The last decade has been a difficult period for those interested in building a more peaceful world. The number of people impacted by conflict is now higher than in any period since the end of World War II. Violence and conflict continue to thwart efforts to meet basic humanitarian goals and tackle major challenges such as climate change or poverty reduction. In 2014, 13 percent of the global economy was spent on either containing or dealing with the consequences of violence, yet by comparison little is spent on proactive investments to eradicate the underlying conditions that lead to violence or conflict. Despite a rhetorical commitment to prevention, all too often the global policymaking community is focused on the crisis of the day, intervening too late to make any meaningful impact.
The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) has sought to better understand the drivers of peaceful societies through the development of an empirical framework that identifies the optimum environment in which peace can flourish. This is termed Positive Peace. The main contribution has been the development of a framework of inter-related factors, identified by analyzing over 4,700 different indices, datasets and attitudinal surveys. The eight Positive Peace factors identified by IEP that are associated with peaceful environments are:
· Well-functioning government
· Sound business environment
· Equitable distribution of resources
· Acceptance of the rights of others
· Good relations with neighbors
· Free flow of information
· High levels of human capital
· Low levels of corruption
Countries with higher levels of Positive Peace are less likely to slip into major conflicts, are more likely to experience less violence, and are better equipped to bounce back from internal or external shocks caused by economic conditions, societal disagreements and natural disasters.
DRAFT AGENDA (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
8:00 – 9:00am Breakfast and registration
9:00 – 9:10am Conference Welcome
Alberto Diaz-Cayeros, Senior Fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute For International Studies, Stanford University
Aubrey Fox, Executive Director, U.S. Office, Institute for Economics and Peace
Randy Newcomb, President & CEO, Humanity United
9:10 – 9:30 am Opening Keynote: “Positive Peace: A Transformational Paradigm”
Steve Killelea, Executive Chairman, Institute for Economics and Peace
9:30 – 11:00am Positive Peace and Systems Thinking
In recent years, there has been more and more attention paid to “systems thinking,” which holds that the factors identified as important to any model of change interact in complex and non-linear ways. This session will examine positive peace through the lens of systems thinking. It will show the fundamental interrelationships between positive peace factors such as good governance and control of corruption, as well as shed light on the key challenges of tipping countries trapped in vicious cycles of conflict and violence into more positive feedback loops. In addition, it will feature cutting-edge findings and new research. What is the state of empirical knowledge about risk factors versus long-term drivers of peace? What are some unanswered questions about positive peace, and how can they be answered? Is there sufficient data available? What new data needs to be collected?
Moderator: Rob Ricigliano, Systems and Complexity Coach, The Omidyar Group
Panelists:
Jurgen Brauer, Professor of Economics, Georgia Regents University
Michelle Breslauer, Americas Program Manager, Institute for Economics and Peace
Peter Coleman, Professor Of Psychology and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University; Director, Morton Deutsch International Center For Cooperation And Conflict Resolution & Co-Director, Advanced Consortium For Cooperation, Conflict, And Complexity, The Earth Institute at Columbia University
Necla Tshirgi, Professor of Practice, Human Security and Peacebuilding, University of San Diego and Club de Madrid Shared Societies Project Advisor
11:00 – 11:15am Break
11:15 – 1:00pm Presentation of Positive Peace Case Studies
The unfortunate reality is that most research on peace focuses on the drivers of conflict and violence instead of the factors of more peaceful societies. Much valuable and important information is lost in this process. The positive peace methodology offers a new way of shedding light on countries that have previously been approached from a conflict-oriented lens, as well as those that have improved in peace despite facing serious risk factors. This panel will feature positive peace case studies specifically commissioned for this conference. Are there common lessons that cut across the different studies? What data needs to be collected? How can the case studies themselves be used as a peacebuilding tool?
Moderator: Alberto Diaz-Cayeros, Senior Fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute For International Studies, Stanford University
Respondent: Chic Dambach, Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellow, John Hopkins University & Stephen Wicken, Consultant, Investments, Humanity United
Panelists:
Abu Bakarr Bah, Associate Professor, Northern Illinois University, Department Of Sociology
& Editor-In-Chief, African Conflict And Peacebuilding Review (ACPR)
Lynn Kuok, Nonresident Fellow, The Center For East Asia Policy Studies, Brookings Institution
Trust Mamombe, Director, The National Peace Trust
1:00 – 2:00pm Lunch
Lunch will be served buffet style on the patio of Paul Brest Hall.
2:00 – 3:30pm Promoting Policy Change through Data and Analysis
In recent years, a number of organizations including the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the World Justice Project (WJP), the Social Progress Network (SPN), and the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) have used high-profile indices as a means of driving policy change. This includes UNDP’s Human Development Report, WJP’s Rule of Law Index, SPN’s Social Progress Index and IEP’s Global Peace Index. While each index has a different focus, ultimately they all seek to strengthen factors of positive peace. How are these indices being used in practice? What have the organizations behind them learned about working at a country level to drive policy change? Who is using the information, and in what ways? What role does data and analysis play in building the case for long-term peacebuilding strategies?
Moderator: Aubrey Fox, Institute for Economics and Peace
Panelists:
Juan Carlos Botero, Executive Director, World Justice Project
Justin Edwards, North American Network, Social Progress Imperative
Shamil Idriss, President & Chief Executive Officer, Search For Common Ground
Patricia de Obeso, Mexico Representative, Institute for Economics and Peace
3:30 – 3:45pm Coffee Break
3:45 – 5:30pm Making the Case for Positive Peace
Positive Peace offers an alternative lens for identifying, and measuring, the kinds of long-term investments that can make countries and communities more peaceful. Yet there are significant conceptual, political and practical challenges to shifting the world’s focus away from short-term crisis response and towards potentially more effective investments in violence prevention. How can those challenges be addressed? How do you build support for investments that may take a decade or longer to pay off? How can you communicate and market Positive Peace? This panel will feature a moderated conversation with leading experts.
Moderator: Melanie Cohen Greenberg, President and CEO, Alliance for Peacebuilding
Panelists:
Doug Balfour, Executive Director, Geneva Global
Mr. Stephen “Steve” R. Brown, Rotary Foundation Trustee 2010-2014, Rotary Club of LaJolla
Golden Triangle, CA, USA
Larry Diamond, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institute Stanford University
Steve Killelea, Executive Chairman, Institute for Economics and Peace
Alexandra Toma, Executive Director, Peace and Security Funders Group
5:30pm Drinks
6:30pm Dinner and Reflections on Conference by:
Ellen Friedman, Executive Director, Compton Foundation
Dr. Kate Schecter, President & CEO, World Neighbors
Professor of Psychology and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University; Director, Morton Deutsch International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (MD-ICCCR) & Co-Director, Advanced Consortium for Cooperation, Conflict, and Complexity (AC4), The Earth Institute at Columbia University
The conference will be held at Stanford University, Paul Brest Hall, 555 Salvatierra Walk.
Click here for detailed directions.
The conference is free to attend, however participants are required to register and confirm in advance and to pay for their own travel costs.
Shuttle Bus Schedule, Oct 5th
8am: Hotel Keen (425 High Street, Palo Alto, CA) to Paul Brest Hall, Stanford University (O Conner Lane Turnaround)
8pm: Paul Brest Hall, Stanford University (O Conner Lane Turnaround) to Hotel Keen (425 High Street, Palo Alto, CA)
Hotels in proximity to the Stanford campus include:
Hotel Parmani | Palo Alto
Tel: 650.493.9085 Fax: 650.493.8405
www.hotelparmani.com
Sheraton Palo Alto
Tel: 650.328.2800 ext:7015
Hotel Keen
Tel: 650.327.2775
The nearest parking lot to Paul Brest Hall is Parking Structure 6. It is an underground parking lot. There are visitor parking spots that take cash and credit cards.
This parking lot also has "A" and "C" parking spots. The main entrance to Paul Brest Hall faces Nathan Abbott Way. It is marked below.
You can also click here for more detailed directions.
