Kadri Gashi has spent more than 23 years working in civil society in Kosova. As the Founder and Executive Director of SIT-Center for Counseling, Social Services, and Research, his work has always centred on the same things: gender equality, prevention of gender-based violence, youth empowerment, and counseling services. He knew his field well. What MasterPeace gave her was a wider lens.
“Don’t focus only on discussing the problem; focus on finding the solution.”
His path to MasterPeace came through colleagues in Albania, who introduced his to the team and its mission in 2019. The first contact was an online meeting with a MasterPeace coordinator — not a grand event, just a conversation about vision, values, and how they might work together.
“What impressed me most was the openness, trust, and genuine commitment to creating positive change. From the very beginning, I felt that this was more than just another network — it was a community of people who truly believed in empowering young people and building peace through action.”
That first conversation was enough. Kadri was in.
Over the years he became part of several MasterPeace initiatives — the DoUth project, focused on youth participation and social innovation; DoAct, empowering young people to take action in their communities; work around the Doughnut Economy methodology; and broader regional collaborations on peacebuilding, inclusion, and active citizenship.
His first in-person experience came at a MasterPeace Bootcamp in Wiesbaden, Germany — and it stayed with him.
“Meeting so many inspiring people, feeling their positive energy, openness, and willingness to share experiences. The atmosphere was very welcoming, and the beautiful place in Wiesbaden made the experience even more memorable.”
It confirmed what he had begun to sense from the start: MasterPeace was not primarily about projects. It was about people, relationships, and building something together.
Before MasterPeace, Kadri’s focus was naturally local — his community, his work, his corner of Kosova. Through the network, that focus expanded.
“Through MasterPeace I learned to see the bigger picture.”
His understanding of peacebuilding shifted too. Where he once thought mainly in terms of responding to problems, he began to think more about creating conditions — building trust, encouraging dialogue, opening spaces where people feel included and capable of contributing.
“Peace is also about creating connections, building trust, encouraging dialogue, and empowering people to become active contributors in their communities.”
What has stayed with him most is not any single project, but the feeling that ran through all of them: a sense of belonging he describes, simply, as family.
“People support each other, share experiences, and work together toward common goals. It has been the relationships, trust, and friendship built among members and partners that have inspired me the most.”
Connections that started as project collaborations became real friendships — people from different countries and backgrounds, held together by shared values and mutual respect.
Those values show up in his everyday work now: in how he approaches collaboration, how he listens, how he designs projects for young people. The introduction to the Doughnut Economy methodology through MasterPeace opened new ways of thinking about sustainability and community development that he’s carried into his own initiatives.
When he introduces MasterPeace to someone new, he doesn’t lead with the programmes or the network. He leads with the feeling.
“It is a community of people connected by shared values, trust, and the belief that positive change is possible.”
And his advice to anyone just starting out?
“Stay connected with the values of MasterPeace, be open to learning, and take part in more in-person meetings — because the real strength of MasterPeace comes from the connections, relationships, and experiences we build together.”
The words he reaches for when he thinks about MasterPeace: Connection. Empowerment. Trust. Empathy. Network. Belonging.
Above all, belonging.
MasterPeace Champions Edition celebrates the people who’ve grown alongside the movement — and helped it grow in return.