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Search for Common Ground

Search for Common Ground
Logo of Search for Common Ground
Abbreviation SFCG
Motto Understanding Differences, Acting on Commonalities
Formation March 25, 1982; 34 years ago (1982-03-25)
Founder John Marks
Type international non-profit organization
52-1257425
Legal status 501(c)(3)
Headquarters Washington, D.C., United States, and Brussels, Belgium
Location
Coordinates 38°54′41″N 77°02′39″W / 38.911371°N 77.04408°W / 38.911371; -77.04408Coordinates: 38°54′41″N 77°02′39″W / 38.911371°N 77.04408°W / 38.911371; -77.04408
Official language
English, French
Adam Berrey
Shamil Idriss
Revenue (2014)
$23,419,792
Employees
Approximately 600 employees and 100 consultants and interns.
Mission To transform the way the world deals with conflict, away from adversarial approaches, toward cooperative solutions.
Website www.sfcg.org

Search for Common Ground (or SFCG) is an international non-profit organization operating in 36 countries whose mission is to transform the way the world deals with conflict away from adversarial approaches toward cooperative solutions. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and Brussels, Belgium, with the majority of its 600 employees based in field offices around the world including in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. Search brought together numerous conflicting groups to find ways to peacefully resolve issues using independent media programming, track II diplomacy, and traditional peace building tactics. John Marks, Search's founder and former president, received an award in 2006 from the Skoll Foundation for social entrepreneurship. In 2008, Search for Common Ground was awarded the Benjamin Franklin Award for Public Diplomacy by the United States Department of State.

Shamil Idriss became President and CEO in September 2014. Prior to taking on his role with Search, Shamil was the CEO for Soliya, and served as Executive Director of the Alliance of Civilizations Media Fund which merged with Soliya in 2009. In 2005, he was appointed by then-UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan as Deputy Director of the UN Alliance of Civilizations. He served on the Steering Committee of the World Economic Forum's Council of 100 Leaders and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders and of the ASMA Society’s Muslim Leaders of Tomorrow.

Search was founded in 1982 by John Marks, a former State Department diplomat. He knew that  conflict turns into violence when people focus on their differences rather than on their commonalities, and wanted a new way of connecting people across these differences. When Search was founded, it focused on facilitating cooperation between the United States and the Soviet Union.


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