Events
As a national, nonpartisan, independent Institute, the U.S. Institute of Peace draws on our exceptional convening power to create opportunities for diverse audiences to exchange knowledge, experiences, and ideas necessary for creative solutions to difficult challenges. We serve as an important, neutral platform for bringing together government and nongovernment, diplomacy, security, and development actors, and participants across political views. The Institute’s events help shape public policy and priorities to advance peaceful solutions to conflict and strengthen international security.
Revising the Global Standards for Treatment of Prisoners
Campaigners for humane treatment of prisoners, from the ACLU and other groups, joined Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Luis Arreaga in examining the new “Mandela Rules,” named for former South African President Nelson Mandela, who spent 27 years imprisoned under harsh conditions.
Picturing Soft Power: Visual Arts in Peacebuilding
Arts and culture can become powerful media for bolstering peacebuilding efforts and steering individuals towards nonviolent expression. USIP hosted on July 16, 2015 a special photography display and panel discussion spotlighting the faces and stories of peacebuilders around the world. The event was part of a series in 2014 and 2015 marking the Institute’s 30th Anniversary.
Civil Resistance and Peacebuilding: How They Connect
On July 16, 2015, USIP President Nancy Lindborg, Kerri Kennedy of the American Friends Service Committee and Manal Omar, Acting Vice President, Center for Middle East and Africa, USIP, discussed the nexus of civil resistance and peacebuilding in the first of a new series by the USIP Global Campus. This event was held in collaboration with the online course, “Civil Resistance and the Dynamics of Nonviolent Movements.”
Women Working Towards Reconciliation
In early July, a group of 26 religious leaders of different faiths called on the negotiators to accelerate peace talks and offered to help lead the country toward reconciliation. On July 15, the U.S. Institute of Peace held a discussion with a group pursuing such work, the Ecumenical Group of Women Peacekeepers (GemPaz).
'The Look of Silence' Confronts Indonesia's Unspeakable Past
Director Joshua Oppenheimer showed and discussed his award-winning 2014 documentary, The Look of Silence, at the U.S. Institute of Peace on July 14.
Strategic Communications for a New Era of U.N. Peace Operations
As conflicts worldwide increasingly include sophisticated information warfare, the United Nations needs to build smart public communications strategies into every peacekeeping mission it deploys. This problem and concrete steps to solve it are the focus of a workshop which was webcast from USIP on June 23. The event was one of a global series of conferences, called the Challenges Forum, that is shaping broad recommendations for improving U.N. peace operations.
USAID Civilian-Military Coordination Policy Launch
In Afghanistan and Iraq, but also in other nations around the globe, the United States’ military and development agencies have been working more closely to reduce tensions or hostilities, build the capacities of host governments, and strengthen America’s national security. On June 18, officials from the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Defense Department discussed USAID’s updated policy to guide its work alongside the military.
Can Afghanistan Stabilize as U.S. Forces Plan Their Exit?
USIP experts convened on June 16 to discuss that question, offer updates from a just-concluded visit to Afghanistan, and explore how to help Afghans seize what may be missed opportunities to stabilize their country.
Pakistan’s Education Crisis in Context
At the same time, literacy rates and primary school enrollment are falling. On June 9, the U.S. Institute of Peace hosted a discussion of these trends and others that contribute to extremist narratives, and some potential approaches to address these critical factors.
Public Forum With Dr. Saleem Al-Jubouri, Speaker of Iraq’s Parliament
The speaker of Iraq’s parliament, His Excellency Dr. Saleem al-Jubouri, discussed his country’s current challenges in a public forum on June 8, 2015 at the U.S. Institute of Peace.