Since the end of the Cold War, economic sanctions have become an essential instrument of global and national foreign policy, imposed to end civil wars and thwart nuclear proliferation, mass atrocities, and terrorism. But over the past decade sanctions have become entangled in at least eight major humanitarian disasters. The...
The bitter irony of the Taliban taking control of Afghanistan on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks makes a re-evaluation of U.S. and global counterterrorism policy more urgent than ever. This issue of Peace Policy offers perspectives toward that end. Lisa Schirch, the Richard G. Starmann Sr. Visiting...
This month marks the 50th anniversary of the release of the Pentagon Papers, which confirmed that U.S. leaders lied about the Vietnam War and sent American troops to fight a war they knew was unwinnable and that many considered unjust. The soldiers who served in the war knew that already,...
With the percentage of the world’s population that is displaced at an all-time high, and 79.5 million people forcibly displaced worldwide at the end of 2019, existing policies within nation states and the international community are ill-equipped to respond to the changing demographics and causes of flight. The U.S. is...
“No justice, no peace” is a slogan that appears in the many protests organized recently by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) Movement for racial justice, arguably the largest and most diverse mass movement for social justice in U.S. history. In peace studies, we know that positive sustainable peace depends on...
This issue focuses on the South Sudan peace process at a critical juncture. This issue is guest edited by Daniel Fahey, Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and Keough School of Global Affairs Visiting Associate Professor of the Practice.
New posts in the December 2019 issue of Peace Policy:…
The Madrasa Discourses project based at the University of Notre Dame engages with recently graduated madrasa students in India and Pakistan. Through a three-year online educational program—three hours a week over a period of two semesters per year, plus intensive face-to-face winter and summer programs totaling three weeks annually—participants are...
As Indonesians prepare to vote in national elections on April 17, they face contentious issues regarding human rights and the role of civil society. New social movements have emerged that project an Islamist identity at the expense of the rights of religious minorities and of women and sexual minorities. The government...
The Kroc Institute recently released a report in collaboration with UN Women, Women’s International Democratic Federation, and Sweden, describing how the inclusion of a gender perspective and specific gender-related commitments in the text of the 2016 Colombian Peace Accord is an important step toward strengthening women's meaningful participation in the building of peace. This...
From its inception, the United Nations (UN) has engaged in preventive diplomacy in situations of conflict in order to prevent the outbreak of large-scale violence. A 2015 report on UN Peace Operations and support from UN Secretary-General António Guterres has led to renewed interest in preventing violence through diplomacy. This...
This edition of Peace Policy focuses on efforts to prevent and respond to mass atrocities which include genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, as well as ethnic cleansing. While much scholarly and political attention has been given to understanding how mass atrocities can be prevented, there is still a...
The case for disarmament as a moral imperative is strong, but more work is needed to address the new challenges that will arise as the world moves toward global zero. If nuclear policies lack moral (and legal) legitimacy, they will suffer from a lack of support at home and abroad....
Over the past 18 months the Kroc Institute has established a new program in Colombia, the Barometer Initiative, to apply the methodology from the Peace Accords Matrix project to the challenge of contemporaneous monitoring of the Colombia Peace Accord. The following three articles present the Peace Accords Matrix methodology and...
The President and other critics have called for terminating the nuclear agreement with Tehran, yet the evidence since 2015 shows that the deal has been successful at curbing Iran’s nuclear threat. This case confirms that sanctions and diplomacy can be effective means of achieving and sustaining nonproliferation policy objectives.
The November election results will have significant implications for U.S. international policy and the prospects for peace. In this issue we examine some of the challenges the new administration will face and the impact of past and future policy choices in relation to the war in Syria, debates about human...
The UN Charter links the goal of international peace to “conditions of economic and social progress and development.” Teachers, political leaders and scholars have long recognized that economic development is inextricably linked to the prevention and cessation of armed conflict. This issue of Peace Policy explores contemporary connections between development...
The Intercept’s release of leaked documents about the U.S. drone program and a controversial attempt to defend drone warfare by former CIA Director Michael Hayden have raised new questions about the ethical and strategic implications of using these weapons. The following essays examine the findings of the Intercept documents, question...
The year 2015 marks the 70th anniversary of the United Nations, an international organization created to maintain international peace and security while upholding fundamental human rights. The organization has witnessed many challenges since its creation, succeeding in some cases while failing in others. This issue of Peace Policy examines the...
The Iran nuclear agreement was concluded in Vienna on July 14, 2015, after years of negotiations between a group of six nations (the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, France, and Germany) and the government of Iran. Following approval from the UN Security Council and U.S. Congress, the Iranian...
Colombia is drawing closer to a negotiated settlement that may end its half-century of violent conflict. Researchers and practitioners deeply engaged in the Colombian peace process — including the 3 writers of this month's Peace Policy, have found that academic research, when applied to the ongoing negotiations, has provided tangible...
The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a clear and present danger to international security. It must be stopped. The question is how. President Obama said there are no military solutions to this crisis, but he has sent U.S. soldiers back to Iraq, launched air strikes there and...
During the intense days of "Operation Protective Edge," in an atmosphere of intimidation within Israel, thousands of Israelis nonetheless flooded the main squares of cities protesting the occupation of Palestinian territories and the massacres in Gaza. Prospects for ending the conflict and securing justice may seem more distant than ever,...
Fifty-one years ago, Pope John XXIII issued his encyclical Pacem in Terris, which declared that “the arms race should cease” and urged that “all come to an agreement on a fitting program of disarmament.” It is time for a fresh examination of the moral and ethical issues involved in nuclear...
International peacekeeping missions have become more robust and multi-dimensional, involving diverse civilian and military actors. At the same time, civil society and regional organizations are taking on increasingly important roles in peacebuilding and development.
The hope is that the parties will finalize, with U.S. help, a framework for a peace agreement by the end of April.
Peace scholars are reaching a consensus on what predicts peace. Research shows that higher per-capita GDP, more education, and the inclusion of women and religious and ethnic minorities in public life are associated with stable peace. How can this research help practitioners understand the causes of violent conflict and how...
The Kroc Institute recently assembled some of the world's leading experts on counterterrorism strategy, ethics and the use of force, international law, and civil and human rights for a conference on drone warfare.
The challenge of building peace and preventing violence demands new ways of seeing and thinking. In this issue of Peace Policy, an expert in peace processes, an anthropologist, and a political scientist offer unexpected insights for researchers and policymakers.
