Better Evidence Resource Library
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The Better Evidence Project’s Resource Library in MARS provides access to a variety of practitioner and academic resources to improve the evidence available to donors, policy makers, practitioners, and scholars in the peacebuilding community. For more information on the Better Evidence Project and additional resources, please visit https://bep.carterschool.gmu.edu.
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Item 25 Spheres of Digital Peacebuilding and PeaceTech(Toda Peace Institute and Alliance for Peacebuilding, 2020-09) Schirch, LisaThis report outlines twenty-fives spheres where technology can contribute to peacebuilding goals and describes five generations of thinking related to the evolution of technology’s impact on peacebuilding. Digital peacebuilding contributes to democratic deliberation, violence prevention, social cohesion, civic engagement and improved human security. Digital peacebuilding contributes to the wider field of digital citizenship and “tech for good.”Item A Summary of Lessons Learned: Studies and Evaluations(United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, 2020) United NationsThe United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, in order to strengthen its accountability and organizational learning, commissions several evaluative exercises—lessons learned studies and evaluations—every year. This report provides key findings, lessons learned, and recommendations of evaluative exercises commissioned by the Department in 2020. These include an evaluation around the drawdown, reconfiguration and withdrawal of a number of peacekeeping operations and Special Political Missions (SPMs) and how they affected the presence and work of the wider UN. The report also focused on the UN mediation of the Equatorial Guinea-Gabon boundary dispute between 2008 and 2016, which relates to their overlapping claims of sovereignty over three islands, and the delimitation of their maritime and land boundaries. In addition there were evaluations of the increased support by the Mediation Support Unit (MSU) for local mediation initiatives and an analysis of UN engagement with the Maldives in support of its nascent democratic gains to build confidence between political actors and to foster the conditions for meaningful political dialogue and the discussion of delicate religious and societal issues. Finally, the report reviews UN efforts to advance the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda during the peace negotiations (2012- 2016) and then through the establishment of two consecutive special political missions (SPMs) in Colombia to verify specific provisions of the Agreement. In its efforts to implement the WPS agenda in Colombia, the UN worked in close cooperation with the authorities and former guerrillas, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC-EP), as well as with civil society and international stakeholders.Item Adaptive Mediation and Conflict Resolution: Peace-making in Colombia, Mozambique, the Philippines, and Syria(Palgrave Macmillan, 2022) de Coning, Cedric; Muto, Ako; Saraiva, RuiThis open access book introduces adaptive mediation as an alternative approach that enables mediators to go beyond liberal peace mediation, or other determined-design models of mediation, in the context of contemporary conflict resolution and peace-making initiatives. Adaptive mediation is grounded in complexity theory, and is specifically designed to cope with highly dynamic conflict situations characterized by uncertainty and a lack of predictability. It is also a facilitated mediation process whereby the content of agreements emerges from the parties to the conflict themselves, informed by the context within which the conflict is situated. This book presents the core principles and practices of adaptive mediation in conjunction with empirical evidence from four diverse case studies – Colombia, Mozambique, The Philippines, and Syria – with a view to generate recommendations for how mediators can apply adaptive mediation approaches to resolve and transform contemporary and future armed conflicts.Item Adding Up to Peace: The Cumulative Impacts of Peace Initiatives(CDA Collaborative Learning Projects, 2018-04) Chigas, Diana; Woodrow, PeterThis book aims to identify how cumulative impacts in peace practice operate at all levels, in order to provide practical lessons for policymakers, donors and practitioners to develop more effective strategies for greater progress towards peace. This book builds on CDA’s Reflecting on Peace Practice Project (RPP), launched to answer the question: What works—and what doesn’t work—in peacebuilding? It seeks to deepen our understanding of how multiple peacebuilding initiatives in a conflict zone interacted and added up (or didn’t), to result in progress towards larger societal level peace, or Peace Writ Large. The findings are a product of sixteen case studies conducted between 2007 and 2012, gathering the perceptions of both local and international stakeholders.Item Assessing International Statebuilding Initiative Effectiveness at Preventing Armed Conflict Recurrence: The Cases of Burundi, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, and Nepal(Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, 2020) Short, ElliotThe practice of statebuilding is employed by a broad spectrum of multilateral organisations and national governments as a tool to stabilise fragile states, including those that are recovering from conflict. However, much of the existing literature focuses on weighing up the ethical arguments concerning statebuilding rather than analysing its impact on the societies in which it takes place. This assessment combines data from Fund for Peace’s Fragile States Index, financial data harvested from relevant publicly available databases, and an extensive survey of the academic and policy literature to examine whether statebuilding is an effective means of preventing post-conflict states from relapsing into war. By exploring the cases of Burundi, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nepal, it demonstrates that although statebuilding can help to achieve this goal, certain conditions and methods are required for it to be effective. When such conditions and methods are absent, donors’ resources are employed to build regimes rather than states and leave the recipient country at risk of returning to conflict.Item Ceasefire Drafter’s Handbook: An Introduction and Template for Negotiators, Mediators, and Stakeholders(Public International Law & Policy Group, 2013-05)The Public International Law & Policy Group’s (PILPG) Ceasefire Drafter’s Handbook is a guide intended to effectively supplement the activities of negotiators and drafters of ceasefire agreements. This Handbook draws from PILPG’s experience in ceasefire negotiations, as well as state practice and comparative analysis of over 200 ceasefire agreements from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. This Handbook includes an Introduction to Ceasefires and an Annotated Ceasefire Template. The Introduction to Ceasefires provides information on the core elements of ceasefires, the effects of asymmetry on ceasefire agreements, the role of third parties, and the legality of ceasefire agreements. The Annotated Ceasefire Template describes core provisions and provides sample language for drafters to incorporate into ceasefire agreements. Although each template section offers drafters a guiding framework, it may be necessary to reshape the provisions to address the nuances of each situation.Item Civil Society in Conflict Transformation: Strengths and Limitations(Berghof Foundation, 2011-01) Fischer, MartinaThis book chapter focuses on the potential contribution that civil society actors can make to peacebuilding. There is also an examination of what types of activities international and transnational NGOs undertake in order to influence international politics in a way that contributes to coping with global challenges. The author explores key questions such as: What are the strengths and limitations of civil society actors? What types of activities do NGOs undertake? What problems and dilemmas are faced in the development of civil society in war-torn societies? What is the role and potential of (local) civil society actors in war-to-peace transitions and what problems and dilemmas stem from the development of civil society in war-torn societies? She uses the example of Bosnia-Herzegovina to explore the limitations of civil society's contributions to peacebuilding, and how civil society relates to state-building. Finally, the chapter addresses how such considerations impact theoretical conceptualizations of the term "civil society".Item Cognitive-Affective Mapping and Digital Peacebuilding(Toda Peace Institute, 2021-06) Hoffman, Evan A.Ideologies play a fundamental role in the emergence, escalation and resolution of conflict by underpinning divergent narratives and worldviews. These ideologies are often developed and sustained through a combination of interrelated and deeply-held core beliefs, values and emotions which have been acquired over the course of a lifetime and become reinforced through several cognitive processes and biases. Thus, it can be very difficult to alter or change ideologies once they have been formed. Yet, despite their central importance to conflict resolution, practitioners still need the proper tools to adequately visualise these complex ideologies in individuals and/or groups. Practitioners also have very few examples of ways to work with these divergent ideologies as part of a larger peacebuilding process. This policy brief presents a technique for visualising ideologies using a new software tool called Valence that enables technology-assisted Cognitive Affective Mapping (CAM). It then offers lessons from a recent online conflict resolution exercise in which multiple stakeholders used this tool in an ongoing water conflict in Canada via a series of facilitated Zoom sessions held in 2020.Item Confronting War: Critical Lessons for Peace Practitioners(The Collaborative for Development Action, 2003) Anderson, Mary B.; Olson, LaraThis working paper reflects the work and lessons learned from the Reflecting on Peace Practice Project. Over an eighteen month period, RPP conducted twenty-six case studies on a wide variety of types of peace efforts, undertaken in a range of geographical settings, in different stages of conflict, at different levels of society, and with varying forms of connectedness to local, indigenous peace efforts. These case studies were done at the invitation of the agencies involved, to capture their internal reflections on their work, as well as the views of a wide range of counterparts – participants, partnering local and international NGOs and other agencies, communities affected by the work, representatives of relevant levels of government, etc. The cases were conducted through field visits to the areas where the programs were undertaken. There were also a series of consultations bringing together more than eighty peace practitioners—both those who live in conflict situations and those who work outside their own countries. These practitioners reviewed and reflected on lessons that emerged from the cases were telling us. A number of issues emerged as central to effective peace practice but around which there remain significant differences of experience and belief. These linkages between levels in peace work, the roles and relationships between “insider” and “outsider” peace agencies, and the relationship between context analysis and strategy development. Additional areas of focus included tradeoffs between working for the reduction of violence and for social justice, dealing with deliberate disruptions of peace processes, and assessing Inadvertent negative impacts.Item Containing the armed conflict in Kashmir(2021) Short, ElliotThe United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan has helped to prevent a major interstate war between India and Pakistan in Kashmir since 1949.Item Containing the Armed Conflict in Mexico (Chiapas)(2021) Short, ElliotAlthough the conflict between the Zapatista movement and the Government of Mexico has not been resolved, the fighting has been effectively contained since 1997.Item Crisis Management beyond the Humanitarian-Development Nexus(Routledge, 2018) Hanatani, Atsushi; Gomez, Oscar A.; Kawaguchi, ChigumiIn addressing humanitarian crises, the international community has long understood the need to extend beyond providing immediate relief, and to engage with long-term recovery activities and the prevention of similar crises in the future. However, this continuum from short-term relief to rehabilitation and development has often proved difficult to achieve. This book aims to shed light on the continuum of humanitarian crisis management, particularly from the viewpoint of major bilateral donors and agencies. Focusing on cases of armed conflicts and disasters, the authors describe the evolution of approaches and lessons learnt in practice when moving from emergency relief to recovery and prevention of future crises. Drawing on an extensive research project conducted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency Research Institute, this book compares how a range of international organizations, bilateral cooperation agencies, NGOs, and research institutes have approached the continuum in international humanitarian crisis management. The book draws on six humanitarian crises case studies, each resulting from armed conflict or natural disasters: Timor-Leste, South Sudan, the Syrian crisis, Hurricane Mitch in Honduras, the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia, and Typhoon Yolanda. The book concludes by proposing a common conceptual framework designed to appeal to different stakeholders involved in crisis management. Following on from the World Humanitarian Summit, where a new way of working on the humanitarian-development nexus was highlighted as one of five major priority trends, this book is a timely contribution to the debate which should interest researchers of humanitarian studies, conflict and peace studies, and disaster risk-management.Item Designing for Results: Integrating Monitoring and Evaluation in Conflict Transformation Activities(Search for Common Ground, 2006) Church, Cheyanne; Rogers M., MarkThis manual, produced by Search for Common Ground in partnership with the United States Institute of Peace and the Alliance for Peacebuilding, focuses on the challenges faced by conflict transformation practitioners in their attempts to measure and increase the effectiveness of their work with practical tips and examples from around the world. As an introductory volume and one of the first to focus on the practical application of integrated design, monitoring and evaluation, it seeks to introduce peacebuilding practitioners to the concepts, tools, and methods needed to incorporate better design, monitoring, and evaluation practices into peacebuilding programming.Item Development Assistance for Peacebuilding(Routledge, 2018) Gisselquist, Rachel M.Development assistance to fragile states and conflict-affected areas can be a core component of peacebuilding, providing support for the restoration of government functions, delivery of basic services, the rule of law, and economic revitalization. What has worked, why it has worked, and what is scalable and transferable, are key questions for both development practice and research into how peace is built and the interactive role of domestic and international processes therein. Despite a wealth of research into these questions, significant gaps remain. This volume speaks to these gaps through new analysis of a selected set of well-regarded aid interventions. Drawing on diverse scholarly and policy expertise, eight case study chapters span multiple domains and regions to analyse Afghanistan’s National Solidarity Programme, the Yemen Social Fund for Development, public financial management reform in Sierra Leone, Finn Church Aid’s assistance in Somalia, Liberia’s gender-sensitive police reform, the judicial facilitators programme in Nicaragua, UNICEF’s education projects in Somalia, and World Bank health projects in Timor-Leste. Analysis illustrates the significance of three broad factors in understanding why some aid interventions work better than others: the area of intervention and related degree of engagement with state institutions; local contextual factors such as windows of opportunity and the degree of local support; and programme design and management.Item Elections and Conflict Prevention: A Guide to Analysis, Planning and Programming(United Nations Development Programme, 2009-08) UNDP Democratic Governance GroupThis guide is designed as a knowledge product for practitioners in the field of governance and electoral assistance. It identifies strategic approaches and forms of programming that can help to anticipate and prevent the types of violent conflict that frequently accompany elections and set back development in emerging democracies or post-war societies. The Guide provides readers with practical options and tools for programming design, early warning and conflict tracking. It presents valuable lessons learned from the previous, extensive experience of UNDP and its partner organizations in the field. The information provided in the Guide reflects UNDP best practice as it relates to the broader framework for UN engagement in electoral assistance. Throughout the Guide, the knowledge gained from research and analysis is paired with perspectives of leading practitioners to show how electoral assistance programming can be adapted to mitigate conflict. The Guide also puts electoral assistance into the broader context of UNDP’s emphasis on democratic governance and conflict prevention, whereby the legitimate, accountable and effective exercise of state authority contributes to the constructive management of social change.Item Ending the Armed Conflict in Angola(2021) Short, ElliotAn agreement negotiated by the belligerents ended the conflict in Angola.Item Ending the Armed Conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina(2020) Short, ElliotThe Government of the USA successfully mediated a series of peace agreements which ended the multifaceted armed conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the collapse of Yugoslavia in the 1990s.Item Ending the Armed Conflict in Colombia(2020) Short, ElliotThe armed conflict in Colombia was finally ended after 52 years by the signing of a peace agreement during negotiations mediated by a host of national governments and intergovernmental organisations.Item Ending the Armed Conflict in El Salvador(2020) Short, ElliotAfter 12 years of devastating civil war, the armed conflict in El Salvador was finally ended after negotiations mediated by the UN culminated with the signing of the Chapultepec Peace Accords in 1992.Item Ending the Armed Conflict in Guatemala(2020) Short, ElliotNegotiations mediated by the UN resulted in the signing of the Accord for a Firm and Lasting Peace in 1996, ending the armed conflict in Guatemala after 36 years.