As decision-makers start to consider a wider variety of options in response to the Syrian crisis, David Newton and Teresa Dumasy assert that a multi-faceted peace process – one that promotes the wide variety of non-violent peace and reconciliation initiatives already being led locally – is what can help transform society and build sustainable peace
Peace is not just the absence of war or conflict. For indigenous women like me, peace is about kefiyo fédéw (peaceful feeling).
The University of Edinburgh is the sixth oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's ancient universities. The university has five main campuses in the city of Edinburgh, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university.
Rethinking Security is a network of UK-based organisations, academics and activists. We work for a just and peaceful world, based on approaches that address the underlying causes of conflict and insecurity. We have a shared concern that the current approach to national security in the UK and beyond often hampers efforts for peace, justice and ecological sustainability. We are committed to building a much richer understanding of what security really means, and of what is required to build sustainable security.
Our research is centrally focused on how peace processes attempt to revise political settlements to make them more inclusive, so as to end violent conflict. In particular we are interested in two forms of inclusion:
• forms of ‘horizontal’ inclusion between political and military leaders who have been former opponents, and
• forms of vertical inclusion between rulers (often in the form of new power-sharing coalitions), and the ruled (wider social groups and individuals)
Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS) is the UK’s Women, Peace and Security civil society network. We are a membership organisation of NGOs and experts in the field of development, human rights, humanitarian and peacebuilding.
