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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200113T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200114T170000
DTSTAMP:20210913T173636Z
CREATED:20210913T173636Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T173636Z
UID:10000751-1578902400-1579021200@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Sanctions and Human Rights (Geneva)
DESCRIPTION:On 13-14 January\, CPPF convened an expert brainstorming on the impact of sanctions and human rights. The brainstorming analyzed the debate surrounding the nexus of sanctions and human rights to better inform the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights understanding and guidance in the field and at its headquarters.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/sanctions-and-human-rights-geneva/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200127T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200127T170000
DTSTAMP:20210913T173755Z
CREATED:20210913T173755Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T173755Z
UID:10000753-1580115600-1580144400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Chad and the Region (New York)
DESCRIPTION:On 27 January\, CPPF organized an expert brainstorming on Chad and the Region. The meeting assessed recent developments in the region and explored opportunities for enhancing cross-border coordination of UN conflict prevention activities in Chad’s border areas.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/chad-and-the-region-new-york-2/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ssrc_logo.png
END:VEVENT
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200130T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200130T170000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152959Z
CREATED:20210913T174214Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152959Z
UID:10000754-1580374800-1580403600@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Research Workshop on Disinformation\, Democratic Processes\, and Conflict Prevention
DESCRIPTION:On January 30\, 2020\, the SSRC convened the second research workshop of its Academic Network on Peace\, Security\, and the United Nations in New York\, an initiative of the Council’s Conflict Prevention and Peace Forum (CPPF) and its Understanding Violent Conflict (UVC) Program. This workshop\, on “Disinformation\, Democratic Processes\, and Conflict Prevention\,” examined the frameworks\, findings\, and debates in emerging scholarship on information disorder and the linkages between disinformation\, elections\, hate speech\, and identity-based violence. Participants drew on cases in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. The workshop also explored the ways in which disinformation affects the UN conflict prevention agenda\, and how the UN system can better identify\, track\, and respond to the negative impacts of disinformation in countries and regions where the UN is engaged. \nThis workshop was a multiprogram collaboration led by CPPF. It drew on the Council’s new MediaWell initiative\, a disinformation research mapping web platform\, and the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa program. \nCPPF commissioned Professor Sahana Udupa of Ludwig Maximilians-Universitat (LMU) Munich to draft a literature review on the intersection of hateful speech\, information disorder\, and conflict. The review was distributed to workshop participants\, together with several MediaWell research reviews. A summary version of this review is being prepared and will be published separately by MediaWell. \nThe SSRC Academic Network on Peace\, Security\, and the United Nations was established in 2019 out of a request from the United Nations Secretariat to provide UN entities and departments charged with responsibility for peace and security with better\, more systematic access to new and emerging research in the academy. The Academic Network also aims to facilitate collaborative engagements between the UN and various academic institutions\, research networks\, and professional associations working on conflict-management relevant research.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/research-workshop-on-disinformation-democratic-processes-and-conflict-prevention/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ssrc_logo.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200205
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200207
DTSTAMP:20210913T174412Z
CREATED:20210913T174412Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T174412Z
UID:10000755-1580860800-1581033599@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Ethiopia (Nairobi)
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/ethiopia-nairobi/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ssrc_logo.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200305
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200306
DTSTAMP:20210810T203842Z
CREATED:20200827T160909Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210810T203842Z
UID:10000593-1583366400-1583452799@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Rethinking Approaches to Chronic Crises in Africa: American and African Perspectives
DESCRIPTION:The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) and Search for Common Ground (SFCG) in association with Conflict Prevention and Resolution Forum (CPRF)\, held a conference on “Rethinking Approaches to Chronic Crises in Africa: American and African Perspectives\,” at the John Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies’ Kenney Auditorium\, on March 5\, 2020. The conference was organized around two panels featuring leading African scholars and American policy makers\, implementers\, and development actors. \nThe conference featured opening remarks by Cyril Obi\, Program Director of the African Peacebuilding Network and the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa programs at the Social Science Research Council and Shamil Idriss\, CEO of Search for Common Ground. \nThe first panel discussion on “Understanding the Chronic Crises” was chaired by Mike Jobbins\, Associate Vice President\, Global Affairs and Partnerships at Search for Common Ground. It featured three presenters — Pamela Chepngetich (Kisii University\, Kenya)\, Christelle Amina Djoulde (University of Ngoundere\, Cameroon)\, and Titilope Folarin Ajayi (University of Ghana\, Legon)\, SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) program’s grant alumni researching chronic crises in three African countries. \nThe first presentation by Pamela Chepngetich on “Conflict and Crises in borderlands of Kenya and Somalia\,” focused on refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Dabaab Refugee Camp\, at one time the largest of its kind in the world. The presentation also examined persisting policy gaps\, self-settlement of some Somali refugees around the camp\, tensions around legal residency and citizenship (of non-Kenyan and Kenyan Somali’s)\, conflicts between refugees and Kenyan host-communities\, exclusion of women from decision-making\, and arguments for the closure of the Camp. \nIn her presentation on “Understanding conflict and crisis in Cameroon and the Central African Republic (CAR) Borderlands\,” focused on the role of local “women of peace” in indigenous Mbaya communities in East Central Cameroon and Western CAR. She analyzed the efficacy of indigenous peacebuilding in Cameroon and CAR\, particularly in preventing conflict between CAR refugees and Cameroonian host communities and spoke to her work advocating for the integration of cultural peacebuilding into official peacebuilding policies in Cameroon. \nThe third presentation by Titilope Ajayi\, on “Conflict and Crisis in the Lake Chad Basin\,” focused on how women in IDP camps were being affected by the Boko Haram conflict in North East Nigeria and the neighboring regions. She spoke to the trauma suffered by women in IDP camps\, including poverty\, lack of access to food\, transactional sex and sexual abuse\, and the lack of access to referral centers for victims of sexual violence perpetrated by Boko Haram fighters and the military. The presentation also analyzed issues related to the culture of silence\, high levels of violence\, inconsistencies and problems of coordination among development and humanitarian agencies. Other challenges identified by the presenter included inadequate funding\, lack of economic opportunities for women\, capacity deficits\, corruption\, the diversion of humanitarian aid\, poor governance and lack of political will. She also advocated for: a review of peace and security responses\, non-military approaches to peace and security\, leveraging the influence of mothers in programs for deradicalizing young men and women\, paying greater attention to the radicalization of women\, particularly those being stigmatized for having children born out of rape by Boko Haram fighters. \nThe discussions that followed involved the exchange of views on opportunities for leveraging the role of the military as a positive and developmental force\, increasing the meaningful participation of women in peacebuilding\, strengthening the role of the local media in promoting reconciliation and peace\, and the importance of linking locally-led to national and internationally-supported solutions. Other issues discussed included the need to address the exclusion of women from governance\, identifying opportunities to help build local resilience\, the role of local women in building peace in other parts of Cameroon\, and the implications of the disconnect between the international and local communities in Africa. Of note\, was the recognition of the importance of knowledge to more effective policy and humanitarian responses\, and the need to better address and bridge the gaps between research\, policy and action. \nThe second panel discussion on “Supporting African-Led Solutions\,” was chaired by Elizabeth (Liz) Hume\, with David Young\, Vanita Datta\, and Louis Le Masne as panelists. \nThe presentations that followed focused on the evolving global conflict\, peace and security landscape\, and identified growing challenges in the form of spiraling violence\, conflicts and increasing numbers of internally displaced persons in Africa.  They reviewed ongoing efforts in the US to put together a new framework for addressing global fragility. Of note was the discussion of the US government’s framework for achieving greater effectiveness\, alignment and coherence in addressing global fragility.  The dimensions of global fragility and the principles underpinning integrated military and civilian stabilization operations were explored. Other issues covered by the presentations included the coordinating role of the State Department\, working with partners and local NGOs to build resilience and prevent conflict relapse\, and determining key aspects of burden sharing with fragile states. Some of the problems facing such coordination efforts were identified as including\, the changing nature of conflict\, addressing complex transborder threats and instability through bilateral responses\, operating in highly fluid political areas which adversely affect timelines\, expectations and the ability to monitor and measure results. \nAlso\, of note\, were discussions about the forms of support that could contribute towards promoting broad based economic growth in Africa and end dependence on foreign assistance. The importance of learning from past mistakes\, identifying potential opportunities for support and ensuring that no one is left behind in addressing chronic crises were identified as critical to helping build stability in Africa. The presentations also pointed to the importance of partnering with the private sector\, learning from contextual knowledge\, and the importance of working with partners at the local\, national and sub-regional levels. In relation to addressing fragility\, they emphasized the need to pro-actively tailor objectives to address problems and explore ways of expanding opportunities to address chronic crises in Africa.  Also\, the work of the USAID in relation to Prosper Africa Act\, and the Global Shea Alliance was seen as examples of initiatives that had successfully contributed to economic growth in some West African countries. Also\, issues around migration\, media programming\, and public accountability were discussed in relation to expanding opportunities for collaboration aimed at promoting development\, stability and peace in Africa. \nThe presentations also focused on partnerships with grassroots organizations in West Africa in the areas of providing support for local communities\, training traditional leaders and grassroots organizations\, and facilitating consultations at the local level\, as well as reconciliation and reintegration programs. The role of international partners working with African institutions in giving local people a voice in development programs was seen as a vital contribution towards fostering locally grounded solutions to chronic crises in the continent. \nLastly\, the discussions also focused on the ways the US government and development actors could effectively address chronic crises in Africa\, including strategies for an African approach that could contribute towards reducing foreign assistance. They also explored various approaches for engaging the private sector and working with willing international and local partners in ensuring effective coordination of programs and interventions in conflict-affected regions of Africa. In all\, the conference provided an excellent platform for scholars\, development actors and implementers to have frank exchanges on addressing chronic crises in Africa.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/rethinking-approaches-to-chronic-crises-in-africa-american-and-african-perspectives-2/
LOCATION:SAIS John Hopkins School for Advanced International Affairs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/202653870_d132bc8e53_o.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200305
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200306
DTSTAMP:20210811T161018Z
CREATED:20200821T164652Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210811T161018Z
UID:10000585-1583366400-1583452799@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Rethinking Approaches to Chronic Crises in Africa: American and African Perspectives
DESCRIPTION:The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) and Search for Common Ground (SFCG) in association with Conflict Prevention and Resolution Forum (CPRF)\, held a conference on “Rethinking Approaches to Chronic Crises in Africa: American and African Perspectives\,” at the John Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies’ Kenney Auditorium\, on March 5\, 2020. The conference was organized around two panels featuring leading African scholars and American policy makers\, implementers\, and development actors. \nThe conference featured opening remarks by Cyril Obi\, Program Director of the African Peacebuilding Network and the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa programs at the Social Science Research Council and Shamil Idriss\, CEO of Search for Common Ground. \nThe first panel discussion on “Understanding the Chronic Crises” was chaired by Mike Jobbins\, Associate Vice President\, Global Affairs and Partnerships at Search for Common Ground. It featured three presenters — Pamela Chepngetich (Kisii University\, Kenya)\, Christelle Amina Djoulde (University of Ngoundere\, Cameroon)\, and Titilope Folarin Ajayi (University of Ghana\, Legon)\, SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) program’s grant alumni researching chronic crises in three African countries. \nThe first presentation by Pamela Chepngetich on “Conflict and Crises in borderlands of Kenya and Somalia\,” focused on refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Dabaab Refugee Camp\, at one time the largest of its kind in the world. The presentation also examined persisting policy gaps\, self-settlement of some Somali refugees around the camp\, tensions around legal residency and citizenship (of non-Kenyan and Kenyan Somali’s)\, conflicts between refugees and Kenyan host-communities\, exclusion of women from decision-making\, and arguments for the closure of the Camp. \nIn her presentation on “Understanding conflict and crisis in Cameroon and the Central African Republic (CAR) Borderlands\,” focused on the role of local “women of peace” in indigenous Mbaya communities in East Central Cameroon and Western CAR. She analyzed the efficacy of indigenous peacebuilding in Cameroon and CAR\, particularly in preventing conflict between CAR refugees and Cameroonian host communities and spoke to her work advocating for the integration of cultural peacebuilding into official peacebuilding policies in Cameroon. \nThe third presentation by Titilope Ajayi\, on “Conflict and Crisis in the Lake Chad Basin\,” focused on how women in IDP camps were being affected by the Boko Haram conflict in North East Nigeria and the neighboring regions. She spoke to the trauma suffered by women in IDP camps\, including poverty\, lack of access to food\, transactional sex and sexual abuse\, and the lack of access to referral centers for victims of sexual violence perpetrated by Boko Haram fighters and the military. The presentation also analyzed issues related to the culture of silence\, high levels of violence\, inconsistencies and problems of coordination among development and humanitarian agencies. Other challenges identified by the presenter included inadequate funding\, lack of economic opportunities for women\, capacity deficits\, corruption\, the diversion of humanitarian aid\, poor governance and lack of political will. She also advocated for: a review of peace and security responses\, non-military approaches to peace and security\, leveraging the influence of mothers in programs for deradicalizing young men and women\, paying greater attention to the radicalization of women\, particularly those being stigmatized for having children born out of rape by Boko Haram fighters. \nThe discussions that followed involved the exchange of views on opportunities for leveraging the role of the military as a positive and developmental force\, increasing the meaningful participation of women in peacebuilding\, strengthening the role of the local media in promoting reconciliation and peace\, and the importance of linking locally-led to national and internationally-supported solutions. Other issues discussed included the need to address the exclusion of women from governance\, identifying opportunities to help build local resilience\, the role of local women in building peace in other parts of Cameroon\, and the implications of the disconnect between the international and local communities in Africa. Of note\, was the recognition of the importance of knowledge to more effective policy and humanitarian responses\, and the need to better address and bridge the gaps between research\, policy and action. \nThe second panel discussion on “Supporting African-Led Solutions\,” was chaired by Elizabeth (Liz) Hume\, with David Young\, Vanita Datta\, and Louis Le Masne as panelists. \nThe presentations that followed focused on the evolving global conflict\, peace and security landscape\, and identified growing challenges in the form of spiraling violence\, conflicts and increasing numbers of internally displaced persons in Africa.  They reviewed ongoing efforts in the US to put together a new framework for addressing global fragility. Of note was the discussion of the US government’s framework for achieving greater effectiveness\, alignment and coherence in addressing global fragility.  The dimensions of global fragility and the principles underpinning integrated military and civilian stabilization operations were explored. Other issues covered by the presentations included the coordinating role of the State Department\, working with partners and local NGOs to build resilience and prevent conflict relapse\, and determining key aspects of burden sharing with fragile states. Some of the problems facing such coordination efforts were identified as including\, the changing nature of conflict\, addressing complex transborder threats and instability through bilateral responses\, operating in highly fluid political areas which adversely affect timelines\, expectations and the ability to monitor and measure results. \nAlso\, of note\, were discussions about the forms of support that could contribute towards promoting broad based economic growth in Africa and end dependence on foreign assistance. The importance of learning from past mistakes\, identifying potential opportunities for support and ensuring that no one is left behind in addressing chronic crises were identified as critical to helping build stability in Africa. The presentations also pointed to the importance of partnering with the private sector\, learning from contextual knowledge\, and the importance of working with partners at the local\, national and sub-regional levels. In relation to addressing fragility\, they emphasized the need to pro-actively tailor objectives to address problems and explore ways of expanding opportunities to address chronic crises in Africa.  Also\, the work of the USAID in relation to Prosper Africa Act\, and the Global Shea Alliance was seen as examples of initiatives that had successfully contributed to economic growth in some West African countries. Also\, issues around migration\, media programming\, and public accountability were discussed in relation to expanding opportunities for collaboration aimed at promoting development\, stability and peace in Africa. \nThe presentations also focused on partnerships with grassroots organizations in West Africa in the areas of providing support for local communities\, training traditional leaders and grassroots organizations\, and facilitating consultations at the local level\, as well as reconciliation and reintegration programs. The role of international partners working with African institutions in giving local people a voice in development programs was seen as a vital contribution towards fostering locally grounded solutions to chronic crises in the continent. \nLastly\, the discussions also focused on the ways the US government and development actors could effectively address chronic crises in Africa\, including strategies for an African approach that could contribute towards reducing foreign assistance. They also explored various approaches for engaging the private sector and working with willing international and local partners in ensuring effective coordination of programs and interventions in conflict-affected regions of Africa. In all\, the conference provided an excellent platform for scholars\, development actors and implementers to have frank exchanges on addressing chronic crises in Africa.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/rethinking-approaches-to-chronic-crises-in-africa-american-and-african-perspectives/
LOCATION:SAIS John Hopkins School for Advanced International Affairs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/49677482298_932e508cae_o-scaled-e1628698196562.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200306T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200306T190000
DTSTAMP:20210913T174638Z
CREATED:20210913T174638Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T174638Z
UID:10000756-1583510400-1583521200@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:National and Regional Ownership: Investments & Partnerships in African-led Initiatives in Peace\, Security and Development
DESCRIPTION:CPPF Director\, Dr. Tatiana Carayannis moderated a high-level side event at the UN Secretariat with the deputy foreign minister of Kenya\, Ambassador Macharia Kamau. The discussion\, on “National and Regional Ownership: Investments & Partnerships in African-Led Initiatives in Peace\, Security and Development\,” included a panel with the UN ambassadors from Egypt\, Brazil\, Thailand\, India\, and the African Union.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/national-and-regional-ownership-investments-partnerships-in-african-led-initiatives-in-peace-security-and-development/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ssrc_logo.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200630
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200701
DTSTAMP:20241213T152946Z
CREATED:20200827T160631Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152946Z
UID:10000592-1593475200-1593561599@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Natural Resources\, Sustainable Development\, and Peace in Africa
DESCRIPTION:On June 30\, 2020\, the Wilson Center Africa Program\, under the banner of the Southern Voices Network for Peacebuilding (SVNP)\, and the Social Science Research Council’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) hosted a virtual event on “Natural Resources\, Sustainable Development\, and Peace in Africa.” Dr. Monde Muyangwa\, Director\, Wilson Center Africa Program\, Washington\, D.C.\, gave the welcome remarks; while Dr. Cyril Obi\, Program Director\, African Peacebuilding Network\, Social Science Research Council\, New York City\, set the stage for and moderated the discussion. Dr. Dauda Garuba\, Technical Adviser\, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI)\, Abuja\, Nigeria; Dr. Resty Naiga\, Lecturer and Researcher\, Department of Development Studies\, Makerere University\, Kampala\, Uganda; and Dr. Seydina Ousmane Sene\, Senior Economist\, Initiative Prospective Agricole et Rurale (IPAR)\, Dakar\, Senegal joined as speakers. Dr. Cosmas Milton Obote Ochieng\, Director\, African Natural Resources Centre\, African Development Bank (AfDB)\, Abidjan\, Côte d’Ivoire had planned to speak\, but was prevented by last-minute technical difficulties. This event examined the intersection of civil society and peacebuilding in natural resource-rich African counties. It interrogated the role of civil society in community engagement\, the promotion of accountability\, and development based on inclusive\, transparent\, and sustainable resource management. It also addressed the challenges African civil society groups have faced\, lessons learned in empowering them\, and how governments\, private businesses\, local communities\, and civil society can better work together. Speakers offered policy options for boosting the meaningful inclusion of civil society groups and local communities in transforming natural resource development and management. \nDr. Garuba observed that there is a significant link between natural resources governance\, development\, conflict\, and peace in Africa. He noted the importance of each of these links—observing that without adequate governance\, peace is much more difficult to attain. Garuba asserted that a common denominator in conflicts in Africa since the Cold War has been a shift away from inter-state conflicts toward low-intensity intra-state conflicts\, partly driven by competition over access to\, or fueled by natural resources. He stressed that while natural resources are not the basis for all conflicts in Africa\, they often play an important role in mobilizing resources to prolong violence. In assessing the roles of different actors in natural resources management\, Garuba noted that governments are often seen as being aligned with private companies against the interests of the local population—leading to a lack of trust in government and a reliance on civil society to mitigate the adverse environmental impact of natural resources extraction on communities. He observed that some of the challenges faced by African institutions in addressing natural resources management and conflict include the absence of effective governance frameworks\, absence of domestic resource mobilization\, lack of valued-added industries\, and lack of access to capital and technology. He also identified corruption and illicit financial flows\, and the disconnect between national policies and regional/continental frameworks. Garuba offered several suggestions for improving natural resource governance\, including the expansion of the role of civil society to build resilience in local communities\, looking at domestic compliance with international instruments such as the Natural Resource Charter\, and approaches such as the Africa Mining Vision\, getting better deals with resource extractors\, ensuring revenue transparency\, and managing volatility. He underlined the importance of sustainable development—as most natural resources are non-renewable—and the need to put in place safeguard mechanisms such as voluntary principles (including those in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and the Open Government Partnership) for business\, human security\, human rights and the pursuit of the public good. Garuba underscored the need for civil society to continue their resilience building strategies to promote these voluntary principals; assist regional and continental organizations in pushing the African Mining Vision agenda\, the Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) mineral development policy\, and The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). He also noted the importance of creating opportunities for mediating encounters between national and local governments and local communities\, strengthening the role of communities\, and developing mechanisms to add value to natural resources\, rather than just exporting them in their raw form and losing the opportunity to add value locally. He made a case for the sustainable extraction and use of resources for the present and future generations of Africans. Garuba closed by recommending increased collaboration between international and African civil society organizations. \nDr. Naiga provided an in-depth overview of Uganda’s resource abundance\, including the recent discovery of oil. She reiterated the importance of Africa’s natural resources not just for livelihoods but also in terms of spiritual\, cultural\, and historical significance—in addition to their enormous potential for sustainable development and day to day peacebuilding. However\, she expressed the view that “resource curse” phenomenon has prevented the translation of these potential benefits into tangible outcomes. She dissected the various ways in which Uganda could be described as suffering from a resource curse: over 30\,000 people there have been displaced since the discovery of oil with questionable resettlement arrangements\, and despite abundant water supplies over 50 percent of local people lack access to clean water\, in a context where competing livelihoods were driving conflicts over access to resources. She therefore made a case for stakeholder analysis aimed at informing conflict resolution\, food security\, inclusive and responsive policies directed towards ensuring that natural resource endowment benefited the people. Still looking at strategies for addressing these challenges\, Naiga underlined the critical importance of governance. The role of governance is to ensure that natural resource development is inclusive and responsive to the needs of the people—without which it is not worth the risk and effort. She identified the key principles for governance as including legitimacy\, accountability\, transparency\, and inclusiveness. Naiga asserted that achieving good governance requires engaging stakeholders\, including academics and researchers to conduct studies and generate data and findings to inform evidence-based policy. She also underlined the role of civil society in advocating for inclusive governance and acting as a bridge between governments and communities\, and the business sector. Engaging these stakeholders requires an enabling environment for all actors\, including the recognition of the correlation between natural resource governance and sustainable development. She also interrogated approaches to natural resource management in different African countries\, Naiga also observed that a key challenge behind the resource curse is the failure to ensure transparency and accountability\, and make peacebuilding an integral part of natural resource management. To overcome the resource curse\, she recommended integrating peacebuilding and conflict resolution into natural resource management and developing robust governance systems that are legitimate\, transparent\, and willing to overcome corruption. Naiga also called on decision makers on the continent to develop home-grown strategies and capacities that would collectively reduce external dependence and pool the continent’s energies in developing the capacity to utilize resources for the benefit of Africans. She also recommended embracing the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI)\, and ensuring that stakeholder analysis and engagement takes place to address conflict preemptively. Naiga also observed that most natural resource management policies are not gender-responsive\, and made a strong case for integrating such considerations into efforts towards improving the quality of lives of women\, and children. She also reiterated the centrality of governance to the efficient use and fair distribution of the benefits of resource endowment in African countries. While men often make decisions regarding land and water governance\, women are the ones who shoulder the burden of the consequences of such decisions. It is important to develop responsive and inclusive regulatory frameworks. She closed her remarks by underlining the need for more data to inform policies\, including additional funding support to reinforce research efforts. \nDr. Sene spoke to issues of water resources and land management\, which are especially pressing in Senegal\, but equally have relevance for many African countries. He emphasized that peacebuilding is a long-term process. In this regard\, he made a strong case for developing and putting conflict prevention systems in place to prevent crises\, as conflict over natural resources is likely to remain a threat to Africa’s economic development. Sene also described the Initiative Prospective Agricole et Rurale’s (IPAR’s) efforts\, working in collaboration with the Government of Senegal to track the economic dimension of natural resources management and peacebuilding in Africa\, particularly in relation to Senegal. He also noted that this included tracking how violence (from protests and riots to military conflict) affects peacebuilding. To this end\, IPAR developed a dashboard that tracks protests\, riots\, and their impact on community-\, municipality-\, and state-level discussions and conflict. IPAR has found that over the past 10 years in West Africa\, much political violence has come from civilian battles over land-grabbing\, access to water\, and farming and industrial practices. This research is helping to better clarify how communication of grievances at the local level can rapidly transform into violence. Sene emphasized that while it is important for officials to consider high-level policy solutions\, it is also critical for them to monitor the “low intensity crises” that are occurring in communities\, which can quickly escalate into full-blown violence and disrupt peacebuilding efforts. He suggested that policymakers in Africa should focus on the key trouble “hot spots” related to land grabs\, farmer-herder\, and water-related conflicts. In this regard\, he proposed that water and land will be more critical natural resource issues in the 21st century than oil. He underscored the importance of addressing violence arising from competing natural resource exploitation and use by various stakeholders. He called for the monitoring of events across the Sahel\, to help communities with information needed to build upon resource abundance and engage in appropriate kinds of natural resource-related investments. Sene also observed that conflicts over land and water resources were growing in tandem with the expansion of large-scale agribusiness in Africa. In terms of governance\, he was of the view that centralized governments can be susceptible to corruption\, as decisions are made by a handful of national officials who may be disconnected from communities and events on the ground—providing an easy access point for a set of corrupt actors. Sene emphasized the need for communities to have a measure of independence with which to manage their natural resources. He also emphasized the importance of addressing emerging challenges to natural resource management\, noting that in Senegal there are currently 20-70 incidents of protest or political violence daily—a state of affairs that is reflected across West Africa. \nIn the subsequent discussion\, participants posed questions via Twitter and email regarding foreign exploitation\, environmental degradation\, cross-sectoral collaboration\, the relationship between public-private partnerships and corruption\, and how communities can balance benefits from natural resources with more sustainable development. \nThe SVNP is a continent-wide network of African policy\, research and academic organizations that works with the Wilson Center’s Africa Program to bring African knowledge and perspectives to U.S.\, African\, and international policy on peacebuilding in Africa. Established in 2011 and supported by the generous financial support of the Carnegie Corporation of New York\, the project provides avenues for African researchers and practitioners to engage with\, inform\, and exchange analyses and perspectives with U.S.\, African\, and international policymakers in order to develop the most appropriate\, cohesive\, and inclusive policy frameworks and approaches to achieving sustainable peace in Africa. \nLaunched in March 2012\, the African Peacebuilding Network (APN) supports independent African research on conflict-affected countries and neighboring regions of the continent\, as well as the integration of African knowledge into global policy communities. It is supported by the generous financial support of the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The APN promotes the visibility of African peacebuilding knowledge among global and regional centers of scholarly analysis and practical action and makes it accessible to key policymakers at the United Nations and other multilateral\, regional\, and national policymaking institutions. The APN accomplishes this by facilitating the transformation of the quality and scale of African research and consolidating the contributions of African researchers and analysts\, thereby connecting them with other African scholars\, policy analysts\, practitioners\, and networks focusing on issues of peacebuilding\, as well as with other policymaking communities around the world.  \nThis event was live tweeted and webcast. Follow the Africa Program Twitter account @AfricaUpClose and the African Peacebuilding Network’s Twitter account @APN_SSRC and catch up on the conversation #NaturalResources
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/natural-resources-sustainable-development-and-peace-in-africa/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200831T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200904T170000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152939Z
CREATED:20210810T165624Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152939Z
UID:10000697-1598860800-1599238800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:The African Peacebuilding Network Grantee Research Methods Training and the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa Bi-Annual Fellows Joint Virtual Workshop
DESCRIPTION:The Social Science Research Council’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) programs had their first virtually held joint fellows workshop from August 31st\, 2020 to September 3rd\, 2020. Before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic that has affected all parts of the world\, the joint workshop was originally scheduled to be held in Kampala\, Uganda in collaboration with Makerere University. \n18 APN Individual Research fellows and 35 Next Gen Proposal Development\, Dissertation Research\, and Dissertation Completion fellows participated in the workshop\, whose activities included lectures\, working group sessions\, and one-on-one mentoring sessions led by experienced scholars\, professors\, and current and former APN and Next Gen Advisory Board members.  During the small working group sessions\, fellows presented and received constructive feedback and comments on their research proposals\, updates\, workshop assignments\, and dissertation chapters from their peers and facilitators/mentors. The workshop also provided an opportunity for APN and Next Gen fellows to learn more about each other’s research\, interact with highly experienced scholars and facilitators\, and engage in interactive activities aimed at expanding their knowledge on coping with the challenges of conducting research during a pandemic\, as well as interdisciplinary perspectives to peacebuilding\, security\, and development in Africa. \nThe opening session of day 1 of the workshop featured welcome remarks by Cyril Obi\, Program Director of APN and Next Gen. He spoke about the Covid-19 pandemic had changed the nature and scope of research and how this would require the use of new tools and techniques\, including digital technologies. Duncan Omanga\, Program Officer of APN and Next Gen also gave welcome remarks and introduced the APN and Next Gen Advisory Board Chairs\, Prof. Rita Abrahamsen and Prof. Sarah Ssali\, workshop facilitators\, and the APN and Next Gen fellows. \nThe first keynote lecture\, titled\, “Making up African Worlds – How to avoid being fooled by concepts\,” was delivered by Professor Elisio Macamo from the University of Basel. He identified the key challenge in the pursuit of social science in Africa to be how to actually produce knowledge\, cautioning against being “fooled by concepts.” He also introduced fellows to three concepts pertaining to explanation: worlds implied by social science vocabulary\, the challenge of description\, and relationship between concept and reality. Furthermore\, Professor Macamo emphasized that a lot of the things that we can learn from in Africa can help render Africa intelligible by Africans\, and by interrogating assumptions and received knowledge. He then underlined the critical importance of the agency of the African researcher in possessing the power to conceptualize and theorize Africa’s reality and contribute towards improving the social sciences universally. \nThe second day of the workshop began with an interactive session Professor Morten Boas of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI)\, Oslo. The session was based on the video of his keynote lecture\, titled\, “Fieldwork in Violent and Dangerous Places: Do’s\, Don’ts\, and the Question Marks\,” which fellows had watched in advance. At the beginning of the discussion\, Professor Boas spoke about how researchers and scholars have to acknowledge that they make mistakes and get confused during fieldwork\, and shouldn’t be afraid to talk about such failures\, and learn from them. He pointed to the need to reflect more on practices in the field or “social landscape\,” particularly issues around ethics\, and risks as they affect members of research teams\, and respondents.  Prof. Boas also explored the need to interrogate the unequal international research partnerships\, and what to do to ameliorate such structural imbalances that often adversely affect African researchers/partners. During the Q & A portion of the discussion\, many fellows pointed to the importance of interrogating the concept of “dangerous places” and asked about the implications of using such terms to describe certain conflict-affected spaces. \nOn day 3\, fellows were mainly in their small working group sessions\, and one-on-one sessions with their mentors. The fourth and last day of the workshop consisted of more working group sessions and one-on-one sessions and ended with a joint APN-Next Gen panel discussion\, titled\, “Doing Research in Time of Covid-19: Risks\, Innovation\, and Adaptation.” The following panelists\, Steve Akoth\, Lydia Amoah\, Amy Niang\, and Tapiwa Madimu\, spoke to their own personal experiences with conducting research during the pandemic and shared insights on how they had responded to emerging challenges\, including what scholars need to keep in mind about revising research plans and deciding on when to head out into the field to collect data. Lydia Amoah\, a Next Gen fellow\, narrated how she had to postpone data collection for her project to 2021 because of safety precautions. Amy Niang\, an APN advisory board member (and former fellow\,) emphasized the need to understand that Covid-19 affects everyone and that some of the most affected scholars will be those going into the field to gather information/data. Tapiwa Madimu\, an APN fellow\, spoke about the problem of accessing research materials since public archives had been closed due to the pandemic\, noting also how research had been impacted by the difficulty of accessing digitized archive materials. In his presentation\, Steve Akoth (Next Gen advisory board member (and former fellow) advised that scholars and researchers need to have more empathy for the people they want to take part in their research because they are also dealing with their own circumstances in relation to the pandemic. \nThe four-day virtual workshop ended with closing remarks from Program Director Cyril Obi\, Rita Abrahamsen (Chair of the APN Advisory Board)\, Sarah Ssali (Chair of the Next Gen Advisory Board)\, and Program Officer Duncan Omanga.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/the-african-peacebuilding-network-grantee-research-methods-training-and-the-next-generation-social-sciences-in-africa-bi-annual-fellows-joint-virtual-workshop/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200905T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200905T180000
DTSTAMP:20211008T210748Z
CREATED:20200923T192326Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211008T210748Z
UID:10000555-1599318000-1599328800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Abe Global Washington\, DC | Cyber Challenges: The Internet\, Global Competition\, and National Security
DESCRIPTION:  \nLivestream\n \nOverview\n“Information” has become an integral part of our daily lives. We have all become accustomed to the use of apps that ease daily life\, and rarely stop to think of the masses of big data that have made them so effective. At the same time\, there are worries every time a government\, or a company\, or an internet server reports a breach of its databases\, exposing the private data of millions of people. The worries about information extend from the most intimate personal concerns\, to the grand strategies related to national security and defense. While governments have increasingly fine-grained tools for identifying and gathering information on individuals\, at the same time\, they struggle to defend their systems against attacks from rival powers. As states move to introduce new 5G technology\, the commercial interests of tech companies have become entangled with nationalist interests of states\, and legitimate concerns about cyber security.  These issues are of particular concern in Japan as it prepares to host the Rugby World Cup and the 2020 Olympics; will current cyber security institutions be strong enough to protect such global events? Drawing on the research of Abe fellows this session will examine how these issues are being discussed in the US\, Japan\, and other parts of Asia\, and what new institutions have been developed to deal with the increasingly contentious world of information. \nOver nearly three decades\, the Abe Fellowship Program has supported several fellows whose research projects discuss the repercussions and benefits of how changing technology has allowed for the increased capacity to create\, store\, and trade information/data. For this event three Abe fellows will address multi-national cybersecurity coalitions\, strategies\, and cyber-resilient methods critical to sustaining national functions in inevitable attacks; US-China trade war and techno-nationalism’s implications for suppliers\, customers\, and the global supply chains; and Japan’s 2018 National Defense Program Guidelines which focus on Multi-Domain Operations including cyberspace\, outer space and electromagnetic space. \nAn initiative of the Abe Fellowship Program\, the Abe Fellows Global Forum (Abe Global) is designed to bring Abe Fellow research and expertise on pressing issues of global concern to broader audiences. Abe Global will host several events each year in partnership with academic and civic organizations throughout the United States. The Abe Fellowship Program is a partnership between the Social Science Research Council and the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. \nHudson Institute\, Stern Policy Center\, 1201 Pennsylvania Avenue\, N.W.\, Suite 400\, Washington\, DC 20004\, USA\nhttps://www.hudson.org/events/1715-cyber-challenges-the-internet-global-competition-and-national-security92019
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/abe-global-washington-dc-cyber-challenges-the-internet-global-competition-and-national-security/
LOCATION:Hudson Institute\, 1201 Pennsylvania Avenue
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200918T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200918T170000
DTSTAMP:20200917T154657Z
CREATED:20200917T154230Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20200917T154657Z
UID:10000553-1600416000-1600448400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Chad and the Region (New York)
DESCRIPTION:On 27 January\, CPPF organized an expert brainstorming on Chad and the Region. The meeting assessed recent developments in the region and explored opportunities for enhancing cross-border coordination of UN conflict prevention activities in Chad’s border areas.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/chad-and-the-region-new-york/
LOCATION:Brooklyn Historical Society\, 128 Pierrepont Street\, Brooklyn\, NY\, 11201\, United States
CATEGORIES:Africa
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200924
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200925
DTSTAMP:20210916T162959Z
CREATED:20210916T162959Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210916T162959Z
UID:10000767-1600905600-1600991999@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2020 SSRC Fellow Seminar with Aihwa Ong
DESCRIPTION:Near-Humans\, Cloned Monkeys\, & CRISPR Babies: Productive Uncertainty in China’s Quest for Biosecurity\n\nSeptember 24\, 2020 \nThe Social Science Research Council invites applications to participate in an exclusive seminar on “Near-Humans\, Cloned Monkeys\, & CRISPR Babies: Productive Uncertainty in China’s Quest for Biosecurity” led by the Council’s 2020 SSRC Fellow\, Professor Aihwa Ong. The seminar will take place via Zoom on Thursday\, September 24\, 2020\, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. eastern time. \nThe SSRC Fellow initiative invites distinguished scholars to the Council to strengthen research and programming in the areas in which we currently work or aspire to work. Professor Ong will be in virtual residency at the Council from September 23–25\, 2020\, during which time she will also give a public lecture on the same theme as the seminar. \nThis is an exclusive opportunity open only to advanced graduate students and junior faculty of the member institutions of the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences. \nThe Social Science Research Council’s College and University Fund for the Social Sciences is a consortium of higher education partners providing annual support to the SSRC to enhance the infrastructure of global social science research\, catalyze interdisciplinary and cross-institutional collaborations\, and help launch the careers of junior scholars through fellowships\, workshops\, and mentorship. For more information on the College and University Fund\, please contact CUF@ssrc.org or call (718) 517-3713. \nSeminar Abstract\nAnthropological inquiry enhances STS (science\, technology\, and society studies) by analyzing the diversity of contexts and perspectives that participate in contemporary knowledge-making processes. The focal point for the discipline concerns how values and beliefs about being human mutate and what modes of living and forms of life modernity subsequently puts at stake. Reflexive ethnographic research illuminates how specific cases and contingent circumstances connect to big questions and situated practices contribute to globalized change. Ong’s approach has always been poised at the intersections of particularity and globality\, difference and interconnectivity\, human and nonhuman\, and stability and uncertainty. Such a vantage point analyzes how Asia’s emerging biomedical sites productively engage and transform contemporary science through a process of de- and recontextualization\, thus making it cosmopolitan. \nTo RSVP\nAdvanced graduate students and junior faculty in the social sciences are invited to attend. Attendees must be affiliated with one of the member institutions of the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences. Please RSVP to CUF@ssrc.org\, with the subject line “SSRC Fellow Ong Seminar.” Our program staff will contact you with the Zoom details for the seminar. For more information\, please contact us at CUF@ssrc.org. \nAbout Aihwa Ong\nAihwa Ong is professor of anthropology at the University of California\, Berkeley. She is a member of the Science Council of the International Panel on Social Progress. Ong has published on a range of topics including the anthropology of labor\, governance\, sovereignty\, cities\, citizenship\, life sciences\, and experimental art in the Asia-Pacific. She has lectured internationally and been invited to the World Economic Forum. Her awards include grants from the MacArthur Foundation and the National Science Foundation\, and some book prizes. Ong is the author of five works: Fungible Life: Experiment in the Asian City of Life (2016); Neoliberalism as Exception: Mutations in Citizenship and Sovereignty (2006); Buddha Is Hiding: Refugees\, Citizenship\, the New America (2003); Flexible Citizenship: The Cultural Logics of Transnationality (1999); and Spirits of Resistance and Capitalist Discipline: Factory Women in Malaysia (1986).
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2020-ssrc-fellow-seminar-with-aihwa-ong/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200930T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200930T173000
DTSTAMP:20210914T201411Z
CREATED:20210914T201411Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210914T201411Z
UID:10000685-1601481600-1601487000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:A Discussion on Race and Racism
DESCRIPTION:On September 30\, 2020\, the Social Science Research Council and the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) held a discussion on race and racism moderated by SSRC president Alondra Nelson and Joy Connolly\, president of ACLS\, featuring Khalil Gibran Muhammad\, professor of history\, race and public policy at Harvard Kennedy School\, the Suzanne Young Murray Professor at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies\, and director of the Institutional Antiracism and Accountability Project; and Bianca Williams\, associate professor of anthropology at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. \n\nThis event is presented as part of the Social Science Research Council’s Inequality Initiative\, a series of programs and projects that bring innovative social science analysis to bear on our understanding of the roots and consequences of unequal participation in political\, economic\, and social systems across the globe.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/a-discussion-on-race-and-racism/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201014
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201015
DTSTAMP:20210914T200840Z
CREATED:20210914T200840Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210914T200840Z
UID:10000684-1602633600-1602719999@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:The Persistence of Racial Inequality
DESCRIPTION:The seemingly intractable problem of racial inequality in the United States—despite periods of tremendous progress—is evident in numerous measures of disparity (poverty rates\, educational achievement\, household net worth\, homicide and imprisonment rates\, and much more). The question is why racial inequality persists. \nOn October 14\, 2020\, Alondra Nelson\, president of the Social Science Research Council; Joshua Cohen\, academic faculty\, Apple University; Francis Fukuyama\, Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow\, Freeman Spogli Institute\, Stanford University; and Glenn C. Loury\, Merton P. Stoltz Professor of the Social Sciences\, Brown University\, considered this question and discussed social policy remedies to promote racial equality and the flourishing of Black Americans\, in a conversation moderated by Margaret Levi\, director of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS). \n\nThis event was hosted by CASBS in partnership with the Social Science Research Council’s Inequality Initiative and the Center on Democracy\, Development and the Rule of Law at Stanford University\, as part of CASBS’s Social Science for a World in Crisis series.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/the-persistence-of-racial-inequality/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201018T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201018T170000
DTSTAMP:20240108T154653Z
CREATED:20210914T185525Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240108T154653Z
UID:10000681-1603022400-1603040400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:REIMAGINING SCHOOLS
DESCRIPTION:The Social Science Research Council and SAGE Publishing are pleased to present the first of a series of conversations—REIMAGINING SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS—a public forum focused on the work of cultivating equitable\, anti-racist social institutions. The first event in the series\, REIMAGINING SCHOOLS\, will feature several prominent experts of inequality in higher education. \nFeaturing: \nPrudence L. Carter\nE.H. and Mary E. Pardee Professor and Dean of the Graduate School of Education\nUniversity of California\, Berkeley\nUnited States \nPawan Dhingra\nProfessor of American Studies and Faculty Equity and Inclusion Officer\nAmherst College\nUnited States \nNasima Hassan\nAcademic and author\nUnited Kingdom \nModerated by Alondra Nelson\nPresident\, Global Publishing\nSAGE Publishing \nIntroduced by Ziyad Marar\nPresident\, Social Science Research Council\nHarold F. Linder Professor\, Institute for Advanced Study \nThis program is presented as part of the Social Science Research Council’s Inequality Initiative\, a series of programs and projects that bring innovative social science analysis to bear on our understanding of the roots and consequences of unequal participation in political\, economic\, and social systems across the globe. \nWatch the Event \nAbout the Speakers\nPrudence L. Carter is the E.H. and Mary E. Pardee Professor and dean of the Graduate School of Education at Berkeley. Dean Carter’s expertise centers on issues of youth identity and race\, class\, and gender; urban poverty; social and cultural inequality; the sociology of education; and mixed research methods. Specifically\, she examines academic and mobility differences shaped by the effects of race\, ethnicity\, class\, and gender. Dean Carter earned a PhD in sociology from Columbia University. She is author of Keepin’ It Real: School Success beyond Black and White and Stubborn Roots: Race\, Culture\, and Inequality in U.S. and South African Schools. Before being named dean at Berkeley\, she was the Jacks Family Professor of Education and professor of sociology (by courtesy) at Stanford University. Dean Carter is an elected member of the National Academy of Education and the Sociological Research Association and a fellow of the American Educational Research Association. She also serves on the Board of Trustees for the William T. Grant Foundation and SOAR for Youth. \nPawan Dhingra is professor of American studies and faculty equity and inclusion officer at Amherst College. He is a former curator at the Smithsonian Institution. He has been published in the New York Times\, CNN\, and elsewhere\, and his work has been profiled in the Washington Post\, the Wall Street Journal\, National Public Radio\, the White House forum on AAPI heritage\, and other venues. He is a multiple award-winning author whose latest book is Hyper Education: Why Good Schools\, Good Grades\, and Good Behavior Are Not Enough\, which author Min Jin Lee described as a “fascinating exploration [that] gets to the root of education obsessions.” He also appears in the Netflix documentary Spelling the Dream. An award-winning teacher\, he has held tenured positions at Tufts University and Oberlin College. \nNasima Hassan\, originally from Lancashire\, has worked in secondary school teaching humanities\, in teacher training\, and in strategic management in higher education. She has worked extensively overseas supporting teachers’ professional development in India (Bangalore)\, South Africa (Kwazulu Natal)\, and most recently in conjunction with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Malaysia. She has published on the education system in South Africa\, faith schools\, and the schooling experience of British Muslims. Her doctoral thesis explored the concept of “Muslim consciousness” through a philosophical and political exploration of identity construction. She is coauthor\, with Tomas Boronski\, of Sociology of Education.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/reimagining-schools/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201022T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201022T150000
DTSTAMP:20201015T162433Z
CREATED:20201015T162433Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201015T162433Z
UID:10000655-1603375200-1603378800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Electoral Anxieties: November 3rd and Its Aftermaths
DESCRIPTION:The stresses and strains on US democracy\, building over decades\, have reached an apex with the upcoming presidential election in ways that are unprecedented and daunting. Real fears of voter suppression\, unfounded suspicions of voter fraud\, and the effects of disinformation hover over November 3\, 2020. Genuine uncertainty characterizes what may follow. Will the results be accepted? Will a transition be orderly if the incumbent loses? \nIn recent years\, the SSRC Anxieties of Democracy program has been preoccupied with the long-term fracturing of the democratic status quo\, and what can be done to both secure and deepen democracy in ways that serve the public good. This roundtable brings into conversation three experts who bring diverse historical\, structural\, and comparative perspectives on democratic anxieties in the United States and elsewhere\, as well as keen insight into the moment we are now experiencing. Professors Han\, Levitsky\, and Pildes will give “lightning talks” on electoral and constitutional law\, social mobilization and political participation\, and how the current American electoral maelstrom looks in light of the fragility of democracies around the globe. Following initial questions to the panelists from AOD advisory committee co-chairs John Ferejohn and Deborah Yashar\, SSRC President Alondra Nelson will then moderate a discussion on which anxieties most deserve our focus\, and what might be done to strengthen American democracy in the immediate and long-term aftermath of November 3\, 2020.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/electoral-anxieties-november-3rd-and-its-aftermaths/
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LOCATION:
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201022T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201022T170000
DTSTAMP:20210816T210127Z
CREATED:20210816T205713Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210816T210127Z
UID:10000704-1603375200-1603386000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Electoral Anxieties: November 3rd and Its Aftermaths
DESCRIPTION:In conversation with SSRC president Alondra Nelson and Anxieties of Democracy program Advisory Committee co-chairs John Ferejohn (New York University) and Deborah Yashar (Princeton University) \n\n\n\nWatch the Roundtable\n \nAbout the Roundtable\nThe stresses and strains on US democracy\, building over decades\, have reached an apex with the upcoming presidential election in ways that are unprecedented and daunting. Real fears of voter suppression\, unfounded suspicions of voter fraud\, and the effects of disinformation hover over November 3\, 2020. Genuine uncertainty characterizes what may follow. Will the results be accepted? Will a transition be orderly if the incumbent loses? \nIn recent years\, the SSRC Anxieties of Democracy program has been preoccupied with the long-term fracturing of the democratic status quo\, and what can be done to both secure and deepen democracy in ways that serve the public good. This roundtable brings into conversation three experts who bring diverse historical\, structural\, and comparative perspectives on democratic anxieties in the United States and elsewhere\, as well as keen insight into the moment we are now experiencing. Professors Han\, Levitsky\, and Pildes will give “lightning talks” on electoral and constitutional law\, social mobilization and political participation\, and how the current American electoral maelstrom looks in light of the fragility of democracies around the globe. Following initial questions to the panelists from AOD advisory committee co-chairs John Ferejohn and Deborah Yashar\, SSRC President Alondra Nelson will then moderate a discussion on which anxieties most deserve our focus\, and what might be done to strengthen American democracy in the immediate and long-term aftermath of November 3\, 2020.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/electoral-anxieties-november-3rd-and-its-aftermaths-2/
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LOCATION:https://youtu.be/7Gjv8VgN5BQ
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201027T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201027T100000
DTSTAMP:20220103T182639Z
CREATED:20200923T190057Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20220103T182639Z
UID:10000554-1603789200-1603792800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Abe Global 2020 | Work-Life Balance in the Covid Age: Can the United States and Japan Meet the Challenges?
DESCRIPTION:Overview\nIn 2013\, standing before the UN General Assembly\, Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo declared his intention to create a “Japan in which women can shine.” The government program\, which came to be known as “womenomics\,” was a central part of “Abenomics\,” the Prime Minister’s plan to revitalize the Japanese economy after several decades of stagnation. Womenomics was one of the key programs to deal with a confluence of problems: a rapidly ageing society\, a decline in the working age (15-64) population as the “baby boom” cohort retired\, and declining marriage and fertility rates. Decline in the working population was placing increasing pressure on social welfare schemes\, as smaller numbers of workers had to support a growing number of retirees. \nWomenomics aimed to increase female participation in the labor force. The policies which included generous time off for maternity and childcare\, an increase in subsidized child care capacity and paid parental leave for both mothers and fathers\, made it possible for women to return to the work force after giving birth and led to a steady increase in the female labor participation rate which was just 66.5% in 2000\, but had risen steadily\, reaching 78.9% in 2018\, a rate that was higher than that of the United States. \nThe hard-won gains of the Womenomics policies have been called into question with the advent of the Covid epidemic. In Japan\, as in the United States\, schools were temporarily closed causing a crisis for families with young children. Women\, who had become accustomed to busy lives in which they somehow “balanced” work with family and childcare obligations\, found themselves facing a more difficult struggle to meet both family and work obligations simultaneously. In both countries\, essential workers in many sectors of the economy were forced to make choices\, with implications for their health\, their families’ economic stability\, and the functioning of local and national economies. \nThe Covid crisis lifted a veil\, revealing the fragile base supporting the gains in gender equality in both countries\, leaving women to wonder if the gains they had made in the hard-fought struggles for gender equality were all going to disappear. The 2020 Abe Fellows Global Forum will review the gains made in the struggle for gender equality over the last decade\, and consider the challenges facing both Japan and the United States and the differential impact of the pandemic as a result of differences in education\, marital status\, occupation\, and race. Our speakers will address these issues\, considering what needs to be done to ensure progress toward greater gender equality—a gender equality based on a work-life balance that allows both women and men to share the pleasures and burdens of a life that truly balances work and private life. The speakers will also share ideas of what Japan and the United States can learn from each other. \nAbe Global 2020 is held in partnership with the 21st Century Japan Politics and Society Initiative at Indiana University and New America’s Better Life Lab. \n  \nAn initiative of the Abe Fellowship Program\, the Abe Fellows Global Forum (Abe Global) brings Abe Fellow research and expertise on pressing issues of global concern to broader audiences. Abe Global hosts events each year in partnership with academic and civic organizations. The Abe Fellowship Program is a partnership between the Social Science Research Council and the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/abe-global-2020-work-life-balance-in-the-covid-age-can-the-united-states-and-japan-meet-the-challenges/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/AdobeStock_330312916.jpeg
LOCATION:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp10Nq6jzLI
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201110T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201123T170000
DTSTAMP:20210902T154743Z
CREATED:20210901T183936Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210902T154743Z
UID:10000719-1604995200-1606150800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Transregional Planning Grants Virtual Development Workshops
DESCRIPTION:From November 10–23\, 2020\, recipients of the 2020 Transregional Planning Grants participated in a series of virtual development workshops. The series was intended to encourage inter-group dialogue around the broad themes of ethical and practical considerations of collaborative research\, and research in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. Over the course of three weeks\, a total of five 2-hour sessions were held\, bringing together participants across 16-hour time differences and thirteen countries. \nEach workshop was facilitated by a leading social scientist with expertise in both research in the Indian Ocean region and the workshop series’ broad themes. Collectively\, these scholars provided a robust\, interdisciplinary array of perspectives\, encompassing anthropology\, geography\, economics\, and conflict studies. Anna L. Tsing (UC Santa Cruz) discussed the logistics of collaboration—including the “necessary messes”—drawing on her own experience working on collaborative research projects. Farhana Sultana (Syracuse University) led participants in a rich discussion of the ethical implications and considerations of field research\, including collaboration with local stakeholders. Ala’a Shehabi (UCL London) facilitated a conversation around challenges in addressing inequalities within international project teams\, especially as it regards data sharing and ownership. David Mwambari (King’s College London) posed important questions regarding approaches to and considerations for research in contexts of crises. Drawing on ideas arising during the presentations\, related readings\, and individual experiences in the field\, participants engaged with both the presenters and their peers in discussions of the ethical considerations within their own research projects and teams. \nThe workshop series was the first in a series of inter-group activities that the Collaboratory intends to host for its 2020 grantees. Beginning in Spring 2021\, grantees will have the opportunity to participate in a closed seminar series and collaborative writing activities. \nFor more information on the 2020 Transregional Planning grantees\, see the Grantees page. \nWorkshop Presenters \nAnna L. Tsing (UC Santa Cruz)\, The ethical and logistical implications of global collaborative research\nFarhana Sultana (Syracuse University)\, Ethics and praxis of collaboration in environmental research and beyond\nAla’a Shehabi (UCL London)\, (In)equality and the politics of international research collaboration: practical and ethical considerations\nDavid Mwambari (King’s College London)\, Research in the context of crisis: possibilities of remote research
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/transregional-planning-grants-virtual-development-workshops/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201204T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201204T170000
DTSTAMP:20221028T172057Z
CREATED:20210924T120000Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221028T172057Z
UID:10000773-1607068800-1607101200@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2020 Albert O. Hirschman Prize Ceremony
DESCRIPTION:Please join the Social Science Research Council and the Institute for Advanced Study for a lecture by \nJames Scott \nYale University\nwho will speak on \n“In Praise of Floods”\nFriday\, December 4\, 2020\nAward Ceremony at 4:30 p.m. ET | Lecture at 5:00 p.m. ET \n  \nAbout the 2020 Albert O. Hirschman Prize Laureate\nJames C. Scott is the Sterling Professor of Political Science\, professor of anthropology\, and codirector of the Agrarian Studies Program at Yale University. His research concerns political economy\, comparative agrarian societies\, theories of hegemony and resistance\, peasant politics\, revolution\, Southeast Asia\, theories of class relations\, and anarchism. \nHis wide-ranging and impactful publications\, including Domination and the Arts of Resistance (1985) and Weapons of the Weak: Everyday Forms of Peasant Resistance (1980)\, explore political thought\, movements\, and resistance in Southeast Asia and beyond. Domination and the Arts of Resistance: Hidden Transcripts (1992) mined folktales\, popular songs\, oral interviews\, and other sources from around the world to get at the “secret discourse” that subordinate groups used to critique dominant elites. His most influential book\, Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed (1998)\, pulled examples from many parts of the globe and from history to make the case that top-down planning has done more harm than good to the populations it was supposed to help. He followed up the political implications of that book in 2012 with Two Cheers for Anarchism: Six Easy Pieces on Autonomy\, Dignity\, and Meaningful Work and Play. More recently\, he has turned to ancient history with Against the Grain: A Deep History of the First Agrarian States (2017)\, in which he explored the costs to humankind of the agrarian revolution. \nScott is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society and has held fellowships from the National Science Foundation\, the National Endowment for the Humanities\, the Guggenheim Foundation\, and the Institute for Advanced Study. He is also a former president of the Asian Studies Association. \nA 2012 New York Times profile of Scott described the life he leads with his family on farmland in Connecticut. It is this practical knowledge of land and life—what Scott refers to as “metis\,” borrowing the ancient Greek word for “wisdom”—that he has brought to his oeuvre. \n→ Interview | “James C. Scott: Agrarian Studies and Over 50 Years of Pioneering Work in the Social Sciences\,” Yale Agrarian Studies Oral History Project\, 2018 \n→ Profile | “Professor Who Learns from Peasants\,” New York Times\, 2012 \nTributes to James Scott\nVideo tributes from former students and colleagues of 2020 Hirschman Prize laureate James Scott.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2020-albert-o-hirschman-prize-ceremony/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201216
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210226
DTSTAMP:20210913T172426Z
CREATED:20210913T172008Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T172426Z
UID:10000745-1608076800-1614297599@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Guatemala Series No. 2 (VTC)
DESCRIPTION:On 16 December 2020\, 14 January\, 28 January\, 18 February\, 25 February 2021\, 26 August\, CPPF convened a series of five meetings bringing together diverse members of Guatemalan civil society. These meetings followed a series of four earlier CPPF convenings in September and October 2020. \n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/guatemala-series-no-2-vtc/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210110T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210115T170000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152924Z
CREATED:20210811T162418Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152924Z
UID:10000699-1610265600-1610730000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:International Peace Research Association (IPRA) 28th Biennial Conference\, Nairobi
DESCRIPTION:African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (NextGen) fellows were part of the delegates of the 28th Biennial IPRA conference\, that was held in Nairobi Kenya\, from January 10-15\, 2021. IPRA’s purpose is to advance research into the conditions of peace and the causes of war and other forms of violence. The theme of this years’ conference was on ‘Peace-Technology: Positioning the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Emerging Technologies in Fostering Global Peace.’ The program director of the Social Science Research Council’s APN and Next Gen programs\, Cyril Obi gave a welcome address to delegates during the opening ceremony of the conference. A group of APN and NextGen fellows and alumni made presentations under the framework of “The Journalism and media commission” of the conference. IPRA commissions are working groups based on specified themes or subject areas related to peace. At the IPRA conference in Nairobi\, the fellows presented papers on journalism\, digitality and democracy. Many of the papers focused on the Global South\, with insights drawn from Uganda\, Kenya\, Zimbabwe\, Ethiopia and Côte d’Ivoire. They covered the whole gamut of digitality in the continent-ranging from shutdowns and internet policing\, legal frameworks on cyberspace\, decolonization and digitality\, elections and trust\, and the abiding discussion on disinformation and online hate speech. \nOn the first day\, NextGen alumni Dr. Emilly Comfort Maractho\, a senior lecturer and Head of Department for Journalism and Media Studies at Uganda Christian University\, provided a nearly prophetic insight into election and anxieties of the internet\, just a day before Uganda went to the polls. In this paper\, Dr Maractho argued that government response (to the internet) in the 2016 elections had profound imprints for the 2021 electoral process. Indeed\, the government of Uganda exploited the ongoing ‘Covid-19’ public health responses to impose an internet blockade on the country\, giving credibility to previous doubts on the fairness of the election. Afterwards\, Dr Duncan Omanga\, program officer of the SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa programs\, provided insights into how the last three elections in Kenya have shaped conceptions of digitality\, through constructions of a techno-utopic state. Using the last three major elections in Kenya\, Dr Omanga examined how politics and digital media are dialectically shaped in the country. Taking a critical view\, his paper revealed how digital media in Kenya’s post-1990s liberalized political culture furnished innovation\, experimentation\, digital humanitarianism\, and more crucially how Kenya became a laboratory for disinformation and electoral interference abroad. Abdulhakim Nsobya\, a doctoral student at the University of Cape Town and current NextGen fellow\, looked at how Ugandan Facebook users in demonstrated contestation on the question of voting among Salafi-Muslim community\, taking a deep dive into the relationship between democracy and Islamic law (sharia) among Salafis there. The paper also explored the use of social media by contending Salafi groups in Uganda and their responses to the question of voting. \nOn the second day of the commission\, Dr Bernadine Jones\, a NextGen alumni and a lecturer at the University of Stirling presented a paper titled\, “The ’lack of listening’ during South African election news coverage: ramifications for peace and democracy.” The paper revealed the problematic news framing by media organizations in South Africa where news is mostly presented with pundits\, prophets\, and proclaimers\, making it increasingly unlikely for audiences to independently assess the political landscape themselves\, thus destabilizing participatory democracy. Former APN grantee\, Dr Admire Mare\, a journalism professor based in Namibia also presented a paper titled “Digital Media\, Elections and Manipulative Participation: Case study of Zimbabwe.” The presentation examined the various ways through which digital tools are weaponized and appropriated to produce and distribute misogynist discourses\, disinformation and misinformation\, which further polarizes and mobilizes highly ethicized\, patriarchal and toxic politics in Zimbabwe. Another former APN grantee\, Dr Arsene Brice Bado\, delivered a paper titled “Social Media and Dangerous Speech in Political Discourse in Côte d’Ivoire”\, where he explained the dynamics and impact of dangerous speech in political discourse on social media in Côte d’Ivoire whilst exploring the conditions under which counter-speech through social media might be considered. Later that day\, NextGen alumnus Dr John Githigaro\, a Kenyan scholar based at St Paul’s University\, presented a paper on “Assessing the ‘Credibility’ of the Kenya’s 2017 General Elections. A reading of select International Observers Missions ‘Digital Reports’.” The paper examined the ramifications of the EU observers’ mission and the US based Carter Center election mission reports on Kenya’s annulled 2017\, by interrogating how observer reports situated the ‘credibility’ of the August 2017 electoral outcome in Kenya. \nPresenting his paper on Ethiopia’s digital media space on the third day\, APN 2018 Fellow Prof Asnake Kefale’s paper titled “Digital Media\, Political reforms\, Elections and Peace” interrogated the political changes within the former ruling party\, the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) since April 2018. Asnake observed that the 2015 protests that helped to bring about political reforms were resilient and more organized in comparison to earlier protest movements partly because of the extensive use of digital media. The digital (social) media not only helped to link diaspora-based opposition leaders (activists) and the youth protesters but also created a platform for collective action. During the last session of the day\, the focus shifted to Kenya\, where Dr Jacinta Maweu\, APN 2016 fellow\, and senior lecturer at the University of Nairobi examined how social media platforms (Twitter\, Facebook and WhatsApp) were used by citizens and politicians to spread disinformation and political propaganda during the 2017 general elections. Similarly\, NextGen fellow Job Allan Wefwafwa’s paper titled “Technology\, Public Confidence\, Electoral Fraud: The Case of Kenya’s 2017 Presidential Elections\,” explored how technology in Kenya’s elections are used to instill public confidence rather than curb electoral fraudulence. \nIn conclusion\, the papers presented by APN and NextGen fellows under the rubric of IPRA’s media and journalism commission revealed that the digital space is not just a new space with new social realities\, but an extension of the old realities that have dominated discussions of peace\, and security in the continent for ages.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/international-peace-research-association-ipra-28th-biennial-conference-nairobi-2/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210110T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210115T170000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152928Z
CREATED:20210810T165419Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152928Z
UID:10000695-1610265600-1610730000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:International Peace Research Association (IPRA) 28th Biennial Conference\, Nairobi
DESCRIPTION:African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (NextGen) fellows were part of the delegates of the 28th Biennial IPRA conference\, that was held in Nairobi Kenya\, from January 10-15\, 2021. IPRA’s purpose is to advance research into the conditions of peace and the causes of war and other forms of violence. The theme of this years’ conference was on ‘Peace-Technology: Positioning the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Emerging Technologies in Fostering Global Peace.’ The program director of the Social Science Research Council’s APN and Next Gen programs\, Cyril Obi gave a welcome address to delegates during the opening ceremony of the conference. A group of APN and NextGen fellows and alumni made presentations under the framework of “The Journalism and media commission” of the conference. IPRA commissions are working groups based on specified themes or subject areas related to peace. At the IPRA conference in Nairobi\, the fellows presented papers on journalism\, digitality and democracy. Many of the papers focused on the Global South\, with insights drawn from Uganda\, Kenya\, Zimbabwe\, Ethiopia and Côte d’Ivoire. They covered the whole gamut of digitality in the continent-ranging from shutdowns and internet policing\, legal frameworks on cyberspace\, decolonization and digitality\, elections and trust\, and the abiding discussion on disinformation and online hate speech. \nOn the first day\, NextGen alumni Dr. Emilly Comfort Maractho\, a senior lecturer and Head of Department for Journalism and Media Studies at Uganda Christian University\, provided a nearly prophetic insight into election and anxieties of the internet\, just a day before Uganda went to the polls. In this paper\, Dr Maractho argued that government response (to the internet) in the 2016 elections had profound imprints for the 2021 electoral process. Indeed\, the government of Uganda exploited the ongoing ‘Covid-19’ public health responses to impose an internet blockade on the country\, giving credibility to previous doubts on the fairness of the election. Afterwards\, Dr Duncan Omanga\, program officer of the SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa programs\, provided insights into how the last three elections in Kenya have shaped conceptions of digitality\, through constructions of a techno-utopic state. Using the last three major elections in Kenya\, Dr Omanga examined how politics and digital media are dialectically shaped in the country. Taking a critical view\, his paper revealed how digital media in Kenya’s post-1990s liberalized political culture furnished innovation\, experimentation\, digital humanitarianism\, and more crucially how Kenya became a laboratory for disinformation and electoral interference abroad. Abdulhakim Nsobya\, a doctoral student at the University of Cape Town and current NextGen fellow\, looked at how Ugandan Facebook users in demonstrated contestation on the question of voting among Salafi-Muslim community\, taking a deep dive into the relationship between democracy and Islamic law (sharia) among Salafis there. The paper also explored the use of social media by contending Salafi groups in Uganda and their responses to the question of voting. \nOn the second day of the commission\, Dr Bernadine Jones\, a NextGen alumni and a lecturer at the University of Stirling presented a paper titled\, “The ’lack of listening’ during South African election news coverage: ramifications for peace and democracy.” The paper revealed the problematic news framing by media organizations in South Africa where news is mostly presented with pundits\, prophets\, and proclaimers\, making it increasingly unlikely for audiences to independently assess the political landscape themselves\, thus destabilizing participatory democracy. Former APN grantee\, Dr Admire Mare\, a journalism professor based in Namibia also presented a paper titled “Digital Media\, Elections and Manipulative Participation: Case study of Zimbabwe.” The presentation examined the various ways through which digital tools are weaponized and appropriated to produce and distribute misogynist discourses\, disinformation and misinformation\, which further polarizes and mobilizes highly ethicized\, patriarchal and toxic politics in Zimbabwe. Another former APN grantee\, Dr Arsene Brice Bado\, delivered a paper titled “Social Media and Dangerous Speech in Political Discourse in Côte d’Ivoire”\, where he explained the dynamics and impact of dangerous speech in political discourse on social media in Côte d’Ivoire whilst exploring the conditions under which counter-speech through social media might be considered. Later that day\, NextGen alumnus Dr John Githigaro\, a Kenyan scholar based at St Paul’s University\, presented a paper on “Assessing the ‘Credibility’ of the Kenya’s 2017 General Elections. A reading of select International Observers Missions ‘Digital Reports’.” The paper examined the ramifications of the EU observers’ mission and the US based Carter Center election mission reports on Kenya’s annulled 2017\, by interrogating how observer reports situated the ‘credibility’ of the August 2017 electoral outcome in Kenya. \nPresenting his paper on Ethiopia’s digital media space on the third day\, APN 2018 Fellow Prof Asnake Kefale’s paper titled “Digital Media\, Political reforms\, Elections and Peace” interrogated the political changes within the former ruling party\, the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) since April 2018. Asnake observed that the 2015 protests that helped to bring about political reforms were resilient and more organized in comparison to earlier protest movements partly because of the extensive use of digital media. The digital (social) media not only helped to link diaspora-based opposition leaders (activists) and the youth protesters but also created a platform for collective action. During the last session of the day\, the focus shifted to Kenya\, where Dr Jacinta Maweu\, APN 2016 fellow\, and senior lecturer at the University of Nairobi examined how social media platforms (Twitter\, Facebook and WhatsApp) were used by citizens and politicians to spread disinformation and political propaganda during the 2017 general elections. Similarly\, NextGen fellow Job Allan Wefwafwa’s paper titled “Technology\, Public Confidence\, Electoral Fraud: The Case of Kenya’s 2017 Presidential Elections\,” explored how technology in Kenya’s elections are used to instill public confidence rather than curb electoral fraudulence. \nIn conclusion\, the papers presented by APN and NextGen fellows under the rubric of IPRA’s media and journalism commission revealed that the digital space is not just a new space with new social realities\, but an extension of the old realities that have dominated discussions of peace\, and security in the continent for ages.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/international-peace-research-association-ipra-28th-biennial-conference-nairobi/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210212T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210212T150000
DTSTAMP:20210928T140222Z
CREATED:20210212T204711Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210928T140222Z
UID:10000628-1613124000-1613142000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Rural Radicalisms and the Politics of Order: Public Authority\, Performance\, and Precarity in Africa
DESCRIPTION:On 12 February 2021\, the Understanding Violent Conflict program held a paper development workshop on “Rural Radicalisms and the Politics of Order: Public Authority\, Performance\, and Precarity in Africa.” The papers are being prepared for publication in a journal special issue that is being co-edited by Tatiana\, former SSRC board chair Michael Watts\, UVC researcher Annalisa Bolin\, and Koen Vlassenroot (Ghent University).
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/rural-radicalisms-and-the-politics-of-order-public-authority-performance-and-precarity-in-africa/
CATEGORIES:Africa
LOCATION:
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210303
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210318
DTSTAMP:20210913T175019Z
CREATED:20210913T174949Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T175019Z
UID:10000757-1614729600-1616025599@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Colombia-Venezuela Border (VTC)
DESCRIPTION:  \n\n\nOn March 3\, 10\, 17\, 2021\, in collaboration with the United Nations Department of Political Affairs and Peacebuilding (DPPA)\, CPPF convened a series of meetings on the border area between Colombia and Venezuela\, together with colleagues from the United Nations and external experts on both sides of the Colombian-Venezuelan border.\n\n\n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/colombia-venezuela-border-vtc/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210312T050000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210312T090000
DTSTAMP:20210913T175248Z
CREATED:20210913T175248Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T175248Z
UID:10000758-1615525200-1615539600@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Climate Security in the Andean Region (VTC)
DESCRIPTION:On 12 March 2021\, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)\, CPPF convened a workshop to discuss climate-related security risks in the Andean region. The workshop brought together regional experts\, representatives from the UNDP\, and other UN Agencies\, Country Teams to discuss climate security with a particular focus on Bolivia\, Colombia\, Ecuador\, and Peru.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/climate-security-in-the-andean-region-vtc/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ssrc_logo.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210323T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210324T170000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152911Z
CREATED:20210810T165239Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152911Z
UID:10000635-1616486400-1616605200@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Africa Great Lakes Region (2030) Sustaining Peace
DESCRIPTION:The Social Science Research Council (SSRC)\, Search for Common Ground and the Faculty of Law\, University of Goma\, held a virtual conference on “Africa Great Lakes (2030) Sustaining Peace\, on March 23-24\, 2021. The conference was held over two days and organized around two themes. On the first day presentations and discussions were focused on “Consolidating and Sustaining Peace\,” while presentations and discussions on the second day focused on\, “Building Economies of Peace and Prosperity.” \nThe opening session on the first day of the conference featured brief welcome remarks by Cyril Obi\, Program Director of the SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) programs. This was followed by presentations by Ms. Floride Ahitungiye\, of Search for Common Ground’s office in Burundi on “Looking Behind\, Looking Ahead.” Ms. Ahitungiye’s presentation underscored the importance of dialogue and engaging youth and women in community-based peacebuilding and reconciliation processes in Burundi\, Rwanda. She observed that women peacebuilding processes in the DRC often limited the role of women pointing to the cases of post-conflict development in North Kivu and the 2013 Congolese Dialogues in South Africa and Ethiopia\, noting that gender should be about human rights in a country where women outnumber men. Prof. Pigeon Mahuka of the Faculty of Law\, University of Goma\, spoke to “A partnership agenda in the Great Lakes” which offered an overview of the partnerships in the region and the need to overcome them. In his presentation titled\, “Gendered approach to peacebuilding in the GLR” Tresor Mukunyo Muhindo\, of the University of Pretoria\, examined to the effects of neoliberal peacebuilding measures on women\, noting the ways in which patriarchal structures had marginalized and excluded women. He argued that seeking to fit women into a political process designed for men was inherently problematic and noted that progress would not be made if women continued to be overlooked in political and peacebuilding processes. This was followed by a presentation by Alice Kasika\, a master’s student at the University of Goma\, whose presentation on “Traumatic Identities Facing Peacebuilding: Cultural Resilience and Community Destiny\,” noted the symptoms of the trauma experienced by young people in conflict-affected communities and equally called for attention to resilience as a key element in building the capacity of war-affected communities to recover from trauma and shock. In addition\, she called for the leveraging of resilience among citizens as a way of promoting peace in the DRC. Various commentators including Nicolas Gatambi\, Vemba Disolade\, Karin Nautilyn\, Gaye Rosenblaum\, Michael Shipler and Olufunke Okome weighed in on the discussions that followed. These explored the issues raised by the presenters and focused on challenges including gender inequality and patriarchy\, political leadership\, reconciliation\, limits of UN Peacebuilding approaches\, the ineffectiveness of the states in the region and their lack of capacity for and commitment to inclusive governance and regional cooperation. Other issues that came up included the need for gender equality\, sustained community engagement\, and accelerating ongoing efforts towards harmonizing policies aimed at advancing and sustaining national and regional peace. \nOn the second day\, Professor Balingene Kahombo of the Faculty of Law\, University of Goma’s presentation on\, “Governance of Natural Resources and Peace\,” provided an overview of natural resources\, conflict and peace in the DRC. He noted how regulations were either incomplete or poorly implemented and exploited by criminal actors or corrupt public officials. Professor Balingene concluded by advocating for an appropriate legal framework for a better governance of natural resources. In her presentation on\, “Entrepreneurship and a Peace Economy for the Region’s Youth\,” Nadia Nintunze\, Chief of Party\, Tuyage Program of Search for Common Ground in Burundi\, noted the nexus between peacebuilding and economic development. She shared her experience as a practitioner working on interventions aimed at promoting entrepreneurship among the country’s youth\, by discussing efforts aimed towards providing jobs and opening business opportunities for young people and underscored the need for business and development practitioners to promote access to justice\, particularly fair access to resources as a strategy for peacebuilding. This was followed by a commentary by Michael Kavanagh of Bloomberg\, whose spoke to the linkages between natural resource wealth in Eastern DRC and violent conflict\, including the regional ramifications of the smuggling of minerals from DRC to neighboring countries. Of note was the impact of the discovery of oil on the shared ecosystems of regions\, particularly Lake Victoria\, including the impact of artisanal mining on the fragile ecosystem of the GLR countries. He ended his intervention by pointing to the urgent need to provide jobs and livelihoods to the youth\, and importance of adopting a regional and holistic approach to peacebuilding without overlooking environmental issues. Other commentators were Christina Villegas of PACT\, Naupess Kibiswa\, and John Katunga who spoke to mining and climate change and the centrality of youth\, reconciliation\, bridging the gaps between state institutions and citizens by the political leadership to the peace dividend in the GLR. Evariste Mpunga’s presentation on “Eastern DRC Facing Cyclical Conflict and Conflagration: Challenges and Outlook\,” addressed the cycle of violent conflict in the country and urged all stakeholders\, including the government\, civil society organizations and international organizations to address emerging challenges including institutional weaknesses\, ethnicity and leadership. Following the presentations\, participants addressed issues ranging from the governance of natural resources to the need for reconciliation and social cohesion\, addressing the deficit in the internal legitimacy of states and democratic processes\, particularly those linked to the bridging of the gap between states and citizens in the states\, as a key force for mobilizing the people for regional integration and peace in the African Great Lakes Region.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/africa-great-lakes-region-2030-sustaining-peace/
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210330
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210331
DTSTAMP:20210915T185141Z
CREATED:20210811T160034Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210915T185141Z
UID:10000698-1617062400-1617148799@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Abe Fellowship Colloquium | The Political Economy of the Abe Government and Abenomics Reforms
DESCRIPTION:SPEAKERS\nHoshi Takeo | 星 岳雄\nProfessor\, University of Tokyo\n東京大学大学院経済学研究科教授 \nPhillip Lipscy  | フィリップ・リプシー\nAssociate Professor\, University of Toronto | 2014 Abe Fellow\nトロント大学政治学部准教授 | 安倍フェロー（2014年度） \nThe government of Abe Shinzo\, in power in Japan from 2012 to 2020\, represents an important turning point in Japanese politics and political economy. Abe became the longest-serving prime minister in Japanese history\, reversing a trend of short-lived leaders. His government not only stands out for its longevity\, but also for its policies: Abe implemented a variety of significant changes\, among the most important being a series of economic reforms to reinvigorate Japan’s economy under the banner of “Abenomics.” This talk will draw on a recently published book co-edited by Takeo Hoshi and 2014 Abe fellow Phillip Lipscy\, The Political Economy of the Abe Government and Abenomics Reforms. The authors also consider the implications of these reforms for the post-Abe era that began with the Suga government in September 2020. \n2012年から2020年まで続いた安倍政権は日本の政治経済における重要なターニングポイントを象徴している。安倍首相の在職日数はそれまでの短命政権の流れを覆し、日本の憲政史上最長となった。しかし安倍政権はその在職日数だけでなく、政策においても際立っている。「アベノミクス」の旗印のもとで日本経済を再活性化するための一連の経済政策を行うなど、様々な重要となる改革を推し進めた。今回の講演では星岳雄氏と元安倍フェローのフィリップ・リプシー氏の共同編集による新刊「安倍政権とアベノミクスの政治経済学」を基に対談する。また、2020年9月に発足した菅義偉内閣のポスト安倍時代への影響についても考察する。 \nThis event is jointly sponsored by the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) Tokyo Office and the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership (CGP). この催しは米国社会科学研究評議会（SSRC）東京事務所と国際交流基金日米センター(CGP)が共催しています。
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/abe-fellowship-colloquium-the-political-economy-of-the-abe-government-and-abenomics-reforms/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210402
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210403
DTSTAMP:20241213T152907Z
CREATED:20210402T040000Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152907Z
UID:10000631-1617321600-1617407999@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Virtual Book Launch of Researching Peacebuilding in Africa: Reflections on Fieldwork\, Theory and Context
DESCRIPTION:The virtual book launch commenced with the introduction of the editors of the book\, Ismail Rashid and Amy Niang\, and the book launcher\, Nomfundo Walaza\, by Cyril Obi\, the program director of the SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) programs. This was followed by the presentation of the overview of the book by the editors and some chapter contributors. The editors explained that the book was the product of dialogues that facilitators/mentors had with each other as well as APN fellows during training workshops held annually since 2013\, on the various dimensions of peacebuilding in Africa. They explained that it was a “library” of some of the most significant work and scholarly achievements of the program from inception to date\, while noting that the book was held together by its focus on interdisciplinarity\, critical reflexivity\, research ethics and other aspects of peacebuilding research. Some attention was also drawn to the evolution of African peacebuilding as a field of study\, and the rationale for the structuring of the book to address conceptual\, thematic and methodological issues\, complemented with case studies that helped unpack and illustrate such issues. The contributors that spoke to the content of their chapters included\, Duncan Omanga and Pamela Chepngetich\, Godfrey Maringira\, Festus Aubyn and Kenneth Omeje. The book launcher\, Nomfundo Walaza\, spoke to her work as an experienced peacebuilding practitioner\, including the work of the peacebuilding organization which she co-heads\, the UNYOKE Foundation. Of note was the unique approach of the foundation to inter-generational peacebuilding by drawing on African knowledge systems and oratures\, and by focusing on youth during its retreats for mediators. Nomfundo Walaza launched the book and described it as a “beautiful” volume that everyone should be proud of. She also recommended it to readers observing that the book addresses theory in a way that equally engages practice. She however drew the attention of the audience to the need to “mind the gap” between\, research\, policy and the people. Interventions from the audience also spoke to the book’s positive qualities and raised questions related the issues of accessibility\, including language\, pricing\, and the need for translated versions so the book could reach a wider audience. The event was ended on the note of a consensus that Researching Peacebuilding in Africa would contribute significantly towards reshaping the discourse on African peacebuilding. \n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/virtual-book-launch-of-researching-peacebuilding-in-africa-reflections-on-fieldwork-theory-and-context/
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210413
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210415
DTSTAMP:20210913T175520Z
CREATED:20210913T175520Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210913T175520Z
UID:10000759-1618272000-1618444799@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Democratic Republic of the Congo and Lessons from Previous DDR Initiatives (VTC)
DESCRIPTION:At the request of the World Bank\, the Conflict Prevention and Peace Forum (CPPF) convened a series of workshops on 13-14 April 2021 on both past and current disarmament\, demobilization\, and reintegration (DDR) processes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/democratic-republic-of-the-congo-and-lessons-from-previous-ddr-initiatives-vtc/
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