Afghanistan Institute for Peace and Stability (AIPS)

Our Story Our work began in Afghanistan in 2008, supporting women’s rights, human rights, education, and peacebuilding. In 2012, we formally registered as the Kor Association, widely known as the Kor Cultural Association. These community initiatives laid the foundation for what would later become the Afghanistan Institute for Peace and Stability (AIPS). We reached thousands of women in rural Afghanistan, engaging families and communities to promote access to basic rights, education, and public services. We documented the lives and experiences of thousands of women and girls, brought their concerns into public discussion, and strengthened advocacy for their rights, safety, and opportunities. Through our educational initiatives, we supported the education of more than 4,000 girls and women and more than 2,000 boys in eastern Afghanistan. Our door-to-door campaign helped families address barriers to schooling and enabled children and women to begin or resume their education, including those working to support their families. We mobilised women to advocate for themselves and their communities, building a network of approximately 400 women volunteers. They reached underserved communities, supported survivors of domestic violence, provided basic psychosocial assistance and advocated with government authorities for improved access to schools and public services. Our peacebuilding initiatives brought together more than 700 poets and writers who used literature, poetry and public engagement to promote reconciliation and social cohesion. Across 27 provinces, we created hundreds of peace-themed artworks and messages on public walls, bringing youth, civil society representatives and community leaders together to call for an end to violence. Continuing Our Work After 2021 Following our relocation to the United States, some activities were temporarily interrupted. A year later, we resumed educational work through community-based classes for girls beyond grade six who had lost access to formal schooling. These initiatives now include approximately 88 classes across several Afghan provinces, each serving 15 to 25 students, with instruction in English, mathematics, and the sciences. Alongside this work, we consulted Afghans within Afghanistan and across the diaspora. Women’s rights advocates, religious scholars, business leaders, youth, community representatives, academics and other professionals contributed ideas for practical responses to Afghanistan’s challenges. These discussions led to the establishment of AIPS in Virginia, United States, connecting our community experience with research, policy development, dialogue and advocacy for lasting peace and stability. Our Work Today Between February 2025 and August 2026, AIPS provided digital skills fellowships to 122 Afghan girls inside Afghanistan and delivered 33 training sessions and courses reaching 1,200 girls and women. These programs help participants use artificial intelligence and digital tools to pursue further learning, employment, and income-generating opportunities. Our research includes Voices from the Margins, with a second phase in development. We are also preparing research examining reports of increased forced marriage since the Taliban’s return to power. Through our monitoring and evaluation mechanism and daily documentation of Afghan women’s lives, we examine how policies and restrictions affect their rights, safety, education, and livelihoods. The findings inform our advocacy, policy recommendations, and efforts to connect women with practical support. In the United States, we advocate for girls’ education and connect Afghan women and girls with educational, professional, and community opportunities. We also work with families whose daughters face restrictions or limited access to learning, using dialogue to address concerns and encourage continued education. Across these activities, our purpose remains consistent: to advance peace and stability by strengthening women’s rights, protecting human dignity, and expanding opportunities for people to shape their own futures.