October Month of Conflict Resolution Week 2: Featuring 4 Peacebuilding Think-Tanks Across the World

October 9, 2020

Pollack Peacebuilding by Jeremy Pollack

As part of our special series for Conflict Resolution Month this October, this is our second article where we have highlighted the following research institutes and think tanks across the world:

India: The Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS)

Founded in 1996, IPCS is an independent think-tank that seeks to develop an alternative framework for peace and security in South Asia and the extended neighborhood. It brings policy-relevant research into scholarly and public debate through an emphasis on events, capacity building of the next generation of thought leaders, and media and online outreach. It is strictly non-partisan. Its research focuses on four broad themes: Nuclear Security Programme (NSP), Southeast Asia Research Programme (SEARP), China Research Programme (CRP), Centre for Internal and Regional Security (IReS). IPCS has published multiple papers as well as books on foreign policy and security issues in South Asia.

Germany: Global Public Policy Institute (GPPI)

GPPI is a Berlin non-profit think tank in Germany whose research themes focus on Peace & Security, Humanitarian Action, Global Order, Human Rights, and Democracy, amongst others. Started in 2003, they also advise clients from the public sector, including the United Nations, the European Commission, and national governments. One of their notable accomplishments is their project called ?“Learning to Build Peace? The UN, Peace Operations and Organizational Learning”. This report deconstructed fragmented, highly politicized bureaucracy such as the UN peace operations system and identified organizational learnings from the same. It was one of the firsts to open up the ?“black box” of the UN peace operations bureaucracy and examine internal organizational-political processes in detail that led to two key knowledge products: a framework for analyzing organizational learning and a book titled The New World of UN Peace Operations: Learning to Build Peace? (Oxford University Press, 2011).

Australia: Institute for Economics and Peace

Headquartered in Sydney with a global presence in 6 countries, the Institute for Economics and Peace does cutting edge research with a focus on the themes of Measuring Peace, Positive Peace, Economics of Peace, and Risk. Their research is used extensively by intergovernmental institutions such as the OECD, The Commonwealth Secretariat, the World Bank, and the United Nations. With a strongly data-driven approach, some of their notable knowledge products include the Global Peace Index 2020 and Positive Peace Report 2019. They also have a Peace and Data Consulting arm to support their advising.

U.S: The United States Institute of Peace (USIP)

Founded in 1984, the USIP is a non-partisan research institute specializing in global security and mitigating violent conflicts abroad. Globally, the Institute works with local partners, governments and civil societies to achieve its goals of peacebuilding and nonviolence. Founded by Congress, they believe in linking research, policy, training, and analysis with direct action. The USIP has supported conflict resolution efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Colombia on the ground. Aside from having four dedicated centers that focus on peacebuilding in different regions of the world, they also have an International Advisory Council (IAC) that brings together thought leaders and senior policy experts committed to the Institute’s mission and activities.

Conflict Resolution Month

Conceived by The Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR) in 2005, October is observed as the month of Conflict Resolution each year. The third Thursday of October is celebrated as Conflict Resolution Day, which falls on the 15th of October this year.

The goals of the month are to:

Promote awareness of mediation, arbitration, conciliation, and other creative, peaceful means of resolving conflict;
Promote the use of conflict resolution in schools, families, businesses, communities, governments, and the legal system;
Recognize the significant contributions of (peaceful) conflict resolvers;
Obtain national synergy by having celebrations happen across the country and around the world on the same day.

We will be featuring a new set of organizations globally each week, so stay put.