Mr. Prelis has over twenty five years’ experience working with youth movements and youth focused organizations in conflict and transition environments in over 35 countries throughout the world. In 2010 he co-founded and has been co-chairing the first UN-CSO-Donor working group (Global Coalition on Youth, Peace and Security) that helped successfully advocate for the historic UN Security Council Resolution 2250 (in 2015) Res 2419 (in 2018) and Resolution 2535 (July 2020).

Mr. Prelisis also the director of children & youth programs at Search for Common Ground (Search), an international conflict transformation organization. Prior to joining Search, Mr. Prelis was the founding director of the Peacebuilding & Development Institute at American University in Washington, DC. Over eleven years at the university resulted in him co-developing over 100 training curricula exploring the nexus of peacebuilding with development. He advises governments, international organizations, intergovernmental bodies and civil society on a regular basis.

Mr. Prelisreceived the distinguished Luxembourg Peace Prize for his Outstanding Achievements in Peace Support. Mr. Prelis obtained his Master’s Degree in International Peace & Conflict Resolution with a Concentration in International Law from American University in Washington, DC. He is originally from Sri Lanka.