New Opportunities for Local Engagement at the Human Rights and Peacebuilding Nexus0

• Analysis
• September 15, 2021

Despite ongoing calls from academics, activists, and peacebuilders globally, United Nations and other international peace operations remain largely top-down, directed by the interests of funders rather than based on the needs and knowledge of conflict-affected communities. Yet, while often significantly …

Foreign Aid and the 2021 Federal Elections0

• Analysis
• September 14, 2021

The 2021 federal election campaign has paid very little attention to Canadian foreign aid. The main parties’ platforms, however, contain some important signaling about what might lie in store after September 20.

During the last campaign, in 2019, the Conservatives …

Vingt ans après, qu’est-ce que le renseignement aujourd’hui?0

• Analysis
• September 14, 2021

Au fil des années, la lutte contre le terrorisme s’est imposée comme un enjeu opérationnel et politique en Europe comme en Amérique du Nord. Le renseignement y joue un rôle important, permettant aux professionnels de la sécurité de revendiquer une …

Middle Powers Reengaging in UN Peace Operations: Strategic Policy Recommendations0

• Analysis
• September 13, 2021

Though a debated category, “middle power” countries use multilateralism and peacekeeping to pursue their interests, build relationships and exert influence globally. Recently, however, commitments have shifted toward regional military alliances and “smart”, technical engagements, reducing the …

Action for Peacekeeping? Middle Powers, Liberal Internationalism, and the Future of UN Peace Operations0

• Analysis
• September 13, 2021

In late May 2021, CIPS scholars hosted a virtual workshop on the topic of middle powers, liberal internationalism, and the changing geopolitical environment around UN peace operations. Workshop participants joined us from six different countries to present original research papers. …

The Fate of Unwanted Art: Poland’s Symbolic Dealing with the Communist Past0

• Analysis
• September 7, 2021

Ever since the regime changes in Eastern Europe in 1989 and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, communist-era monumental art has become a controversial subject. Post-communist states, both the pre-existing ones and those which emerged after the Soviet …

Covid Vaccine Apartheid and the Failure of Global Cooperation0

• Analysis
• September 6, 2021

Scientists responded rapidly to the Covid-19 pandemic by developing vaccines effective against infection, serious illness, and death. These medical breakthroughs presented an opportunity to manage the pandemic from a truly global perspective. Yet, it is an opportunity we have thus …

Re-imagining the Future: Is UNESCO on to Something?0

• Analysis
• August 26, 2021

Most famous for its World Heritage Programme, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has in recent years championed the idea of futures literacy – the skill and practice of diversifying why and how we imagine the future. …

What Canada Owes its Afghan Workers0

• Analysis
• August 21, 2021

As dark clouds piled on the horizon and a catastrophic humanitarian crisis looms over Afghanistan, the Canadian government promised a special resettlement program for approximately 20,000 Afghans who fear reprisals from the Taliban for collaborating with the international community.  The …

‘We Managed to Participate, but We Had to Fight for It’: Collective Reparation and Women in Colombia0

• Analysis
• July 24, 2021

Collective reparations emerged in Colombia within the legal framework of the peace process of the Government of Álvaro Uribe Vélez with the United Self-defense Forces of Colombia (AUC in Spanish) of 2005. The legal framework focused on the rights of …

Transitional Justice in Colombia, Five Years After Signing the Peace Agreement0

• Analysis
• July 22, 2021

Societies that have suffered massive violence require transitional institutions to manage injustices related to grave violations of human rights, document the truth of infringements and hold perpetrators accountable. The 2016 peace agreement in Colombia instituted the Truth Commission and the …

Peace with Justice in Colombia?0

• Analysis
• July 21, 2021

The national strike that erupted on 28 April 2021, following a proposed tax reform by the current administration, was met with state repression of protests. That repression and the impasse of dialogue since late April have revealed deep grievances and …