The Missing Peace Symposium explicitly aims to:

• Advance, expand, and improve knowledge related to sexual violence in conflict and post conflict settings;
• Identify gaps in knowledge and reporting; and
• Facilitate access to such knowledge for academics, practitioners, and policymakers.

Some of the most innovative research on sexual violence is being undertaken by young scholars who spend months in the field researching, analyzing and writing about the complex and difficult aspects of understanding and preventing sexual violence in conflict and post-conflict settings.* These scholars are frequently on the cutting edge of data collection methodologies and have important insights to share with the broader academic and policy communities.

However, young scholars often face challenges in disseminating the results of their research to the mainstream international relations and security studies communities. In addition, they may lack the necessary networks to disseminate their work to the policy and practitioner communities. It is our hope that the Young Scholars Network will help overcome these challenges. The organizers of The Missing Peace symposium, with their combined extensive networks and contacts in academia, the policymaking and non-governmental communities, decided to help with the development of a network to help overcome these challenges.

The symposium provides the following opportunities for young scholars:

• Dissemination of young scholar research results by way of formal and informal presentations, including poster sessions in the Chat Café.
• Creation of specific learning and mentor opportunities by way of one-on-one meetings with senior academics, policymakers and practitioners.
• Participation in the conference reporting and post-conference publication processes.
• Dedicated roundtables to discuss the young scholars research and to foster cross-disciplinary pollination.
• Dedicated media and policy communication workshop.

The organizers hope to sustain the Young Scholar Network beyond November 2012 through:

• The creation of a Policy Paper series to be published jointly by USIP, SIPRI North America, PRIO, and the Berkeley Law Human Rights Center of the University of California.
• Organization of panels for paper presentations at major annual academic conferences such as the American Political Science Association, the International Studies Association, the International Criminologists Association, the American Society of International Law, and the Academic Council of the United Nations System.
• Summer workshops for young scholars that would allow for presentation of research, meetings with policymakers, and professional development sessions—including workshops on how to write for a policy audience, how to talk to the media, and how to use social media in a professional manner.
• Creation of a Missing Peace Young Scholar Facebook and/or Linked-in group.

* Young scholars are defined as recently minted Ph.D.’s or Ph.D. candidates with well-developed proposals.