One of the world’s leading social science organizations has invited a representative from the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies to have a seat at the table.
Laurie Nathan, director of the Mediation Program at the Kroc Institute, part of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, has been appointed to serve on the advisory board of the International Panel on Social Progress. The IPSP brings together more than 300 social scientists from throughout the world and from many disciplines to conduct and synthesize research that serves the vision of social progress.
“I’m honored and excited to contribute to the IPSP in this capacity,” said Nathan.
“I’ve participated in IPSP projects for several years because of the organization’s commitment to advancing the values of equality, freedom, emancipation, participation and inclusion. These principles are at the core of my professional focus, and they sync with the mission of the Kroc Institute and Keough School.
“Serving as an advisory board member will open new doors for collaboration and potential partnerships, as we pool our collective expertise to lessen the gap between research and policy,” said Nathan.
Nathan will be one of 60 seasoned influencers on the advisory board, made up of international scholars, civil society actors, social innovators, business leaders, policymakers and philanthropists. The board, which meets annually, is charged with advising on how research can have an impact on policy in the interests of social progress.
Nathan first got involved with IPSP when, as a recognized expert on international mediation, he was invited by Peter Wallensteen to contribute to a chapter on violence and peace in the organization’s first report, published in 2018 by Cambridge University Press. The report provided a comprehensive review of the state of societies in the world, covering economic, social, political, environmental and cultural issues, and assessed positive trends and mounting challenges and threats.
Walleensteen, the Richard G. Starmann, Sr. Research Professor Emeritus of Peace Studies at the Kroc Institute and a member of the Kroc Institute Advisory Board, was among the authors of that chapter (I. Abraham, K. Aggestam, A. Bellamy, L. Cederman, J. Ferret, J. Baptiste, J. Vilmer, W. Heitmeyer, A. Muvumba-Sellström, L. Nathan, H. Shinoda, E. Stepanova, P. Wallensteen and M. Wieviorka, ‘Violence, wars, peace, security’, 2018, within Rethinking Society for the 21st Century: Report of the International Panel on Social Progress, vol. 2, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 411-456).