From Mosul to Brain Science to Tech: Creating Peace in a Violent World
Alliance for Peacebuilding 2017 Conference: “Peace Now More Than Ever”
As violent conflict erupts across the globe and the institutions that have kept peace for 70 years strain under the pressure, the demand for sustainable peace and security only grows. The Iraqi city of Mosul searches for a way to recover from the brutal rule of ISIS. Half a world away, Colombia is exploring ways to finance the terms of its historic peace accord. Technology, people power and brain science are part of an array of possible solutions. The first day of the 2017 conference of the Alliance for Peacebuilding was held at the U.S. Institute of Peace on Oct. 11, as experts explored new ideas for preventing and resolving violent conflict.
The conference, entitled “Peace Now, More Than Ever,” kicked off with a video message from United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, and the day’s sessions also included discussions of how men can champion women’s roles for peace and security, how peacebuilding programs can monitor their performance and adapt, and how policy can contribute to stabilizing conflict zones.
Last year’s event attracted 437 participants from over 200 organizations and 20 countries, representing one of the world’s largest gatherings for innovation and collaboration in the field of peacebuilding.
Agenda
9:00 am | Welcome -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Nancy Lindborg, President, United States Institute of Peace
- Melanie Greenberg, President & CEO, Alliance for Peacebuilding
- Robert Berg, Board Chair, Alliance for Peacebuilding
9:15 am | Keynote Address -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Video Message from António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General
- Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support
- Bridget Moix, U.S. Senior Representative, Peace Direct -- Civil Society Response
10:15 am | Next Steps for Peace in Mosul -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Sarhang Hamaseed, Director, Middle East Programs, U.S. Institute of Peace
- Ahmed Gutan, Director, Middle East & North Africa, PartnersGlobal
- Linda Robinson, Senior Policy Researcher, RAND Corporation
- Moderator: Mona Yacoubian, Senior Policy Scholar, United States Institute of Peace
11:45 am | Innovative Approaches for Financing Peace -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Mauricio Cárdenas Santamaría, Minister of Finance and Public Credit, Colombia
- Gary Milante, Director of Peace and Development Programme, SIPRI (Moderator)
- Johannes Schreuder, Policy Officer, UN Peacebuilding Support Office
- Luc Lapointe, Founder and CEO, The Blended Capital Lab
- Karen Volker, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Cure Violence
11:45 am | Rewiring the Brain for Peace: A New Frontier In Peacebuilding -- B241
- Béatrice Pouligny, Co-Director of Rewiring the Brain for Peace, Alliance for Peacebuilding
- Dr. Marc Gopin, Director of the Center for World Religions, Diplomacy, and Conflict Resolution, George Mason University
- Patricia Anton, Muslim Chaplain, University of Pennsylvania
- Dr. Jeremy Richman, Founder, the Avielle Foundation
- Dr. Dara Ghahremani, Associate Research Professor, University of California Los Angeles
- Don Samuels, CEO, Microgrants
11:45 am | Better Learning for Better Results: Improving the Impact of M&E in Peacebuilding -- Kathwari Auditorium
- Nick Oatley, Special Advisor for Learning and Evaluation, Alliance for Peacebuilding
- Isabella Jean, Director of Collaborative Learning, CDA Collaborative Learning Projects
- Jack Farrell, DME for Peace Project Manager, Search for Common Ground
- Leslie Wingender, Senior Advisor, Program Performance and Quality, Mercy Corps
- Moderator: Melanie Greenberg, President and CEO, Alliance for Peacebuilding
2:00 pm | Transforming Violent Conflict: Where People Power Meets Peacebuilding -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Susan Hackley, Moderator, Managing Director, Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation
- Maria J. Stephan, Senior Advisor, United States Institute of Peace
- Ramesh Sharma, National Coordinator, Ekta Parishad (India)
- Anthony Wanis-St. John, Associate Professor, School of International Service, American University
2:00 pm | Not the Usual Suspects: Engaging Male Champions of Women, Peace, and Security -- B241
- Fazel Rahim, Gender & Training Specialist, EnCompass
- Sahana Dharmapuri, Director of Our Secure Future, One Earth Future Foundation
- Jolynn Shoemaker, Senior Consultant on International Affairs and Gender Equality
- Natko Gereš, Program Officer, Promund
- Moderator: Kathleen Kuehnast, Director of Gender Policy and Strategy, United States Institute of Peace
2:00 pm | Stabilizing Conflict-Affected Areas: Policy Challenges, New Opportunities, and Lessons from the Past -- Kathwari Auditorium
- Kristen Cordell, Senior Policy Advisor, Bureau of Policy, Planning, and Learning, USAID
- Patrick Quirk, Senior Policy Advisor, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, U.S. Department of State
- Sara Reckless, Transition Advisor, Office of Transition Initiatives, USAID
- Kelly Uribe, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Stability and Humanitarian Affairs, U.S. Department of Defense
- Moderator: Peter Quaranto, Senior Advisor for Peace and Security, Office of U.S. Foreign Assistance Resources, U.S. Department of State
3:45 pm | Celebrating the International Day of the Girl: Girl's Empowerment for Peace -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Jin In, Founder, 4Girls GLocal Leadership
- Saba Ismail, Executive Director, Aware Girls
- Moderator: Kim Weichel, UN Women/Women’s Leadership Consultant, Author
Closing Remarks -- Carlucci Auditorium
- Nancy Lindborg, President, United States Institute of Peace
- Melanie Greenberg, President & CEO, Alliance for Peacebuilding
