Dedicated to understanding the causes of violent conflict and to identifying and promoting the conditions for sustainable peace, the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame engages in research, graduate and undergraduate education, policy studies, and service to the local, national and international communities. The Institute specializes in the religious and ethnic dimensions of deadly conflict and peacebuilding; the ethics of the use of force; and the peacemaking role of international norms, policies and institutions, including a focus on economic sanctions and enforcement of human rights. This research and policy orientation informs the Institute's education and training of professional peacemakers, who are active in a variety of settings globally.

The mission of the Kroc Institute is integrally related to the mission of Notre Dame, an international Catholic research university. Catholicism offers a rich tradition of social thought and teaching on war, peace, economic justice, as well as extensive global experience in work for justice and advocacy for human rights. The Kroc Institute enhances the University's international character and mission by fostering dialogue and collaboration between religious and secular traditions which builds mutual respect and strengthens the capacity of all traditions for peacebuilding.

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