As conflicts rage in Gaza, Ukraine, Libya, Syria and now again in Iraq, international observers and peacemakers are converging on the Borders next weekend, to explore how Scotland can be a greater force for good in the world.

Expert voices with experience of global conflict zones, from BBC correspondent Alan Little to the former UN High Commissioner Sir Kieran Prendergast, are gathering at Traquair House to be discuss the types of conflicts facing the world, and how they might be resolved, at Beyond Borders’ International Festival of Literature & Thought on August 23 and 24.

The weekend festival of culture and reconciliation features war photographer Paul Conroy, who was injured by the rocket attack which killed war reporter Marie Colvin in the Syrian city of Homs, exhibiting his work from a frontline closer to home. ‘Seeking Sanctuary’, commissioned by the British Red Cross, highlights the plight of Syrian refugees in the UK, and the struggles they face while trying to build a new life.

Food security will be a source of future conflict, so the UN’s Paul McMahon, author of Feeding Frenzy, explores ways of avoiding hunger when the global food system must feed 9 billion people by 2050, in his talk ‘Are We Eating Ourselves into Oblivion?’ On life under repressive regimes, Azerbaijan’s top blogger Emin Milli recounts his experience as a political prisoner in his talk ‘Bearing Witness’, while British-Iranian reporter Ramita Navai, of Channel 4’s Unreported World, shines a light on Tehran’s hidden life, from her book City of Lies.

Following Glasgow’s successful Games, Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma shares a platform with Ugandan-born political journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, to consider how the Commonwealth of 53 countries, including Scotland, could play a greater role in promoting peace.

Other diplomats include the UN’s Andrew Gilmour, Joost Hiltermann of the International Crisis Group, and David Gorman from the Centre of Humanitarian Dialogue, discussing the realities of making peace in an ever-fracturing world. Tim Phillips, co-founder of Beyond Conflict, shares his experience from 20 years on the front lines of peace negotiations around the globe. On the crisis in Ukraine, Prof. Brian Brivati analyses the Maidan Revolution, with prominent Ukranians from both East and West.

Returning to Edinburgh’s Filmhouse, this year’s Beyond Borders film season focuses on themes of peace and reconciliation. Entitled ‘Tales from the Frontlines’, each evening from 26-28 August explores an aspect of conflict, beginning with ‘Miles & War’, a portrait of three mediators directed by Anna Thoma, followed by ‘First To Fall’, a coming of age story in the Libyan revolution, and finally ‘Aleppo, Notes From The Dark’, documenting residents’ lives under sniper fire and explosions in Syria’s bombarded city of Aleppo.

The mediator, Mark Muller Stuart QC, director of Beyond Borders’s festival and NGO, said: “In the last three years, Beyond Borders has hosted delegations from Georgia, Turkey, Kurdistan, Bahrain, Oman, the Basque Country, and Ukraine. I believe Scotland has a profound contribution to make in the field of peace building, conflict resolution, and wider cultural exchange between nations, cultures and religions.

“It is timely to ask whether Scotland should play a greater role in international affairs. If the Commonwealth Games is to be more than just ceremony, let us use it to kick-start a new discussion about Scotland’s wider role in the world in the 21st century, whether the people of Scotland decide to vote for independence or not.” You can join the discussion, by finding the festival’s programme and box office at www.beyondbordersscotland.com. Tickets: Weekend pass - £45/Day Pass-£24/Walks and cycle rides-£6/Individual Events £9. For more information, call 0131 557 7775.