, the SDSC-UK arms fair has left Telford and relocated to Birmingham NEC. The arms trade needs to be resisted everywhere, so when it tries to set up shop in Telford or now Birmingham we are here to say “No”.
Pilgrimage to SDSC-UK
31st Jan 2026, All Day
Birmingham, start location TBC ,
In February the Special Defence and Security Convention (SDSC-UK) will be coming to the NEC near Birmingham.
In witness against this arms fair, our friends at Peace Pilgrimage are are organising a one-day pilgrimage.
The route will be from Birmingham city centre to the NEC, about 10 miles – exact timings and start location TBC.
There are also opportunities to get more involved in taking action on the arms trade with Peace Pilgrimage, Quaker Roots and StopSDSC – get in touch to discuss further and see where you can contribute.
We’re also very grateful to South Birmingham Friends Institute panel of Heart of England Community Foundation for funding some exciting new work in spring 2026. Perhaps you (or someone you know) are interested in the type of issues we talk about at Peace Hub, but feel unsure where to begin. This will be a great opportunity to connect with others, explore what you care about, and start making a difference. Watch this space for more details early next year!
While the stream of news can feel tough, we take heart from standing together, the friendships and connections we’ve made, and the hope for a better world that we believe is possible. We hope you have time to rest and recuperate over the festive period, and look forward to acting together for peace in 2026.