Looking at some peacebuilding assumptions

Posted on February 3, 2012 | 1 Comment

My most recent post (29 Jan) reflected about peacebuilding inside the bounds of the European Union as well as outside. My thinking grew out of International Alert’s recently started work  in the UK. Going a bit further,  some more thoughts have appeared in the online magazine and discussion forum, openDemocracy. What follows is an abridged version. Continue reading →

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Posted in Conflict & peace, International development

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Peacebuilding IN Europe?

Posted on January 29, 2012 | 5 Comments

In 2001 – a different time and a different world – the EU Gothenburg summit agreed to make the prevention of violent conflict a priority for the EU. Measured by money, it’s now the world’s biggest player in peacebuilding. But look around Europe now and we can ask, should peacebuilding also start to be a priority inside the EU? Continue reading →

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Posted in Conflict & peace, International development, Riots, The economic crunch

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A scorecard for Busan: did the High Level Forum help conflict-affected countries?

Posted on December 12, 2011 | 2 Comments

At the end of November, 2,000 representatives of governments, international agencies and NGOs met in Busan as the 4th High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness. But how effective was Busan for conflict-affected countries? Continue reading →

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The UN Peacebuilding Fund – four years on

Posted on November 30, 2011 | Leave a comment

The decision to set up the UN Peacebuilding Commission, Peacebuilding Support Office and Peacebuilding Fund was taken in September 2005 and bit by bit the new architecture was ready for business in 2006 and into 2007. I have just finished four years on the Fund’s independent Advisory Group, the last two as its chair, so here are my reflections. Continue reading →

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Aid effectiveness forum at Busan: what would success be for countries in conflict?

Posted on November 6, 2011 | 2 Comments

The Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness convenes in Busan, South Korea, on 29 November. Two thousand representatives of governments, the UN, other multilateral organisations and NGOs will meet to discuss and come up with a statement on how development aid can be delivered more effectively. So what would a successful High Level Forum look like for countries affected by armed conflict, which face the toughest development challenges? Continue reading →

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Posted in Conflict & peace, International development

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Take note of every casualty

Posted on September 23, 2011 | 4 Comments

A new charter has been launched, to recognise every casualty of armed violence. The campaign to get governments to sign up started last week. It needs the support of some major NGOs and a campaigning newspaper or two to get some momentum. But why does it matter? Continue reading →

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Posted in Conflict & peace

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Thinking of the peace builders

Posted on September 21, 2011 | Leave a comment

On 21 September - the UN International Peace Day – International Alert launched a video for showing in cinema and around the internet, for tweeting and generally going viral, to spark interest in peacebuilding. Take a look:

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Posted in Conflict & peace

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