tag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:/news-events/newsKroc Institute for International Peace Studies | News2024-03-18T10:37:00-04:00tag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1605842024-03-18T10:37:00-04:002024-03-18T10:45:15-04:00“Peace by Piece”: Student Peace Conference Co-Chairs Share Insights into Crafting a Dynamic Event Experience<p>The 2024 Notre Dame Student Peace Conference, themed <strong><a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/">“Peace by Piece: Disrupting Dualities in Peacebuilding,”</a></strong> is set to take place on April 12-13, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame. This year’s conference received the second-highest number of student submissions in its history. <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/attend/registration">Registration</a>…</p><p>The 2024 Notre Dame Student Peace Conference, themed <strong><a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/">“Peace by Piece: Disrupting Dualities in Peacebuilding,”</a></strong> is set to take place on April 12-13, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame. This year’s conference received the second-highest number of student submissions in its history. <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/attend/registration">Registration</a> is now open!</p>
<p>Spearheaded by undergraduate seniors <strong>Lina Abdellatif</strong> (<em>sociology major, peace studies supplementary major</em>), <strong>Mia Moran</strong> (<em>political science and global affairs major [peace studies concentration], gender studies minor</em>), and <strong>Garrett Pacholl</strong> (<em>history, global affairs [peace studies concentration], European studies minor</em>), this year's conference promises to be both engaging and empowering.</p>
<p>In this exclusive Q&A, the co-chairs share insights into their journey of organizing the conference, their motivations, and their aspirations for the event.</p>
<p><strong>How did you come to be co-chairs of this conference?</strong></p>
<p><em>Garrett:</em> Allison Doctor, a chair of last year's 2023 Student Peace Conference, inspired me to apply for this role during one of our encounters at a Keough School mixer. Her enthusiasm and insights about the conference sparked my interest, and I saw it as a fantastic opportunity.</p>
<p><em>Lina:</em> Having presented at last year's conference, I felt a sense of familiarity with its structure. This is a chance for me to elevate the voices of fellow students and develop valuable administrative skills crucial for my future endeavors.</p>
<p><em>Mia:</em> My involvement as a student volunteer in the 2023 conference resonated deeply with my belief in praxis – the integration of theory and practice in peace studies. Being part of the planning team allows me to bridge the gap between these two realms.</p>
<p><strong>How did you decide on this year's theme?</strong></p>
<p><em>Lina:</em> Our theme centers around shattering binaries. We aim to challenge conventional modes of thinking and encourage a more dynamic approach to peacebuilding. We also liked the idea of the alliterating theme of peace by piece. We hope the theme fosters a conversation focused on breaking away from black-and-white thinking. By taking pieces of different perspectives and nuances of peace--including theory and practice--we can understand the world as it is today, while also working toward long-term sustainability.</p>
<p><em>Garrett:</em> In line with our theme, we also received submissions from many diverse thematic areas, something we were hoping “Peace by Piece” would bear out. As someone interested in environmental peacebuilding, for example, I was happy to see that the three of us agreed to accept multiple submissions focusing on pressing issues in the climate sphere, such as improving scientists’ perceived legitimacy in America.</p>
<p><em>Lina:</em> We’ve been able to organize topics ranging from digital peacebuilding to religious peacebuilding, environmental peacebuilding, and more. It’s as if we are witnessing all the puzzle pieces coming together.</p>
<p><strong>What has the experience of organizing the conference been like while managing other commitments?</strong></p>
<p><em>Mia:</em> While it hasn't been without its challenges, Anna Van Overberghe has been our guiding light throughout the process. Structured meetings and her expertise in logistics have been invaluable.</p>
<p><em>Lina:</em> It's been immensely fulfilling. I feel like I'm contributing positively to my field of passion – peace studies. Embracing new challenges has been invigorating, and I'm grateful for this opportunity.</p>
<p><em>Garrett:</em> Absolutely, the journey has been rewarding despite the juggling act. Anna's mentorship has been instrumental, and we're learning a lot about the intricate details of conference management.</p>
<p><strong>What unexpected challenges or lessons have you encountered?</strong></p>
<p><em>Lina:</em> Organizing a conference has been a learning curve. Our diverse perspectives have enriched the process, teaching us the importance of active listening and collaboration.</p>
<p><em>Mia:</em> Our varied strengths and weaknesses have complemented each other well, though navigating a three-person dynamic has its complexities. Nonetheless, this experience is invaluable for our personal and professional growth.</p>
<p><em>Garrett:</em> Indeed, the learning curve has been steep, but it's through trial and error that we are growing the most.</p>
<p><strong>What aspect of the conference are you most excited about, and what do you hope attendees gain from their attendance?</strong></p>
<p><em>Mia:</em> I hope attendees are left feeling inspired by the conference. Conferences foster community, and they are a great way for attendees to maintain a passion and drive while expanding their perspectives.</p>
<p><em>Lina:</em> We're thrilled to foster a dialogue on dynamic peacebuilding processes. Through engaging discussions, we hope attendees feel empowered to apply peacebuilding principles in their communities, one piece at a time.</p>
<p><em>Garrett: </em>I am really excited for the presenters and attendees to meet each other. Conferences are a great way for people who share similar interests to come together, but it’s also fulfilling to meet people with different interests but similar passions – it’s a great way to absorb new information and find topics you may be interested in. We also have an amazing array of presentations that focus on a number of globally important issues. There truly is something for everyone!</p>
<p><em>The Notre Dame Student Peace Conference is an annual event organized by undergraduate peace studies students at the University of Notre Dame. Its mission is to provide space for both undergraduate and graduate students to engage in dialogue on important issues related to peacebuilding, social justice, and conflict transformation. <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/attend/registration">Registration</a> is now open!</em></p>Lisa Gallaghertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1604512024-03-08T10:48:00-05:002024-03-08T10:48:58-05:00LeChartre Wins Second Place in Shaheen 3MT Competition<p>Kroc Institute Ph.D. candidate, <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/ph-d/market/josephine-lechartre/">Joséphine Lechartre</a></strong> (peace studies and political science), won second place in the annual<a href="https://graduateschool.nd.edu/graduate-training/research-communication/3mt/"> Shaheen Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition</a>, which took place Feb. 28. She was one of nine finalists competing for $4,500 in prize money.…</p><p>Kroc Institute Ph.D. candidate, <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/ph-d/market/josephine-lechartre/">Joséphine Lechartre</a></strong> (peace studies and political science), won second place in the annual<a href="https://graduateschool.nd.edu/graduate-training/research-communication/3mt/"> Shaheen Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition</a>, which took place Feb. 28. She was one of nine finalists competing for $4,500 in prize money.</p>
<p>Lechartre is a <a href="https://kellogg.nd.edu/">Kellogg Institute</a> Doctoral Student Affiliate and a research affiliate of the Kellogg Institute's <a href="https://kellogg.nd.edu/violence-and-transitional-justice-lab">Notre Dame Violence and Transitional Justice Lab</a> (V-TJLab) who specializes in the study of transitional justice policies, civilian victimization in wars, and post-conflict political behavior.</p>
<p>“I am delighted, but not surprised, that Joséphine was so successful in the 3MT competition,” said <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/ernesto-verdeja/"><strong>Ernesto Verdeja</strong></a>, associate professor of peace studies and global politics, and a member of Lechartre’s doctoral committee. “Her research is methodologically rigorous, conceptually sophisticated, and driven by an ethical commitment to make the world better. Joséphine shows how peace research speaks to a wide audience about the most pressing issues of our day, and we at Kroc are proud of her enormous accomplishment.”</p>
<p>Lechartre’s presentation was based on part of her doctoral research. Her full dissertation investigates how the survival decisions that civilians make during genocide condition the emergence of new political cultures that drive political participation after the end of violence. For this competition, Lechartre focused specifically on Guatemalan refugees who fled genocide and spent 14 years in refugee camps in Mexico.</p>
<p>She showed that the refugees who became active participants in the administration of their camps developed strong democratic political cultures. Those who had only limited input in camp affairs did not, and they experienced social dislocation.</p>
<p>“This has important consequences,” explained Lechartre. “The first group is today highly active in democratic politics, whilst the second group has remained marginalized, with lagging economic development and with levels of social dislocation leading to a rise in criminality.”</p>
<p>"Joséphine's accomplishment demonstrates the value of the interdisciplinary training students gain at the Kroc Institute,” said <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/kathryn-sawyer-vidrine/"><strong>Kathryn Sawyer Vidrine</strong></a>, assistant director for doctoral studies at the Kroc Institute. “3MT challenges students to take a narrow academic concern and convince a broad audience why it is important - exactly the thing we emphasize at Kroc by combining the normative field of peace studies with disciplinary approaches in our joint Ph.D. programs. We are proud that students like Joséphine can bring their high-impact work to the greater community through events like 3MT."</p>
<p>“Preparing for 3MT has been a very rewarding experience,” shared Lechartre. “I have learned professional development skills that will enhance my networking abilities by communicating my research in a short, effective manner, and I gained more confidence in public speaking, which will enhance the quality of future job talks and public-facing activities.”</p>
<p>For her second-place win, Lechartre was awarded $1,500 in prize money.</p>
<p><em>Sponsored by the<a href="https://graduateschool.nd.edu/"> Graduate School</a>, Graduate Student Government, and the<a href="https://careerdevelopment.nd.edu/"> Meruelo Family Center for Career Development</a> at the University of Notre Dame, 3MT is an academic competition that challenges graduate students to explain their research to a broad audience in three minutes or less, offering the broader community the chance to learn about cutting-edge research at the university.</em></p>
<p><em><iframe width="560" height="314" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/C9G4qDg9omU?ab_channel=NotreDameGraduateSchool" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></em></p>Kellogg Institute for International Studies and Kroc Institute for International Peace Studiestag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1602302024-02-28T10:28:00-05:002024-02-28T10:28:44-05:00Nobel laureate, democracy advocate Maria Ressa to speak at Keough School <div class="container">
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<p><a href="https://www.rappler.com/author/maria-a-ressa/"><strong>Maria Ressa</strong></a>, a Filipino-American journalist and Nobel laureate known for her work to defend democracy and combat disinformation, has been named a distinguished policy fellow in the University of Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs.</p>
<p>A former CNN bureau chief and correspondent in Jakarta and Manila, Ressa co-founded the Philippines-based news site <em>Rappler</em></p>
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<p><a href="https://www.rappler.com/author/maria-a-ressa/"><strong>Maria Ressa</strong></a>, a Filipino-American journalist and Nobel laureate known for her work to defend democracy and combat disinformation, has been named a distinguished policy fellow in the University of Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs.</p>
<p>A former CNN bureau chief and correspondent in Jakarta and Manila, Ressa co-founded the Philippines-based news site <em>Rappler</em> in 2012 with three other women. The company earned recognition for fighting fake news and spotlighting human rights abuses by the regime of former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte. In 2021, she was honored with the<strong> </strong><a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2021/ressa/facts/" id="Content_facts">Nobel Peace Prize</a>.</p>
<p>“Maria Ressa is well known for her brave work to address democratic backsliding and disinformation, two worrisome and interconnected trends that increasingly pose threats around the world,” said <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/people/andres-mejia-acosta/"><strong>Andrés Mejía Acosta</strong></a>, the Keough School’s Kuster Family Associate Dean for Policy and Practice. “We are honored to highlight her expertise as part of our school’s policy-relevant work to strengthen global democracy through teaching, research and experiential student learning.”</p>
<p>Ressa will serve as keynote speaker at the March 14 <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/event/digital-democracy-defending-democratic-norms-with-new-deliberative-technologies/" id="Content_digital-democracy-defending-democratic-norms-with-new-deliberative-technologies">digital democracy symposium</a> at the Keough School Washington Office. The event will bring together academics, industry representatives, think tanks and governmental agencies to consider how digital technologies can facilitate public discussion of policy issues and synthesize a wide range of insights. The symposium will also feature <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/lisa-schirch/"><strong>Lisa Schirch</strong></a>, Richard G. Starmann, Sr. Professor of the Practice of Peace Studies at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and a Keough School faculty expert in digital peacebuilding.</p>
<p>Following the Washington event, Ressa will spend a week on Notre Dame’s campus, where she will meet with Keough School faculty, students and visiting fellows from the school’s institutes. On March 20, she will join University President <a href="https://president.nd.edu/about/"><strong>Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.</strong></a>, to take part in the 2023-24 Notre Dame Forum, which is focused on the future of democracy.</p>
<p>Ressa’s visit amplifies the Keough School’s commitment to integral human development — advancing the human dignity of all people and the whole person — through its work on democracy and governance. This is a <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/strategic-plan/" id="Content_strategic-plan">core research focus</a> for the school, along with sustainability and environmental justice, poverty and peacebuilding,</p>
<p>Ressa is the Keough School’s latest distinguished policy fellow, continuing a tradition that enables the school to engage with prominent global policymakers on areas of strategic importance. The inaugural policy fellow, former Colombian president and fellow Nobel laureate <a href="https://news.nd.edu/news/former-president-of-colombia-to-teach-in-keough-school-of-global-affairs-deliver-public-lecture/" id="Content_former-president-of-colombia-to-teach-in-keough-school-of-global-affairs-deliver-public-lecture"><strong>Juan Manuel Santos</strong></a>, helped negotiate a historic peace agreement that ended his country’s 52-year armed conflict.</p>
<p>Ressa’s engagement with the Keough School is the latest chapter in her relationship with Notre Dame. After authorities in the Philippines convicted her of cyberlibel in 2020 — an attempt to silence her for speaking out — she enlisted Notre Dame law and global affairs professor Diane Desierto to represent her for her <a href="https://fightingfor.nd.edu/2023/fighting-to-defend-human-rights/" id="Content_fighting-to-defend-human-rights">appeal at the Philippine Supreme Court</a>. And in 2023, she served as the distinguished speaker for the Asia Leadership Forum, sponsored by the Keough School’s Liu Institute and by Notre Dame International.</p>
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<p><a class="btn btn-cta" href="https://keough.nd.edu/maria-ressa-keough-school/">Read the full story on keough.nd.edu.</a></p>
<p class="attribution">Originally published by <span class="rel-author">Josh Stowe</span> at <span class="rel-source"><a href="https://asia.nd.edu/news/nobel-laureate-democracy-advocate-maria-ressa-to-speak-at-keough-school/">asia.nd.edu</a></span> on <span class="rel-pubdate">February 22, 2024</span>.</p>Josh Stowetag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1599922024-02-19T11:15:00-05:002024-02-16T11:08:40-05:00Keynoter for the 2024 Student Peace Conference Announced<p><a href="https://www.swarthmore.edu/profile/saed-atshan"><strong>Sa’ed Atshan</strong></a> has been tapped as the keynote speaker for this year’s <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/keynote">Notre Dame Student Peace Conference, “Peace by Piece: Disrupting Dualities in Peacebuilding.</a>”</p>
<p>An associate professor of peace and conflict studies and anthropology at Swarthmore College, Atshan will present “Sexualities and Queer Imaginaries Across the Middle East and North Africa” on the afternoon of Friday, April 12—the first day of the two-day conference.…</p><p><a href="https://www.swarthmore.edu/profile/saed-atshan"><strong>Sa’ed Atshan</strong></a> has been tapped as the keynote speaker for this year’s <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/keynote">Notre Dame Student Peace Conference, “Peace by Piece: Disrupting Dualities in Peacebuilding.</a>”</p>
<p>An associate professor of peace and conflict studies and anthropology at Swarthmore College, Atshan will present “Sexualities and Queer Imaginaries Across the Middle East and North Africa” on the afternoon of Friday, April 12—the first day of the two-day conference.</p>
<p>“We are so excited to welcome Dr. Atshan to our conference and to Notre Dame,” said conference chairs and organizers <strong>Lina Abdellatif</strong>, <strong>Garrett Pacholl</strong> and <strong>Mia Moran</strong>.</p>
<p>While Atshan’s presentation will be his first for the student peace conference, he is no stranger to the Kroc Institute. In 2021 he presented <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/news-events/events/2021/10/12/enduring-humanitarianism-in-the-palestinian-territories/">“Enduring Humanitarianism in the Palestinian Territories”</a> as part of the Kroc Institute’s lecture series, and has been a guest lecturer in Professor <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/atalia-omer/">Atalia Omer</a></strong>’s class, “The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict through Films.”</p>
<p>“Dr. Atshan applies a nuanced lens to the Palestinian conflict,” said Abdellatif. “He not only provides a Palestinian point of view, but he considers how the intersection of gender, of being queer in Palestine, and genocide contribute to the settler-colonial state.”</p>
<p>“His work fits perfectly for our conference theme,” echoed Moran.</p>
<p>Atshan earned a Ph.D. in anthropology and Middle Eastern studies and an M.A. in social anthropology from Harvard University. He also holds a master’s in public policy from the Harvard Kennedy School and a B.A. from Swarthmore College. He is the author of <em><a href="https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=30833">Queer Palestine and the Empire of Critique</a></em> (Stanford University Press, 2020), co-author (with Katharina Galor) of <a href="https://www.dukeupress.edu/the-moral-triangle"><em>The Moral Triangle: Germans, Israelis, Palestinians</em></a> (Duke University Press, 2020), and co-editor (with Galor) of <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/reel-gender-9781501394218/"><em>Reel Gender: Palestinian and Israeli Cinema</em></a> (Bloomsbury, 2022).</p>
<p><em>The <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/">Notre Dame Student Peace Conference</a> is an annual conference organized by undergraduate peace studies students at the University of Notre Dame. This year's conference takes place April 12-13, 2024. Registration is free but required.</em></p>Lisa Gallaghertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1599912024-02-16T10:51:00-05:002024-02-16T10:52:13-05:00Opportunity for doctoral students to study international mediation in Oslo, Norway<p>The Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and the Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO) have announced the call for applications for their annual summer Ph.D. course on international mediation. </p>
<p><strong>“International Mediation: Theory, Cases and Skills,”</strong> will take place in person in Oslo, June 10-14, 2024. Now in its fourth year, the course covers academic, policy and practitioner perspectives on international mediation. Students will review scholarly literature, explore relevant theories, and learn from senior mediators.…</p><p>The Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and the Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO) have announced the call for applications for their annual summer Ph.D. course on international mediation. </p>
<p><strong>“International Mediation: Theory, Cases and Skills,”</strong> will take place in person in Oslo, June 10-14, 2024. Now in its fourth year, the course covers academic, policy and practitioner perspectives on international mediation. Students will review scholarly literature, explore relevant theories, and learn from senior mediators.</p>
<p>“Participants develop skills in conflict analysis, strategic planning for peacemaking, and mediating agreements between conflict parties,” said Laurie Nathan, director of the <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/policy-practice/mediation-program/">Mediation Program</a> at the Kroc Institute and the course leader. “This is a rich opportunity to explore the relationship between mediation theory and practice, as well as interact with students, practitioners, and professors from around the world.”</p>
<p>“International Mediation: Theory, Cases and Skills” is a Ph.D.-level course. Preference will be given to applicants who are currently registered in a Ph.D. program, those who have recently completed a Ph.D., or who have substantial practitioner experience.</p>
<p>The deadline to apply is March 21, 2024. For more details and to access the application form, visit the <a href="https://www.peaceconflictresearch.org/Courses/Course/?x=1163">website</a> of the Research School on Peace & Conflict, a cooperation venture between the University of Oslo, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and PRIO.</p>
<p>For additional questions, contact Nathan at <a href="mailto:Laurie.N.Nathan.4@nd.edu">Laurie.N.Nathan.4@nd.edu</a>.</p>
<p> </p>Kate Chestertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1596272024-02-01T10:44:00-05:002024-02-01T10:46:19-05:00Beyond Midnight: Navigating the Unsettling Landscape of Global Threats<p><em>“The unleashed power of the atom has changed everything except our thinking. Thus, we are drifting toward catastrophe beyond conception. We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive.” <strong>--Albert Einstein, May 1946</strong></em></p>
<p>On Tuesday, Jan. 23, the hand of the symbolic <a href="https://thebulletin.org/doomsday-clock/current-time/">Doomsday Clock</a>…</p><p><em>“The unleashed power of the atom has changed everything except our thinking. Thus, we are drifting toward catastrophe beyond conception. We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive.” <strong>--Albert Einstein, May 1946</strong></em></p>
<p>On Tuesday, Jan. 23, the hand of the symbolic <a href="https://thebulletin.org/doomsday-clock/current-time/">Doomsday Clock</a>, overseen by the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, remained frozen at 90 seconds to midnight in its 2024 update.</p>
<p>And the meaning behind this announcement? That while seemingly stable, the world remains on the precipice. The unchanged timing from 2023 to 2024 underscores the persistent global threats that have the power to inch the metaphorical needle closer to midnight.</p>
<p>Since its inception in 1947, the Doomsday Clock has served as a symbolic visual to translate threats to humanity and the Earth into a countdown to zero. This representation encompasses a spectrum of dangers, from nuclear explosions to climate change, biological threats, and disruptive technologies like artificial intelligence. Annually, the organization grapples with two pivotal questions guiding the clock's timing: 1) Is humanity safer or at risk this year compared to the last, and 2) Is humanity safer or at greater risk compared to the 77 years since the clock was first set?</p>
<p><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/gerard-f-powers/"><strong>Gerard F. Powers</strong></a>, director of Catholic Peacebuilding Studies and coordinator of the Catholic Peacebuilding Network at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, highlights a paradox of our time, noting, "In the past two decades, there has never been more sustained, broad, and high-level support for nuclear disarmament, not only as a moral imperative but as a policy objective."</p>
<p>Yet the echoes of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis reverberate. Russia's suspension of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty in February 2023 and the escalating nuclear arms race between China, Russia, and the United States intensify the threat of nuclear war.</p>
<p><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/george-a-lopez/"><strong>George A. Lopez</strong></a>, Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., professor emeritus of peace studies, contemplates a potential shift in trajectory, suggesting, "If there were new mechanisms of inspections, new acts of goodwill, or a new global condemnation of the whole enterprise of nuclear weapons, the clock could have moved further away from midnight."</p>
<p>Board members factor imminent threats like rising global temperatures, floods, and wildfires into the Clock's calculation. “Including climate change remains one of the most controversial decisions taken by the organization," wrote <a href="https://thebulletin.org/biography/rachel-bronson/"><strong>Rachel Bronson</strong></a>, president and CEO of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, in the December 2023 issue of <a href="https://peacepolicy.nd.edu/2023/12/06/measuring-existential-risk/"><em>Peace Policy</em></a>. By adding climate change to the Clock’s tally, the narrative shifts – from solely assessing how close the world is to destruction by nuclear weapons, to how humanity itself contributes to destruction through its creations, namely technology.</p>
<p>The advent of instant access to diverse news sources introduces a new dimension to the complex tapestry of global threats. Lopez identifies two clusters of problems: 1) the continual bombardment of distressing news, leading to desensitization, and 2) the risk of individuals either disengaging from news consumption altogether or succumbing to the belief that nuclear war can be prevented only through deterrence.</p>
<p>These challenges could be tackled through the insights of experts advocating for fresh approaches — methods of scrutiny, positive actions, and a global consensus against nuclear weapons, all of which can help move the clock further from midnight.</p>
<p>“Pessimism must not give way to despair,” said Powers. “Climate change and nuclear war are not inevitable. They are human problems that require human solutions. Just as the world has banned torture, slavery, and chemical weapons, the world must ban nuclear weapons - even war itself.”</p>
<p><em>Founded in 1945 by Albert Einstein, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and University of Chicago scientists who helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan Project, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists created the Doomsday Clock two years later, using the imagery of apocalypse (midnight) and the contemporary idiom of nuclear explosion (countdown to zero) to convey threats to humanity and the planet. The Doomsday Clock is set every year by the Bulletin’s Science and Security Board in consultation with its Board of Sponsors, which includes nine Nobel laureates. The Clock has become a universally recognized indicator of the world’s vulnerability to global catastrophe caused by man-made technologies.</em></p>Lisa Gallaghertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1591452024-01-11T09:49:00-05:002024-01-16T16:34:46-05:00‘Generating a Political Process in Afghanistan’ colloquium, to be held April 25-26 at Notre Dame<p><em>Call for abstracts due Feb. 16<br></em></p>
<p>Afghan scholars and practitioners from around the globe are invited to participate in an upcoming colloquium, “Generating a Political Process in Afghanistan,” to take place at the University of Notre Dame April 25-26. Organized by the <a href="https://afghan-institute.org/">American Institute of Afghanistan Studies</a>…</p><p><em>Call for abstracts due Feb. 16<br></em></p>
<p>Afghan scholars and practitioners from around the globe are invited to participate in an upcoming colloquium, “Generating a Political Process in Afghanistan,” to take place at the University of Notre Dame April 25-26. Organized by the <a href="https://afghan-institute.org/">American Institute of Afghanistan Studies</a> (AIAS), the <a href="kroc.nd.edu">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a>, and the <a href="usip.org">U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP)</a>, the event aims to remind the international community of the ongoing political, social and economic conflict in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>Scholars and practitioners are encouraged to submit a 250-word abstract to answer the question, “What actors and efforts (indigenous and international) could generate a political process in Afghanistan that responds to the immediate as well as long-term dynamics of the conflict?” Abstract submissions are due Friday, Feb. 16 at 11:59 p.m./EST, using this <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfdlvq8wkoafASxDXsoViMLBRmFB8nHO4MPYAjzM6pQn-KAUQ/viewform">form</a>.</p>
<p>Up to 20 authors will be selected from the applicant pool to prepare papers – 2,000-2,500 words – and present them at the two-day workshop, for peer and expert feedback. Applicants will be notified as to whether or not their paper has been accepted by the beginning of March. For those accepted, the AIAS and USIP will cover travel expenses.</p>
<p>In the event of questions, email the Kroc Institute at <a href="mailto:krocinst@nd.edu">krocinst@nd.edu</a>.</p>Kate Chestertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1588472023-12-11T11:51:00-05:002023-12-19T15:46:40-05:00Kroc Institute alumna Becca Blais recognized as Notre Dame’s first Samvid Scholar<p>University of Notre Dame alumna Becca Blais, a recent Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient for her work at the intersection of data science and politics, has been named a 2023 Samvid Scholar. She is Notre Dame’s first Samvid Scholar and one of just 20 members of this year’s cohort, which was selected from a pool of nearly 1,000 applicants.</p><p>University of Notre Dame alumna <strong>Becca Blais</strong>, a recent Forbes 30 Under 30 recipient for her work at the intersection of data science and politics, has been named a 2023 Samvid Scholar. She is Notre Dame’s first Samvid Scholar and one of just 20 members of this year’s cohort, which was selected from a pool of nearly 1,000 applicants.</p>
<p>Established in 2021, the Samvid Scholars Program empowers mission-driven graduate students with exceptional track records of impact to lead transformative change for society through leadership development, community and financial support.</p>
<p>The award, underwritten by Samvid Ventures, covers tuition and fees up to $100,000, or $50,000 per year, for eligible graduate programs. Scholars engage in two years of leadership development, including in-person and online seminars, workshops, networking events and an annual conference.</p>
<p>A 2018 Notre Dame graduate in political science and <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/">peace studies</a>, Blais is co-founder and executive director of Bluebonnet Data, a nonprofit that recruits, trains and organizes people with skills in coding and data science to form volunteer data teams for down-ballot political campaigns.</p>
<p>Along with fellow co-founder Nathán Goldberg, she was named to this year’s Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the category of consumer technology.</p>
<p>“The Samvid Scholarship is a game-changer for making graduate school more financially accessible for impact-focused students. I’m incredibly grateful for this opportunity to pursue an MBA at Stanford and further my abilities to make positive social change,” Blais said. “Thank you to the many friends, colleagues and mentors who helped me get to this point!”</p>
<p>A 2017 Truman Scholar, Blais is currently pursuing a master’s degree in business administration from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.</p>
<p>As an undergraduate, she was deeply involved in <a href="https://studentgovernment.nd.edu/">Notre Dame Student Government</a>, serving as student body president and vice president, director of Internal Affairs, and a member of the Judicial Council.</p>
<p>She also traveled extensively. She accompanied a faculty delegation on a visit to a partner university in Bangladesh; participated in an immersion course in Ireland and, with the <a href="https://socialconcerns.nd.edu">Center For Social Concerns</a>, a summer service learning program in China; led a student group to West Virginia to build homes with Habitat for Humanity; and backpacked in India and Ireland.</p>
<p>Additionally, she volunteered at a local homeless shelter, worked as a notetaker for Sara Bea Accessibility Services and served as vice president of Be the Match on Campus, a nonprofit advocacy group for the national bone marrow donor registry.</p>
<p>Jeffrey Thibert, the Paul and Maureen Stefanick Director of the <a href="https://cuse.nd.edu">Flatley Center for Undergraduate Scholarly Engagement</a> at Notre Dame, recommended Blais for the Samvid.</p>
<p>“I’ve known Becca for over seven years now, and I am consistently impressed by what she has been able to achieve,” Thibert said. “How could I not be impressed? Truman Scholar, founding BlueBonnet, Forbes 30 Under 30, on her way to a Stanford MBA, Samvid Scholar ... it’s quite a trajectory.”</p>
<p>He continued, “But what’s impressed me even more is that she has always been an extraordinarily kind and compassionate person who keeps others at the center of her work. She exemplifies Notre Dame’s ideal of using her learning in service to justice, and I hope that our students can look to her as an example of what it’s possible to achieve with a sense of mission grounded in a moral orientation toward justice and driven by a recognition that making an extraordinary impact means making an extraordinary effort.”</p>
<p>For more on this and other scholarship opportunities, visit cuse.nd.edu.</p>
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<p class="attribution">Originally published by <span class="rel-author">Erin Blasko</span> at <span class="rel-source"><a href="https://news.nd.edu/news/alumna-becca-blais-recognized-as-notre-dames-first-samvid-scholar/">news.nd.edu</a></span> on <span class="rel-pubdate">December 11, 2023</span>.</p>Erin Blaskotag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1586502023-12-11T08:45:00-05:002023-12-08T16:51:00-05:002024 Notre Dame Student Peace Conference: "Peace by Piece"<p>The Notre Dame Student Peace Conference is back, and this year, it focuses on breaking down barriers with the theme <strong>"Peace by Piece: Disrupting Dualities in Peacebuilding."</strong> Join us April 12-13, 2024, here at the University of Notre Dame.</p>
<h4><strong>Exploring the Shades of Peace</strong></h4>
<p>This year, in a world often seen in absolutes, we're committed to understanding peace as a complex, ever-evolving process. This year’s theme hopes to affirm a commitment to peacebuilding as a dynamic and co-constructive process, resisting the temptation to view people, parties, and events through black-and-white, all-or-nothing lenses. Organized by undergraduate peace studies seniors Lina Abdellatif, Mia Moran, and Garrett Pacholl, the conference will explore the necessary components for a multifaceted understanding of peace, one that is capable of bridging divides. The aim? To create a fuller picture of justpeace. “Each piece of the peacebuilding puzzle moves us toward a more complete picture of the barriers to justpeace and the multiplicity of ways we can overcome them,” this year’s organizers write.…</p><p>The Notre Dame Student Peace Conference is back, and this year, it focuses on breaking down barriers with the theme <strong>"Peace by Piece: Disrupting Dualities in Peacebuilding."</strong> Join us April 12-13, 2024, here at the University of Notre Dame.</p>
<h4><strong>Exploring the Shades of Peace</strong></h4>
<p>This year, in a world often seen in absolutes, we're committed to understanding peace as a complex, ever-evolving process. This year’s theme hopes to affirm a commitment to peacebuilding as a dynamic and co-constructive process, resisting the temptation to view people, parties, and events through black-and-white, all-or-nothing lenses. Organized by undergraduate peace studies seniors Lina Abdellatif, Mia Moran, and Garrett Pacholl, the conference will explore the necessary components for a multifaceted understanding of peace, one that is capable of bridging divides. The aim? To create a fuller picture of justpeace. “Each piece of the peacebuilding puzzle moves us toward a more complete picture of the barriers to justpeace and the multiplicity of ways we can overcome them,” this year’s organizers write.</p>
<h4><strong>Your Piece of the Puzzle: Call for Submissions Open!</strong></h4>
<p>Whether you're an undergraduate or graduate student, we want your insights. Let's piece together a future of harmony—one step at a time.</p>
<p>Submit your proposals of original work by <strong>January 26, 2024</strong> in the form of research papers, reflections, panel discussions, artwork, performances, or media projects. Showcase how your work contributes to a global understanding of peace.</p>
<p>Proposals will be evaluated based on their relevance to peace studies and fit within the conference theme, the originality of the topic, and the quality of presentation outline and structure.</p>
<h4><strong>Key Dates:</strong></h4>
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<p>Acceptance Notification: February 2024</p>
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<p>Conference: April 12-13, 2024</p>
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<p>Ready to be part of the conversation? Dive into the details, review submission guidelines, and send in your proposal through the conference website. <strong>For more information on submitting and presenting, visit the <a href="https://sites.nd.edu/peacecon/call-for-proposals">conference website</a>.</strong></p>
<p>See you at the conference, where every piece counts!</p>
<p><em>The Notre Dame Student Peace Conference is an annual student academic event organized by undergraduate students at the University of Notre Dame as a space to engage in academic and professional dialogue on important issues of peacebuilding, justice, and conflict transformation.</em></p>Lisa Gallaghertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1585732023-12-06T14:26:00-05:002023-12-07T13:47:54-05:00December 2023 Peace Policy: Nuclear War and Climate Change<p>The latest issue of <em>Peace Policy</em> is out! And so is the <a href="https://thekroccast.podbean.com/e/peace-policy-spotlight-nuclear-war-and-climate-change/">Kroc Cast episode</a> about the issue, featuring a conversation between <em>Peace Policy</em> Faculty Editor <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/atalia-omer/">Atalia Omer</a> and Guest Editor <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/george-a-lopez/">George A. Lopez.</a>…</p><p>The latest issue of <em>Peace Policy</em> is out! And so is the <a href="https://thekroccast.podbean.com/e/peace-policy-spotlight-nuclear-war-and-climate-change/">Kroc Cast episode</a> about the issue, featuring a conversation between <em>Peace Policy</em> Faculty Editor <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/atalia-omer/">Atalia Omer</a> and Guest Editor <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/george-a-lopez/">George A. Lopez.</a> The issue focuses on the co-mingling of the two existential crises of our time: the threat of nuclear war and potential planetary destruction through climate change. Read the latest issue <a href="https://peacepolicy.nd.edu/">here</a>.</p>Kate Chestertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1588482023-12-05T11:50:00-05:002023-12-19T15:47:01-05:00Five Notre Dame alumni-including a peace studies alumna-recognized as Forbes 30 Under 30 recipients<p>Five University of Notre Dame alumni have been recognized as Forbes 30 Under 30 recipients. Forbes unveils its 30 Under 30 list each fall, spotlighting the 30 most accomplished individuals in the United States under the age of 30 in various industries. The list features emerging talent in 20 fields, including finance, science, health care, education, music, art, style, social impact and more.</p><p>Five University of Notre Dame alumni have been recognized as Forbes 30 Under 30 recipients.</p>
<p>Forbes unveils its 30 Under 30 list each fall, spotlighting the 30 most accomplished individuals in the United States under the age of 30 in various industries. The list features emerging talent in 20 fields, including finance, science, health care, education, music, art, style, social impact and more.</p>
<p>The five honored Notre Dame alumni are:</p>
<p><strong>Becca Blais (class of 2018): </strong><strong>Bluebonnet Data</strong></p>
<p>Blais is the co-founder of Bluebonnet Data, a Texas-based nonprofit whose work includes using public data to aid in voter registration, voter outreach, donor research and voting analysis.</p>
<p>The idea for Bluebonnet came when the company realized the need for a platform through which technologists and data scientists could contribute their services for civic causes and progressive political campaigns.</p>
<p>Blais holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and peace studies from the <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a> at Notre Dame.</p>
<p><strong>Bill Carney and Max Towey (class of 2018)</strong><strong>: </strong><strong>RocaNews</strong></p>
<p>Inspired by their shared passion for entrepreneurship, Carney and Towey founded RocaNews during their freshman year at Notre Dame.</p>
<p>Frustrated with mainstream media’s negativity and extremism, the duo envisioned a news platform that is both trustworthy and enjoyable. RocaNews is dedicated to making staying informed about current affairs a fun experience for its subscribers. This has resulted in approximately 5 million followers across their company’s social media channels, including Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and more than 200,000 newsletter subscribers.</p>
<p>The company officially launched in August 2020, with Towey as CEO and Carney as chairman. Leaving their jobs, they secured early funding through a pre-seed round, emphasizing their commitment by paying themselves minimal wages.</p>
<p>RocaNews has since secured $5.36 million in investments and recently introduced a news-gamifying app, which has attracted nearly 40,000 monthly active users.</p>
<p>Carney and Towey each hold a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Notre Dame’s <a href="https://mendoza.nd.edu/">Mendoza College of Business</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Jack Markwalter (class of 2017) and Hodges Markwalter (class of 2018): </strong><strong>VIVA Finance</strong></p>
<p>Jack Markwalter found his life’s path through the nonprofit <a href="https://jiffi.org/">Jubilee Initiative for Financial Inclusion</a> (JIFFI) during his time as an undergraduate at Notre Dame. Inspired by JIFFI’s impact, he later co-founded VIVA Finance with his brother Hodges, addressing the unmet need for affordable loans for those with poor credit.</p>
<p>VIVA Finance, founded in 2019, offers loans based on employment rather than credit, and repayment through payroll. The company grew and raised $16 million from investors such as the Acumen Fund and Captain Partners and expanded to 18 states.</p>
<p>VIVA’s mission is to be the go-to financial services provider for underserved consumers.</p>
<p>Jack and Hodges each hold a bachelor’s degrees in business administration from the Mendoza College of Business.</p>
<p class="attribution">Originally published by <span class="rel-author">Olivia Poole</span> at <span class="rel-source"><a href="https://news.nd.edu/news/five-notre-dame-alumni-recognized-as-forbes-30-under-30-recipients/">news.nd.edu</a></span> on <span class="rel-pubdate">December 05, 2023</span>.</p>Olivia Pooletag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1585272023-12-05T11:42:00-05:002024-03-05T15:17:34-05:00Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., elected 18th president of the University of Notre Dame<p>The Board of Trustees of the University of Notre Dame has elected <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/people/faculty-fellows/">Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C.</a></strong>, as the University’s 18th president, effective June 1. He will succeed <a href="https://president.nd.edu/about/">Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.</a>, who announced in October that he will step down at the end of the 2023-24 academic year after serving as president for 19 years.…</p><p>The Board of Trustees of the University of Notre Dame has elected <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/people/faculty-fellows/">Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C.</a></strong>, as the University’s 18th president, effective June 1. He will succeed <a href="https://president.nd.edu/about/">Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.</a>, who announced in October that he will step down at the end of the 2023-24 academic year after serving as president for 19 years.</p>
<p>“We are thrilled that Father Dowd will be Notre Dame’s next leader,” said Jack Brennan, chair of Notre Dame’s Board of Trustees. “His character and intellect, along with his broad academic and administrative experience and his deep commitment to Notre Dame, make him an ideal person to lead the University into the future. Since its founding, Notre Dame has been led by a priest-president from the Congregation of Holy Cross, the religious order to which Father Sorin, the University’s founder, belonged. The University has had only three presidents in the last 70 years, each exceptional in their own right — Father Jenkins, Father Edward Malloy, C.S.C., and Father Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C. Father Dowd continues in this rich tradition.”</p>
<p>“I am deeply humbled and honored by the Board’s decision,” Father Dowd said. “We can all be grateful for Father Jenkins’ selfless and courageous leadership for almost two decades. Working together with others, his efforts have positioned the University extremely well in every way. We will build on those efforts. Informed by our Catholic mission, we will work together so that Notre Dame is an ever-greater engine of insight, innovation and impact, addressing society’s greatest challenges and helping young people to realize their potential for good.”<br><br>“I thank and congratulate our Board of Trustees on selecting Father Dowd as Notre Dame’s next president,” Father Jenkins said. “An accomplished scholar, a dedicated teacher and an experienced administrator, Father Bob is also a faithful and generous priest. He will lead the University to being even more powerfully a force for good in the world.”</p>
<p>Father Dowd currently serves as vice president and associate provost for interdisciplinary initiatives at Notre Dame, a position he has held since 2021. He is also an associate professor of political science and serves as a Fellow and Trustee of the University and religious superior of the Holy Cross community at Notre Dame.</p>
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<p>“We are delighted that Father Dowd, a faculty fellow of the <a href="kroc.nd.edu">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a>, has been tapped as Notre Dame’s next president,” said <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/asher-kaufman/">Asher Kaufman</a></strong>, John M. Regan, Jr. Director of the Kroc Institute, part of the <a href="keough.nd.edu">Keough School of Global Affairs</a>. "Father Dowd already knows the Keough School so well, which is a bonus for all of us here."</p>
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<p>A native of Michigan City, Indiana, Father Dowd graduated from Notre Dame in 1987, earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology and economics, and entered Moreau Seminary in the fall of that year to explore his vocation to religious life and priesthood. During his time in the seminary, he asked to be assigned to East Africa and spent 18 months there. After professing final vows in the Congregation of Holy Cross in 1993 and being ordained a priest in 1994, he worked in Campus Ministry at Notre Dame, serving as associate rector of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart and as an assistant rector in one of the University’s residence halls.</p>
<p>He began his graduate studies at UCLA in 1996, earning an M.A. in African studies in 1998 and a doctorate in political science in 2003. In 2004, Father Dowd joined Notre Dame’s political science department as a member of the faculty. Specializing in comparative politics, his research has focused on how Christian and Islamic religious communities affect support for democratic institutions, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. He has published articles in leading academic journals and a book with Oxford University Press.</p>
<p>In his current role, Father Dowd oversees several institutes, centers and other academic units at Notre Dame, including the Center for Social Concerns, DeBartolo Performing Arts Center, Fitzgerald Institute for Real Estate, iNDustry Labs, Institute for Educational Initiatives, Lucy Family Institute for Data and Society, McGrath Institute for Church Life, Notre Dame Technology Ethics Center, Office of Military and Veterans Affairs, ROTC programs and the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art. He also directs the approval and review process of institutes and centers.</p>
<p>He was previously an assistant provost for internationalization with Notre Dame International, where his primary responsibilities included overseeing the Dublin Global Gateway and Kylemore Abbey Global Centre in Ireland and the São Paulo Global Center in Brazil, and establishing an office in Nairobi, Kenya, to promote and support Notre Dame’s research and educational partnerships in Africa.</p>
<p>He is the founder of Notre Dame’s Ford Program in Human Development Studies and Solidarity at the Kellogg Institute for International Studies, which is animated by Catholic social teaching and dedicated to forging community-engaged research partnerships in the Global South. In addition to his faculty fellow title at the Kroc Institute, he is also a fellow of the Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion, the Kellogg Institute for International Studies and the Nanovic Institute for European Studies in the University’s Keough School. He also serves as a trustee of Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts, and a board member of Brother Andre Hospital in Nairobi.</p>
<p>Father Dowd’s research has focused on African politics, identity politics, and religion and politics. His research has also explored the effects of religious beliefs and institutions on the integration of migrants/refugees in Europe and the effects of faith-based schools on citizenship and civic engagement in Africa. He is the author of the book “Christianity, Islam, and Liberal Democracy: Lessons from Sub-Saharan Africa.”</p>
<p>Over his 19-year tenure as president, Father Jenkins is credited with advancing Notre Dame’s mission as a Catholic research university; attracting and supporting superb faculty; fostering dramatic growth in research at the University; securing Notre Dame’s admission in the Association of American Universities; ensuring the University’s financial strength; admitting a talented, diverse student body; promoting continued excellence in undergraduate instruction; expanding Notre Dame’s global engagement; and offering students an in-person education during the COVID-19 pandemic. A longtime member of the Commission on Presidential Debates, he is recognized nationally as an advocate of civil discourse, and he is a leading voice on the future of college athletics.</p>
<p>A video announcement is available <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NskCBvWjOms">here</a> and a history of the University’s presidency is available <a href="https://president.nd.edu/about/history-of-the-presidency/">here</a>.</p>
<p class="attribution">Originally published by <span class="rel-author">Notre Dame News</span> at <span class="rel-source"><a href="https://news.nd.edu/news/rev-robert-a-dowd-c-s-c-elected-18th-president-of-the-university-of-notre-dame/">news.nd.edu</a></span> on <span class="rel-pubdate">December 04, 2023</span>.</p>Notre Dame Newstag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1582642023-11-27T12:40:00-05:002023-11-27T12:41:01-05:00On the world stage: Kroc Institute’s Peace Accords Matrix invited to brief the UN Security Council<p>The aim of <a href="https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter/chapter-6">Chapter 6 of the United Nations Charter</a> is both broad and thoughtful. It requires countries with disputes that have the potential to lead to war to first seek solutions through peaceful methods. These include “negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional agencies or arrangements, or other peaceful means of their own choice,” according to the charter. If alternative dispute resolutions fail, countries must refer their disputes to the <a href="https://www.un.org/en/model-united-nations/security-council#:~:text=There%20are%2015%20Council%20members,Assembly%20for%20two%2Dyear%20terms.">UN Security Council</a>…</p><p>The aim of <a href="https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter/chapter-6">Chapter 6 of the United Nations Charter</a> is both broad and thoughtful. It requires countries with disputes that have the potential to lead to war to first seek solutions through peaceful methods. These include “negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional agencies or arrangements, or other peaceful means of their own choice,” according to the charter. If alternative dispute resolutions fail, countries must refer their disputes to the <a href="https://www.un.org/en/model-united-nations/security-council#:~:text=There%20are%2015%20Council%20members,Assembly%20for%20two%2Dyear%20terms.">UN Security Council</a>, the entity charged with ensuring international peace and security.</p>
<p>Such a scope made the <a href="https://peaceaccords.nd.edu/">Peace Accords Matrix (PAM)</a> a natural guest to address the UN Security Council on Oct. 20 as part of its open debate, “Peace through Dialogue: the Contribution of Regional, Sub-regional and Bilateral Arrangements to the Prevention and Peaceful Resolution of Disputes.” PAM Director <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/josefina-echavarria-alvarez/">Josefina Echavarría Alvarez</a></strong> shared the program’s evidence-based research with the Council, noting the importance of dialogue for successful peace agreements.</p>
<figure class="image image-left"><img src="https://kroc.nd.edu/assets/549173/josefina_un_1.jpg" alt="UN official photo 2" width="600" height="338">
<figcaption>UN Photo – Josefina Echavarría Alvarez, director of the Peace Accords Matrix (PAM), briefs <br>the Security Council meeting on “Peace through Dialogue: the Contribution of Regional, <br>Sub-regional and Bilateral Arrangements to the Prevention and Peaceful Resolution <br>of Disputes,” on Oct. 20, 2023.</figcaption>
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<p>“Sustained dialogue is most needed when there are disagreements and political difficulties,” she shared as part of her remarks.</p>
<p>“These are the best times to deepen our understanding of how and when the implementation of peaceful arrangements fails – not an uncommon occurrence – and focus our attention on how to design and implement peaceful arrangements that can succeed in the short, mid- and long term.”</p>
<p>PAM is one of the pillars of the <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a>, part of the<a href="https://keough.nd.edu/"> Keough School of Global Affairs</a>. The program has researched 34 intra-state comprehensive peace accords signed since 1989 and designed a methodology to monitor and compare the implementation of commitments among the peace accords. Meanwhile, its <a href="https://peaceaccords.nd.edu/barometer">Barometer Initiative</a> project in Colombia monitors the implementation of the 2016 Colombian Peace Accord. It represents the first time a university-based research center has played a direct role to support implementation of a peace agreement by reporting progress and identifying issues in need of attention and opportunities for advancement.</p>
<p>Collectively, PAM has garnered worldwide accolades because of its work, which prompted the Permanent Mission of Brazil to invite PAM to present to the Council last month (Brazil occupied the Security Council Presidency in October 2023; <a href="https://www.un.org/securitycouncil/content/presidency#:~:text=The%20presidency%20of%20the%20Council,of%20the%20Member%20States%20names.">each of the Council’s 15 members rotate monthly to serve in this capacity</a>).</p>
<p>“I asked myself, ‘What are the key takeaways I want the UN Security Council to remember about the University of Notre Dame’s contribution to peace and security, as a leading university and civil society organization? What points can be helpful to security council members in their roles, for their countries, as they seek to overcome violence?’” said Echavarría Alvarez.</p>
<figure class="image image-left"><img src="https://kroc.nd.edu/assets/549174/josefina_un_2.jpg" alt="UN official photo, group" width="600" height="338">
<figcaption>UN Photo – A view of the Security Council meeting on “Peace through Dialogue: the <br>Contribution of Regional, Sub-regional and Bilateral Arrangements to the Prevention and <br>Peaceful Resolution of Disputes,” on Oct. 20, 2023.</figcaption>
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<p>With this in mind, she threw the spotlight on three “must haves” for peace agreements to be successful:</p>
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<p>That commitments in a peace accord go beyond military and security provisions and include political and social development, gender and ethnic rights, and justice-related reforms;</p>
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<p>That those most affected by war – often marginalized communities such as women, youth, and ethnic groups – participate at the negotiation table and during implementation; and</p>
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<p>Echavarría Alvarez’s presentation at the UN Security Council is the latest example of international doors opening to PAM and the Kroc Institute. The success of PAM’s Barometer Initiative attracts requests from around the world to engage in similar peace accord processes. Most immediate are plans to work in the Philippines, monitoring implementation of part of the country’s peace accord.</p>
<p>“PAM represents a top-tier research and policy program at the University, whose services are being requested by nations around the globe in need of assistance with peace accords processes,” said <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/asher-kaufman/">Asher Kaufman</a></strong>, John M. Regan, Jr. director of the Kroc Institute.</p>
<p>“As PAM’s work expands, so does its international visibility and reputation with an ever-growing, diverse audience. Josefina’s recent invitation to the UN demonstrates just how important, needed, and revered this research is,” he added.</p>Kate Chestertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1579202023-11-13T11:15:00-05:002023-11-13T10:17:28-05:00Mediation as a Path to Peace: The Transformative Journey of Professor Laurie Nathan<p>When <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/laurie-nathan/"><strong>Professor Laurie Nathan</strong></a>, director of the Kroc Institute Mediation Program, was a South African graduate student, he was engaged in the anti-apartheid struggle – and fiercely opposed to mediation. He believed that mediators should get off the fence and join the struggle.…</p><p>When <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/laurie-nathan/"><strong>Professor Laurie Nathan</strong></a>, director of the Kroc Institute Mediation Program, was a South African graduate student, he was engaged in the anti-apartheid struggle – and fiercely opposed to mediation. He believed that mediators should get off the fence and join the struggle.</p>
<p>“We wanted to defeat the apartheid regime,” said Nathan. “We were not interested in mediation.”</p>
<p>Following the end of apartheid in South Africa in 1994, however, not long after Nathan earned his Master's degree in Peace Studies from <a href="https://www.bradford.ac.uk/social-sciences/department-of-peace-studies-international-development/">University of Bradford</a>, his perspective on mediation underwent a transformation. He joined the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CCRCapeTown/">Centre for Conflict Resolution at the University of Cape Town</a>, where he developed a deep interest in the art of mediation. "I found it fascinating," Nathan reflected. "From political and intellectual standpoints, as well as ethically and psychologically, mediation is an extremely challenging endeavor."</p>
<p>Over the ensuing years, Nathan served as the director at the Centre, and his research and practice gradually shifted from focusing on security sector reform in South Africa, to encompassing a broader peacemaking and peacebuilding scope across the African continent. Notably, he played a pivotal role as a member of the <a href="https://au.int/en">African Union</a> Mediation Team for Darfur during the civil war in Sudan that unfolded in the early 2000s. As his influence increased, so did his argument – that international mediation should be professionalized.</p>
<p>"Mediation is a specialized field with a distinct body of knowledge, tactics and techniques," Nathan emphasized. "It requires training, regardless of one's natural talents."</p>
<p>Nathan's journey at the <a href="http://nd.edu">University of Notre Dame</a> commenced in 2017 when he became a visiting fellow at the <a href="http://kroc.nd.edu"><strong>Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</strong></a>. This was a significant juncture, coinciding with <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/asher-kaufman/">Asher Kaufman</a>'s inaugural directorship of the Institute and the retirement of <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/john-paul-lederach/">John Paul Lederach</a>, one of the only faculty members at the Kroc Institute who studied and taught mediation. Establishing a <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/policy-practice/mediation-program/">mediation program</a></strong> aligned perfectly with Kroc Institute's <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/about-us/strategic-plan-2018-2023/">2018-2023 strategic plan</a>, offering Nathan an ideal opportunity to continue his career on a permanent basis at Notre Dame. "It was and still is a dream job," Nathan enthused.</p>
<p>“Two of our core objectives are to produce high-quality scholarly research and policy research that policymakers find useful," he affirmed. In this regard, Nathan has worked closely with the United Nations, the European Union and the governments of Germany and Switzerland.</p>
<p>A third objective of the mediation program is to support mediation and dialogue efforts in the field. "Since joining Kroc, our focus has included North Macedonia, Kosovo, Sudan, South Sudan, and Ethiopia, all of them in the midst of serious conflict,” said Nathan. The mediation program also houses the <strong><a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/policy-practice/afghan-peace-and-development-research-program/">Afghanistan Program for Peace and Development (AfPAD)</a></strong>, where Nathan supports its advisors and program leader, <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/aref-dostyar/"><strong>Aref Dostyar</strong></a>.</p>
<p>The mediation program also undertakes teaching, “which I love," said Nathan, and offers courses at Notre Dame on international mediation and community mediation. He has established an annual <a href="https://www.peaceconflictresearch.org/Courses/Course/?x=1161">international mediation Ph.D. course</a> in collaboration with the <a href="https://www.prio.org/">Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)</a>. This course welcomes students from Notre Dame and Ph.D. students from around the world.</p>
<p>On a local level, Nathan has partnered with the <a href="https://southbendin.gov/department/venues-parks-and-arts/office-of-community-initiatives/">Office of Community Initiatives</a> with the <a href="https://www.southbendin.gov/">City of South Bend</a>. Here, he trains community activists in crisis intervention, a form of mediation employed in situations of imminent or actual violence.</p>
<p>"It has been very rewarding, and the program has expanded each year," said Nathan. In future iterations, he hopes to integrate this type of training with community schools, as well.</p>
<p>To aspiring activists, Nathan suggests selecting a cause that resonates with them. "Get involved in the area that ignites your passion. Channel that passion into something constructive."</p>
<p>Often encountering students and activists who feel overwhelmed or despondent about current events, Nathan offers this advice: "If you have the determination, you will find a solution.” Certain issues, however challenging, are not insurmountable. "No one guarantees an easy victory," he acknowledged. "But if we do not engage in activist struggle, the forces of injustice prevail. The forces of good may not win every time, but we will win some of the time."</p>Lisa Gallaghertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1578912023-11-10T11:15:00-05:002023-11-14T14:28:19-05:00Kellogg PhD Affiliates--including Kroc's Own Joachim Ozonze--Develop Program of Catholic Leadership and Service in Africa<p>“We have heard the long-expressed hope – spoken with great passion by popes, bishops, and other Church leaders, especially in the West – that the future of the Catholic Church is in Africa,” said <a href="https://kellogg.nd.edu/fr-kenneth-amadi"><strong>Rev. Kenneth Amadi</strong></a>, a Kellogg doctoral student affiliate. “And so we started thinking about what we could do today to secure that future.”…</p><p>“We have heard the long-expressed hope – spoken with great passion by popes, bishops, and other Church leaders, especially in the West – that the future of the Catholic Church is in Africa,” said <a href="https://kellogg.nd.edu/fr-kenneth-amadi"><strong>Rev. Kenneth Amadi</strong></a>, a Kellogg doctoral student affiliate. “And so we started thinking about what we could do today to secure that future.”</p>
<p>Brainstorming with fellow Kellogg doctoral student affiliates <a href="https://kellogg.nd.edu/william-orbih"><strong>Revs. William Orbih</strong></a> and <a href="https://kellogg.nd.edu/joachim-ozonze"><strong>Joachim Ozonze</strong></a>, who, like Amadi, are Nigerian priests and PhD students in theology at the University of Notre Dame, the trio came to found <a href="https://www.churchlifeafrica.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Church Life Africa</a> (CLA), a strategic initiative that takes this hope seriously and calls for an intentional investment in its promise.</p>
<p>“Certainly this hope is based in part on the number of Catholics in Africa and on the resilience of African Catholics in the face of so many challenges and hardships,” said Amadi. “But the Western Church had high numbers and resilience at one time, too, yet the Church is losing ground here now.”</p>
<p>Ozonze, who is pairing his theology doctorate with peace studies through the <a href="kroc.nd.edu">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a>, explained that Church Life Africa asks further, “On what does this hope stand – sand? Rock? Are numbers or resilience in themselves sufficient ground for hope? We want to be sure the hope is alive and nurtured. We want to invite people to question this hope.”</p>
<p>During their time in the United States, Amadi, Orbih, and Ozonze have taken note of the role of lay people in ministries and education in the US Catholic Church, as well as the theological education many of them have. This is in stark contrast with their experiences in Nigeria, where it is the clergy and religious who mostly have the training and hold these positions. It seemed to them that this was the US Catholic response to a declining Church here; they hypothesized that empowering the laity in Africa now may be a way to proactively strengthen the growing church on their home continent.</p>
<p>“Our concern for lay theological formation and engagement is also inspired by our conviction that they can offer profound contributions to the practice of peace and human flourishing. We want to encourage and equip young people to theologically engage the justice mission of the Church, especially in light of the many assaults on human life and dignity in Africa today,” explained Ozonze, highlighting examples such as environmental stewardship, economic justice, and the growing crisis of drug trafficking. “We take seriously the transformational character of Catholic Social Teaching, especially in a space where politics and violence are sadly performed along religious and ethnic lines.”</p>
<p> </p>
<figure class="image image-left"><img src="https://conductorshare.nd.edu/assets/546643/cla2023_2.jpg" alt="Church Life Africa 2023 Conference" width="600" height="338">
<figcaption>Participants in the Church Life Africa 2023 Conference in Nigeria</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the summer of 2022, with initial support from the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture, CLA piloted a conference in Nigeria to address the theological deficits among lay people there and to nurture a formed and informed faith. The theme was “Lay Theological Engagement and the Future of Church Life in Africa.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“The conference became a way for us to test the waters to see if there is really a need and a desire – do lay people really care about theological training?” explained Amadi. “We thought we might get a few people applying from our archdiocese.”</p>
<p>Orbih shared that they were “blown away” by the number of applicants, saying they had to limit participation in the end to 100 individuals. But they were even more astounded by the enthusiasm and active engagement of the participants.</p>
<p>“The young people especially were super excited about the conference, and mostly by the realization that they are not just called to collaborate with the priests and bishops, but that they each are responsible for the church, that there is a co-responsibility there,” he said.</p>
<p>“Part of the excitement was also the openness of the clergy and religious – not just lay people but priests, bishops, and religious sisters are saying the laity need to be educated and empowered in the African Church,” shared Ozonze. “Although there have been some efforts to form the laity theologically, such efforts need to be more strategic and supported by intentional investment from stakeholders.”</p>
<p>This past summer, CLA held its <a href="https://www.churchlifeafrica.org/copy-of-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">second conference</a> in Africa, this time with the theme “In Solidarity with the Church in Africa.” They opened the invitation list to all of Nigeria and once again the number of applicants was overwhelming, from across nearly 40 dioceses, with 232 attending the 3-day conference held at the CSN Resource Center of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Abuja.</p>
<p>Support from Notre Dame and the American Church was also heartening, with keynote speakers that included Notre Dame professors Timothy Matovina, John Cavadini, Catherine Cavadini, and Kellogg faculty fellow Kimberly Belcher, as well as the Most Reverend Kevin Rhoades, bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend. Notre Dame sponsorship came from the Kellogg Institute, the Department of Theology, the De Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture, and the McGrath Institute for Church Life, whose work at Notre Dame has greatly inspired CLA’s vision for Africa.</p>
<p>Local support in Nigeria came from cosponsorship by the Archdiocese of Abuja, with a message of solidarity from Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama, and keynote presentations from John Cardinal Onaiyekan, emeritus archbishop of Abuja, and Dame Bridget Itsueli, the founder and chair of the Relate Africa Organization for Marriage and Family. The secretary general of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, Rev. Zachariah Sanjumi, was present at the conference opening ceremonies, while the auxiliary bishop of Abuja, Most Rev. Anselm Umoren, presided at the closing Mass with many priests concelebrating.</p>
<p>Next year, the priests plan to hold a third iteration of the conference, this time open to applicants from the entire continent, but with final participants limited to around 200 candidates, from among whom candidates will be selected for substantial programs in theology starting in 2025.</p>
<p>Based on a model of solidarity and mutual enrichment between the Church in Africa and in the United States, CLA’s strategic vision is to form the next generation of African Catholics for the global Church.</p>
<p>“We also hope that CLA provides both the space and the context to continue to engage Notre Dame African students after leaving ND,” said Amadi. “We want to provide ongoing support and an institutional structure for these alumni to give back to Africa during and beyond the years of their studies, so that all can be ambassadors for Notre Dame – the hands and feet of Notre Dame in Africa.”</p>
<p> </p>
<figure class="image image-left"><img src="https://conductorshare.nd.edu/assets/546645/cla2023_3.jpg" alt="Church Life Africa 2023 Conference" width="100%"></figure>
<p> </p>Kellogg Institute for International Studiestag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1576572023-11-01T13:30:00-04:002023-11-14T13:05:17-05:00As earthquakes rock Afghanistan, Kroc Institute alumni gather to collect aid<p>As the world tunes in to news coverage about the unfolding Israel/Palestine tragedy, Afghanistan shoulders the aftermath of a catastrophic natural disaster -- but without media fanfare.</p>
<p>Late in the morning of Oct. 7, the first 6.3 magnitude earthquake shook Afghanistan’s Herat region. About 30 minutes later, a second 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit. Combined, these two earthquakes killed at least 2,445 and injured countless others. More than 90% of the casualties were women and children.…</p><p>As the world tunes in to news coverage about the unfolding Israel/Palestine tragedy, Afghanistan shoulders the aftermath of a catastrophic natural disaster -- but without media fanfare.</p>
<p>Late in the morning of Oct. 7, the first 6.3 magnitude earthquake shook Afghanistan’s Herat region. About 30 minutes later, a second 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit. Combined, these two earthquakes killed at least 2,445 and injured countless others. More than 90% of the casualties were women and children.</p>
<p>In the weeks following these devastating events, Herat continues to experience aftershocks, with subsequent earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 4.7 to 6.3.</p>
<p>At the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, part of the <a href="http://keough.nd.edu">Keough School of Global Affairs</a>, students and alumni have banded together to help gather aid. Joining forces via a group of Notre Dame Afghanistan alumni on WhatsApp -- including <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/ph-d/ph-d-students/wasal-faqiryar/"><strong>Wasal Faqiryar (Ph.D. student, peace studies and anthropology)</strong></a>, <strong><a href="https://law.nd.edu/academics/llm-international-human-rights-law/alumni/class-of-2020/">Tahmina Sobat (LL.M ‘20)</a></strong>, and <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/policy-practice/afghan-peace-and-development-research-program/people/"><strong>Roqia Samim (LL.M. ‘22)</strong></a> -- members first contacted each other to make sure those who have family and friends in the affected areas were okay. Immediately, the conversation evolved into a call to action – what could they do to help?</p>
<p>“It is truly heart-wrenching to witness people’s suffering from the earthquakes, people who still have not recovered from the shock of the Taliban’s resurgence in August 2021 and their continued destruction of the country and women’s rights since then,” said Sobat.</p>
<p>Those who survived the earthquakes have found their homes, constructed largely of mud, completely razed, unable to withstand subsequent earthquakes and aftershocks. A sandstorm caused further devastation; tents serving as refuge for those who’d lost their homes were destroyed. To date, the United Nations estimates nearly 66,000 people across six districts have been directly affected by the quakes.</p>
<p>“At least 11 villages have been impacted,” said <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/faculty-and-staff/aref-dostyar/">Aref Dostyar (M.A. ‘16)</a>, advisor and program leader for the Kroc Institute’s <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/policy-practice/afghan-peace-and-development-research-program/">Afghanistan Program for Peace and Development</a>. “People are continuing to stay in their cars, and they have moved away from areas where aftershocks are predicted. Hospitals are overwhelmed.”</p>
<figure class="image image-right"><img src="https://kroc.nd.edu/assets/546224/earthquake_afghanistan.jpg" alt="Earthquake Afghanistan" width="400" height="175">
<figcaption><em>The devastation in Herat</em></figcaption>
<figcaption></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Adding to the already-dire situation, getting aid to those affected is difficult. The SWIFT system, a common way to send funds internationally between banks and other financial institutions, is unavailable. While other transfer methods such as Western Union and MoneyGram remain active, some laws, regulations and sanctions within the international community restrict nonprofits and foundations from using them due to the Taliban’s hold on the region.</p>
<p>“We have to use very local traditional models to be able to reach out to people,” Dostyar said. “To the extent we can, we use banks and international systems. When these systems are not responsive, we have used registered businesses and transportation companies -- like bus companies, for example -- that are able to take the resources from one city to another.”</p>
<p>With winter on the horizon, the need for aid -- including food, water, clothing, shelter, medicine and medical attention -- is tantamount.</p>
<p>Dostyar explained the initiatives the group is working on in the short-term. “We are working to get tents,” he said, the prices of which have ballooned as demand has increased. To assist with immediate needs, Dostyar points to two nonprofit groups -- <a href="https://aptyouth.org/">Afghans for Progressive Thinking</a>, a youth-led nonprofit organization in Afghanistan that actively addresses human rights crises, and the Afghanistan Peacebuilding Initiative (API), a new organization incorporated in the U.S. of which Dostyar is a founding member. A <a href="https://gofund.me/1725ab74">GoFundMe</a> has been created by members of the Heratian Community in North America, which has already surpassed its initial goal of $10,000, the funds of which will be used to help families rebuild.</p>
<p>Faqiryar helped share the GoFundMe link with his Notre Dame cohort and through a Tumblr account with more than 10,000 followers. “We have seen widespread support,” he said. “We have not only received donations from my Notre Dame cohort but also reached a broader global audience thanks to the efforts of the campaign organizers.”</p>
<p>Yet, there is more to do.</p>
<p>“Besides short-term needs, there are many long-term needs to consider, especially for those who lost all of their family members,” said Samim. “Thousands of children have been orphaned. They have lost their support providers. They don’t have safe shelter and access to clean water.”</p>
<p>Adds Sobat, “Long-term recovery efforts should focus on rebuilding and providing sustained support to the affected communities in Herat, and specifically the two villages and districts that have been at the center of disaster.”</p>
<p>“The future focus of aiding the sufferers should be on building robust and resilient homes for those who lost theirs, ensuring their safety against future calamities,” said Faqiryar. “Continuous assessments of their needs are vital. Providing them with agricultural tools and equipment can be an effective strategy, as it aids in restoring their self-sufficiency, especially considering the significant impact of the disaster on women and children.”</p>
<p>With such multifaceted issues, it can be difficult to remain resilient.</p>
<p>“We don’t have the option of walking away,” echoed Dostyar. “Anybody from Afghanistan, either inside or outside, has the motivation to help regardless of how difficult it is. We don’t grow wary of helping our family members.</p>
<p>“Despite the challenges,” Dostyar continued, “there are innovative ways that people are using. So it’s possible. It’s difficult, but it’s still possible.”</p>
<p>“Talk about it,” suggested Raqia. “There are thousands who lost their lives and nobody even knows. Nobody even talks about them. They’re our families,” she said. “If people don’t have resources to contribute, at least they can talk about it. In raising the issue, they can raise awareness for the people who do have the resources to help.”</p>
<p>If you would like to learn more about ways to help those affected by the earthquakes in Afghanistan, contact <a href="mailto:%20mdostyar@nd.edu">Dostyar</a> directly.</p>
<p>To donate to the GoFundMe account, click <a href="https://gofund.me/1725ab74">here</a>.</p>
<p> </p>
<div class="XDaACe"><em>Photo Credit: AP</em></div>
<div class="XDaACe"><em>Copyright: Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.</em></div>Lisa Gallaghertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1574862023-10-25T10:38:00-04:002023-10-25T10:38:58-04:00Inclusive peacebuilder: master of global affairs graduate advocates for LGBTQ+ perspectives<p>When his family moved from the United States back to Bogotá, Colombia, <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/students/matthew-bocanumenth/" id="Content_matthew-bocanumenth"><strong>Matthew Bocanumenth</strong></a> suddenly gained a front-row seat to a historic peacebuilding project.</p>
<p>The administration of Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, working with activists, experts, and civil society groups, negotiated peace with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. And the resulting agreement, ratified in 2016, proved historic. It ended more than a half-century of armed conflict with the country’s largest guerrilla group and empowered historically marginalized constituencies, including women and the LGBTQ+ community, to meaningfully participate in the implementation of peace.…</p><p>When his family moved from the United States back to Bogotá, Colombia, <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/students/matthew-bocanumenth/" id="Content_matthew-bocanumenth"><strong>Matthew Bocanumenth</strong></a> suddenly gained a front-row seat to a historic peacebuilding project.</p>
<p>The administration of Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, working with activists, experts, and civil society groups, negotiated peace with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. And the resulting agreement, ratified in 2016, proved historic. It ended more than a half-century of armed conflict with the country’s largest guerrilla group and empowered historically marginalized constituencies, including women and the LGBTQ+ community, to meaningfully participate in the implementation of peace.</p>
<p>“I was living in Colombia when this peace process started,” Bocanumenth recalled. “As an adolescent, seeing the ways that the media portrayed this process and hearing different perspectives among the wider society broadened my own perspectives on what was happening and inspired my interest in global affairs—and in working to further gender-inclusive approaches to building sustainable peace.”</p>
<p>Now, Bocanumenth, a second-year master of global affairs with a concentration in<a href="https://keough.nd.edu/master-of-global-affairs/international-peace-studies/" id="Content_international-peace-studies"><strong> international peace studies</strong></a>, works as a gender, peace, and security fellow at <a href="https://outrightinternational.org/" id="Content_outrightinternational-org"><strong>Outright International</strong></a> in New York as part of his field experience. The nongovernmental organization addresses human rights abuses against LGBTQ+ people. For him, the role is an opportunity to help the international community work more inclusively with his community.</p>
<p>“Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer people remain largely invisible in the international architecture for humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding efforts,” Bocanumenth said. “Without an intersectional gender approach in international institutions, the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ people across the world will remain obscured in research initiatives, policy agendas, and funding opportunities.”</p>
<p>Bocanumenth is working to change that through his field experience, building on the gender approach of the United Nations’ <a href="https://dppa.un.org/en/women-peace-and-security" id="Content_women-peace-and-security"><strong>women, peace, and security agenda</strong></a>. In 2000, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1325, which established this framework. The resolution acknowledged the disproportionate ways that conflict harms women and girls, and called for women’s meaningful involvement in peacebuilding and conflict prevention. In so doing, it pushed peacebuilders to give more people a seat at the table, and ensured their work would benefit from a wider array of perspectives.</p>
<p>“This agenda has also provided an opportunity for activists to reinforce the call for inclusion of all women as well LGBTQ+ people of all genders in peace and security efforts,” Bocanumenth said. “By including these groups, national and international policymakers and practitioners can deepen the necessary work for addressing all forms of gender-based violence, engage more perspectives, work toward a broader consensus, and build a more sustainable peace, which is the ultimate goal.”</p>
<p>Bocanumenth’s time at Outright International has offered multiple ways to support this mode of inclusive peacebuilding, in part by drawing on the innovations he witnessed growing up in Colombia. Earlier this month, he co-authored an <a href="https://outrightinternational.org/insights/colombias-peace-tribunal-breaks-new-ground-lgbtq-persecution" id="Content_colombias-peace-tribunal-breaks-new-ground-lgbtq-persecution"><strong>analysis of Colombia’s peace tribunal</strong></a>, detailing how it broke new ground by framing targeted violence against LGBTQ+ people as gender persecution and explained how other countries can address conflict by modeling similar approaches.</p>
<p>After his field experience wraps up in December, Bocanumenth’s capstone project will allow him to learn even more from Colombia’s peace and its inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community. The project will enable him to explore findings from the <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/research/the-legacy-project/" id="Content_the-legacy-project"><strong>Legacy Project</strong></a>. Housed at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, the project preserves narratives and memories compiled by the Colombian Truth Commission through an extensive multimedia archive that includes a wide diversity of voices affected by the conflict. Bocanumenth hopes that amplifying these LGBTQ+ stories can influence decision makers to change peacebuilding policies for the better.</p>
<p>As he reflects on his time as a master of global affairs student, Bocanumenth appreciates the training, support, and community that enable him to continue making a difference.</p>
<p>“It’s been an absolute blessing to be in this program. I am so grateful to the Keough School and to the Kroc Institute for providing me the financial support, the theoretical foundations, and the community for undertaking this sort of work,” Bocanumenth said. “When I talk to my classmates, there’s a sense of solidarity that we’re not in this alone, that we can all lean on each other as we work on the issues that we care about.”</p>
<p>Learn more about the <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/master-of-global-affairs/">Master of Global Affairs</a>.</p>
<p><em>Originially published at <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/inclusive-peacebuilder-master-of-global-affairs-graduate-advocates-for-lgbtq-perspectives/">keough.nd.edu</a></em>. </p>Josh Stowetag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1574042023-10-24T10:00:00-04:002023-10-23T14:55:46-04:00Kroc Institute co-sponsors ‘Fall Frolic 5K,’ to benefit South Bend homeless center<p>Call it exercise for education.</p>
<p>The annual ‘Fall Frolic,’ a 5k fundraiser hosted by the Montessori Academy at Edison Lakes, took place Saturday, Oct. 21 to raise money for the Montessori classroom at the Center for the Homeless in South Bend.</p>
<p>The Montessori classroom is tailored to children ages three to six, who face hardships not seen in traditional school systems. The classroom is free to families at the center, although students can stay in the program even if they move out of the center.…</p><p>Call it exercise for education.</p>
<p>The annual ‘Fall Frolic,’ a 5k fundraiser hosted by the Montessori Academy at Edison Lakes, took place Saturday, Oct. 21 to raise money for the Montessori classroom at the Center for the Homeless in South Bend.</p>
<p>The Montessori classroom is tailored to children ages three to six, who face hardships not seen in traditional school systems. The classroom is free to families at the center, although students can stay in the program even if they move out of the center.</p>
<p>The Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, co-sponsored the run for the second year in a row. Erin B. Corcoran, executive director of the Kroc Institute, directed the race, with Kroc Institute Visiting Research Fellows Maria Prada Ramirez and Jenna Sapiano running.</p>
<p>Watch ABC’s Channel 57 for <a href="https://www.abc57.com/news/fall-frolic-5k-benefits-montessori-classroom-at-south-bend-center-for-the-homeless">coverage of the event.</a></p>Kate Chestertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1572902023-10-17T16:43:00-04:002023-10-17T16:49:09-04:00As war erupts and escalates in Israel/Palestine, Kroc Institute hosts standing room-only ‘teach-in’ to answer questions for Notre Dame faculty, staff and students<p>The world watched in horror and disbelief as Israel/Palestine imploded on Saturday, Oct. 7. The following week saw one of the bloodiest, most violent episodes in the region’s history for both Israelis and Palestinians in their long standing battle, one that isn’t likely to end anytime soon.</p>
<p>The week also saw the <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a>…</p><p>The world watched in horror and disbelief as Israel/Palestine imploded on Saturday, Oct. 7. The following week saw one of the bloodiest, most violent episodes in the region’s history for both Israelis and Palestinians in their long standing battle, one that isn’t likely to end anytime soon.</p>
<p>The week also saw the <a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/">Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a> put its mission into action.</p>
<p>On Thursday, Oct. 12, the Institute hosted an on-campus ‘teach-in’ on the war underway – ‘The Israel/Palestine Escalation: The Current Chapter of a Long History.’ The event was moderated by <strong>Ebrahim Moosa</strong>, the Mirza Family Professor of Islamic Thought and Muslim Societies, Keough School of Global Affairs, Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, and Department of History. The panel was made up by <strong>Daniel Bannoura</strong>, a Theology doctoral student; <strong>Mary Ellen O'Connell</strong>, the Robert and Marion Short Professor of Law and a concurrent professor of International Peace Studies, Kroc Institute; and <strong>Atalia Omer</strong>, professor of Religion, Conflict and Peace Studies at the Kroc Institute. A <a href="https://contendingmodernities.nd.edu/global-currents/israel-palestine-escalation-current-chapter-long-history/">detailed recap</a> of the panel can be found on the Contending Modernities website, a program of the Kroc Institute that is co-directed by Moosa and Omer.</p>
<figure class="image-left"><img src="https://kroc.nd.edu/assets/544238/ip_teach_in_2.png" alt="" width="275" height="183">
<figcaption><em>Panelists (from left) Mary Ellen O'Connell, </em><br><em>Daniel Bannoura, Atalia Omer, Ebrahim Moosa</em></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“Our faculty and staff quickly and smoothly responded to the situation, in service to our community,” said <strong>Erin B. Corcoran</strong>, executive director for the Kroc Institute. “It was a collective effort that demonstrated our commitment to education and care in the midst of a spectrum of emotions felt by faculty, staff and students.”</p>
<p>The panel took place in the auditorium of the Hesburgh Center for International Studies. Hundreds attended, with many standing or sitting on the floor near the stage, simply for the chance to hear what the panelists had to say. Such a grass roots’ feel produced a sensitive Q&A session with the Notre Dame audience, allowing for vulnerability and compassion as attendees processed news of what was happening on the ground.</p>
<p>“The event was intellectual, educational, emotional and raw for all involved,” said Corcoran. “It was a teachable moment, and we used it wisely as our panel fielded questions from the audience.”</p>
<p>Fittingly, the event was hosted on the 20th anniversary of the passing of philanthropist Joan B. Kroc, founder of the Kroc Institute in partnership with Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., who served as president of the University of Notre Dame for 35 years.</p>
<p>“Encouraging dialogue was a main objective of Mrs. Kroc’s and part of her vision for what the Kroc Institute should stand for,” added Corcoran. “I’m confident she would have said ‘well done’ had she been with us for last week’s teach-in.”</p>
<p>The<a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/"> Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a> is part of the <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/">Keough School of Global Affairs</a> at the <a href="https://www.nd.edu/">University of Notre Dame</a>.</p>Kate Chestertag:kroc.nd.edu,2005:News/1572742023-10-17T10:16:00-04:002023-10-17T10:16:34-04:00Kroc Institute’s Peace Accords Matrix, to address the United Nations’ Security Council<p>The <a href="https://peaceaccords.nd.edu/">Peace Accords Matrix</a> program, part of the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, has been invited to present to the <strong>United Nations’ Security Council</strong> at <strong>10 a.m./ET</strong> on <strong>Friday, Oct. 20</strong>. The presentation can be watched live on the UN livestream service: <a href="https://media.un.org/en/webtv">https://media.un.org/en/webtv</a>…</p><p>The <a href="https://peaceaccords.nd.edu/">Peace Accords Matrix</a> program, part of the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, has been invited to present to the <strong>United Nations’ Security Council</strong> at <strong>10 a.m./ET</strong> on <strong>Friday, Oct. 20</strong>. The presentation can be watched live on the UN livestream service: <a href="https://media.un.org/en/webtv">https://media.un.org/en/webtv</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Josefina Echavarría Alvarez</strong>, director of the Peace Accords Matrix (PAM) and professor of the practice, will offer a briefing as part of an open debate, "Peace through Dialogue: the Contribution of Regional, Sub-regional and Bilateral Arrangements to the Prevention and Peaceful Resolution of Disputes.”</p>
<p>Debate attendees include both permanent and non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, in addition to civil society representatives such as Michelle Bachelet, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and former President of Chile. The debate is being convened by the Mission of Brazil to the UN, which occupies the Presidency of the Council in October 2023.</p>
<p>“An invitation to present on a world stage such as this is testament to the pivotal work of Josefina and the entire PAM team,” said Asher Kaufman, John M. Regan, Jr. director of the Kroc Institute and professor of History and Peace Studies.</p>
<p>Click <a href="https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/monthly-forecast/2023-10/prevention-and-peaceful-resolution-of-disputes.php">here</a> for more information about the debate.</p>
<p><em>The<a href="https://kroc.nd.edu/"> Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies</a> is part of the <a href="https://keough.nd.edu/">Keough School of Global Affairs</a> at the <a href="https://www.nd.edu/">University of Notre Dame</a>.</em></p>Kate Chester