PrintRecent Grant Program Award Recipiants
The Annual Grant Competition
October 2011 Annual Grant Competition Results
29 Awards
$3,228,382
AGENCY FOR TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT (ACTED), Osh, Kyrgyzstan (Project Director(s): Byron Pakula): This project will 1) translate the REACH Early Warning System into Uzbek, which is one of the main languages in the target regions; 2) develop and conduct training for NGOs and community groups on the REACH system; 3) produce and disseminate maps that reflect early warning information; 4) develop a research report on key findings related to conflict mitigation in the Ferghana Valley; and 5) hold national and regional forums on best practices in conflict management. This project is designed to improve the availability and accessibility of information relating to tensions in southern Kyrgyzstan. Specifically, it will increase capacity of key stakeholders to monitor the likelihood of disputes and develop appropriate interventions through an interactive early warning mapping tool. This project leverages existing conflict management projects in southern Kyrgyzstan, and is designed to advance the tools and resources for dispute resolution, peace building and conflict mitigation on a global scale. $99,487
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY, Washington, DC (Project Director(s): Ken Conca): This project is centered on a series of workshops that will (1) gather knowledge about the environmental and resource linkages in disaster recovery, humanitarian response, and peacebuilding from NGOs working in conservation, crisis management, and disaster response; (2) facilitate dialogue with bilateral donors and multilateral organizations with responsibilities in this domain; and (3) develop a framework for a training program in green recovery and reconstruction, including a post-conflict module to complement existing disaster-recovery training materials. The project has three objectives: (1) to gather currently fragmented knowledge and practitioner experience on the links between the environment, post-conflict/post-disaster response, and peacebuilding; (2) to use the consortium created by the workshops to generate and disseminate a series of outputs that help practitioners incorporate sustainability considerations in post-conflict and post-disaster work; and (3) to lay the foundation for a training of trainers program on green recovery and reconstruction. $117,712
ASYLUM ACCESS, San Francisco, CA (Project Director(s): Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter): Drawing on best practices gleaned from the organization's previous work, this initiative will develop, test, refine and disseminate a Refugee Rights Toolkit to enable local advocates to set up refugee rights projects in their home country. The Toolkit, which will be both open-sourced and interactive, will contain material on launching and running refugee rights initiatives, including interactive advocacy training, advocate manuals, and other materials to build capacity of organizations engaged in refugee rights work. The Toolkit will also be tested by other NGOs engaged in refugee rights projects. The final product will be a Toolkit “Beta” version available for distribution anywhere it is requested. The primary objective of the Asylum Access Refugee Rights Toolkit is to strengthen the capacity of local refugee organizations around the world to address rights issues of refugees. By developing an interactive, user-friendly dissemination platform and incorporating interactive tools, the initiative will facilitate the development and implementation of new refugee rights programs. $47,703
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES, Baltimore, MD (Project Director(s): Prince Kalenga): CRS will implement socio-economic reinsertion activities in 10 communities in Shabunda Territory, South Kivu Province and research which activities are more effective in enabling individual and communal recovery. Specifically, CRS will: (1) conduct a baseline study; (2) implement a mix of innovative and traditional reinsertion activities, evaluate immediate results and monitor beneficiary and community status; (3) conduct follow-up evaluation one year after the activities’ conclusion to examine the longer-term impact; and (4) disseminate findings. The project aims to increase understanding of the relative impact of different socio-economic activities on the reinsertion of victims of sexual violence and on community social cohesion. Identification of effective socio-economic reinsertion approaches will facilitate recovery of survivors at the individual, family, and social levels, and promote community social cohesion. Additionally, activities will encourage debate and learning among actors in the DRC to improve SGBV program quality. $120,000
CENTER FOR A NEW AMERICAN SECURITY, Washington, DC (Project Director(s): Kristin M. Lord): The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) proposes to undertake a study of the likely effects of a nuclear Iran and present specific policy options for the U.S. to mitigate these consequences and deter a nuclear-armed Iran should international prevention efforts fail. During the study, CNAS will host four workshops and conduct relevant research, travel and interviews. CNAS will produce a series of articles, reports and briefings to provide insight and guidance for policy makers to deter and contain an Iranian nuclear capability. This study aims to fill gaps in the existing academic and policy literature by examining how the U.S. could best deter the direct use or transfer of Iranian nuclear weapons and other strategies to manage and mitigate the broader consequences of Iranian nuclear proliferation for U.S. and allied interests in the region. $112,633
CENTER FOR CREATIVE LEADERSHIP, Greensboro, NC (Project Director(s): Steadman Harrison, Heather Champion, Kathleen M. Vaughan, and Bancy W. Kubutha): This project will implement a six-day interethnic leadership training and mentorship program for Kenyan youth. Twenty recent college graduates will be trained in the Leadership Essentials for Peace methodology. Trainees will in turn provide leadership training and mentorship to 3,750 youth, ages 14-24 in villages in the Rift Valley that were particularly hard hit by the election violence in 2007. The youth will engage in civic projects that create a tangible social good in their communities. The initiative will strengthen in-country capacity to deliver youth leadership training that will enhance conflict awareness, effective leadership practices for peace, and interethnic dialogue on conflict prevention and mitigation issues. The project will also develop and refine a training of trainers curriculum and Leadership Essentials for Peace curriculum for use in high schools, student-led clubs, and community-based youth organizations. $119,818
CENTRE FOR PEACE-BUILDING AND RECONCILIATION (CPBR), Pitakotte, Sri Lanka (Project Director(s): Dishani Jayaweera): This project's first phase includes two parallel strands of work: (a) to engage 30 new Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, and Christian leaders in an interfaith dialogue with 10 leaders who are already part of the Centre for Peace-Building and Reconciliation's existing network, and for these new leaders to then hold three separate dialogues on regional issues and (b) for 60 leading members of CBPR's existing network to meet twice for interfaith dialogues and for skill-building for the next phase of the project. Both strands of the project will then come together for a four-day session on religious peacebuilding and to design a roadmap for religious peacebuilding in Sri Lanka. This project will equip 100 national level religious leaders from the Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim & Christian faiths with greater interfaith understanding and with the tools to carry out formal and informal peacebuilding interventions, and will also result in an agreed upon national roadmap for religious peacebuilding. $115,492
CONCILIATION RESOURCES, London, United Kingdom (Project Director(s): Jonathan Cohen): USIP funding is sought for three workshops, associated smaller meetings and policy advocacy work to support a Kashmir Initiative Group that will facilitate a process to deepen joint analysis across the conflict divide, explore potential areas of confidence building, develop detailed proposals on confidence building ideas, build relationships and communicate to policy makers and civil society the key conclusions to further strengthen the impact of these informal discussions on the official negotiations and social attitudes on each side. The objectives are to facilitate a process to deepen joint analysis, explore emerging potential areas of confidence building, develop detailed proposals on particularly promising confidence building ideas, continue to build relationships and communicate to policy makers and civil society the key conclusions of the interaction in order to further strengthen the impact of these informal discussions on the official negotiations and social attitudes on each side. $110,982
DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada (Project Director(s): Dr. Shelly Whitman): The Child Soldiers Initiative will: conduct two three-day trainings within the UNITAR Peacekeeping Training Programme on child soldiers and African security forces; create a minimum standard on child soldiers for security forces; and lead a consultative process on the minimum standard to review its applicability to address the child soldier issue. The objectives of the proposed project are to: 1) Increase the knowledge and skills on how to prevent and address the recruitment and use of child soldiers by security forces; 2) Strengthen the capacity of UNITAR and participating African peacekeeping training centres to deal with these issues through collaboration with the Child Soldier Institute; and 3) contribute to the eradication of the recruitment and use of child soldiers. $113,146
EQUITAS- EQUIPO COLOMBIANO INTERDISCIPLINARIO DE TRABAJO FORENSE Y ASISTENCIA PSICOSOCIAL, Bogota, Colombia (Project Director(s): Ana Carolina Guatame-Garcia, Luz Adriana Perez, Daniel Garcia, and Eileen Buitrago): This research project will (1) review autopsy data and classify injuries of killed-in-combat victims including those who were alleged to have been extrajudicially executed, (2) establish criteria for the differential diagnosis of injuries resulting from combat v. extrajudicial executions, including simulated combat situations, (3) identify the contextual factors that contribute to the different diagnoses; and (4) propose a framework for the epidemiological research of violent deaths in the context of armed conflict. This initiative aims to provide useful data to aid the process of truth and reparations in Colombia, including an analysis of the patterns of injuries observed in killed-in-combat victims in Colombia. More broadly, it is expected that the research outcomes will enhance capacity within Colombia and elsewhere to conduct rigorous forensic investigations in the conflict and post-conflict phases. $119,957
FLTFILMS, London, United Kingdom (Project Director(s): Alan Channer): An African Answer, originally produced in English, will be dubbed into Swahili by a well-known radio producer and six voice artists. Twenty-four civil society and religious leaders will then participate in an intensive six-day training of trainers workshop, where they will develop action plans for interventions in areas of ethnic tension. Three teams will be selected to carry out their action plans, and they will receive support from Pastor James Muye and Imam Muhammed Ashafa during their projects. The interventions will be documented in three short films that will be launched in Nairobi. This project aims to (1) deliver effective, practical tools for grassroots peacebuilding in Kenya through the dubbing and distribution of the Swahili version of An African Answer; (2) empower through the training of trainers a select group of Kenyan practitioners to solve inter-ethnic and inter-religious conflicts; (3) foster reconciliation and trust between ethnic and religious groups through three community interventions in three hot spots of ethnic tension in Kenya; and (4) thereby demonstrate to policymakers and the general public that peaceful coexistence between all ethnic and religious groups in Kenya is feasible and normative. $119,472
FOUNDATION FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT, Quezon City, Philippines (Project Director(s): Liezl Formilleza-Dunuan): This project will develop and produce audio materials for primary and secondary students in history, civics and social studies classes, and accompanying teachers' guides for presenting and integrating the audio materials into existing curriculum. In partnership with the Department of Education, and through a consultative process, the project will include a teacher training and planning seminar for participating educators prior to the introduction of the audio materials in pilot schools. The objective of the project is to enhance student understanding of such topics as the history and drivers of resource-based and other local conflicts, human rights, and approaches to peace and development. The initiative will help build a key constituency for peace that will play an increasingly important role in efforts to promote lasting peace between the Philippine government and the MILF in Mindanao. $64,160
FUNDACIÓN MI SANGRE, Medellín, Colombia (Project Director(s): Margarita Nova): Using art and culture as a vehicle for social inclusion, the honing of citizenship skills, and the development of a culture of peace, this project will organize a series of educational programs in 3 public schools that will engage teachers, parents, community leaders and some 2500 students. The initiative will also implement: 1) complementary programs in 15 grass roots youth organizations that will address such topics as creative conflict resolution and violence prevention, and 2) training sessions for adults (professors, parents and community leaders) to create protective environments where they can better secure children's rights and reinforce the process of educating children for a peaceful and inclusive society. By utilizing the power of art and engaging teachers, community leaders and parents in educational programs for young students, this project will provide a creative and secure environment in which youth will enhance communication and citizenship skills that will help enable them to avert violence and build a culture of peace. The project will also result in a peacebuilding through arts handbook and an arts fair exhibiting the products created by the youth participants. $110,077
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY, Leesburg, VA (Project Director(s): Leslie Dwyer ): Employing ethnographic methods, this project will investigate how post-conflict peacebuilding frameworks have been put into action in Aceh, and how local women understand and access these models. The project team will undertake research and prepare a documentary film focused on the gender dynamics of post-conflict intervention and social life in the aftermath of war. This project seeks to expand understanding and public awareness of the complex gender dynamics of post-conflict peacebuilding. Through the production of scholarly publications, a film, a curriculum guide and a tool for using visual representations as a conflict resolution tool, the project will offer new insights into the case of post conflict Aceh and the relationships between gender inclusivity and the sustainability of post-conflict interventions. $119,910
IREX, Washington, DC (Project Director(s): Ulugbek Nurumbetov and Susan Armitage): This project will: 1) Train educators to support youth affected by conflict and prevent and mitigate conflict among youth; 2) Train and support youth and adult mentors to create peer mediation programs at their schools; 3) Create and support a multi-ethnic youth theater performance troupe; and 4) Publicize the activities of the troupe through a widely distributed professional video. The objective is to facilitate youth conflict prevention efforts in supportive school environments and to enable youth to play leadership roles in advancing positive interethnic relations. The project will also result in a conflict prevention and support toolkit for teachers, a toolkit for peer mediators, and a video of Drama for Conflict Transformation Performances conducted by the multi-ethnic Youth Theater for Tolerance and Peace Troupe. $119,975
JOHNS HOPKINS BLOOMBERG SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Baltimore, MD (Project Director(s): Leonard Rubenstein): In collaboration with partners working in the conflict regions of Burma, this project will develop and validate an instrument that is consistent with international law and can be used securely to systematically track attacks on health functions during armed conflict. It will also develop methods of downloading information to databases in a form that can be posted on an open access website, and adjust the tool so that it can be used globally to track attacks on health workers in armed conflict. In developing the means for systematically documenting attacks on health functions in armed conflict that can be used locally, nationally and internationally, the project will enable organizations including such international agencies as the World Health Organization to understand the nature and extent of these attacks, develop prevention strategies, promote accountability, and support indigenous health workers in armed conflicts. $120,000
MEDIAACTION, Kodiak, Alaska (Project Director(s): Marie Acemah): This project will implement three participatory film workshops in the West Nile region of Uganda for at-risk youth to create innovative films on conflict resolution and engage in intergenerational dialogue on peace. Designed in cooperation with local West Nile governments, Makerere University's Center for Lifelong Learning, and other community-based local partners, the project will also mount a regional film festival to screen and cultivate dialogue on these locally produced peace-oriented films. This project aims to implement a sustainable model for training at-risk youth in filmmaking and conflict resolution skills, utilizing participatory community-based video production and screening activities to foster healing and peace in the West Nile region of Uganda. $119,595
OXFORD RESEARCH GROUP, London, United Kingdom (Project Director(s): Refqa Abu-Remaileh): A series of 3 workshops will take place. The first involving internal dialogue amongst senior Jewish-Israelis. The second will be a joint workshop bringing together Palestinian and Jewish citizens of Israel. The third workshop will engage directly with high-level politicians. A Working Group will inform policy makers and media, and implement the work agreed in the workshops. Dissemination work to include a media launch; meetings with senior journalists and Members of Knesset; consultations with the PLO. The project objectives are to 1) Facilitate constructive strategic dialogue between a select group of senior Palestinian and Jewish citizens of Israel; 2) Catalyse a process towards drafting a joint strategy document; 3) Create sustainable and long-term networks through the establishment of the Working Group that will carry the work forward; and 4) Impact the political process through direct engagement with high level politicians. $120,000
PEACE DIRECT, London, United Kingdom (Project Director(s): Ruairi Nolan): This project will include: 1) support to the Network of Peace Builders Congo (RBPC), comprised of local peacebuilding organisations in South Kivu, DRC, who will identify 12 conflicts that the network can resolve; 2) a Peace Exchange in Burundi bringing together local peacebuilders across Burundi, and follow-up meetings to support the possible launch of a Burundi network; 3) dissemination of information on peacebuilding organizations through Peace Direct's Insight on Conflict website, including expanded Burundi and DRC sections and a new section on Rwanda. This project aims to support local peacebuilders in the DRC and Burundi, and specifically to strengthen the RBPC network in the DRC and replicate their work in Burundi. This will increase the impact of local organizations and allow them to establish cross-border links. The Insight on Conflict website will also test a model for how outsiders can identify and support local peacebuilders. $113,520
REED COLLEGE, Portland, OR (Project Director(s): Darius Rejali): Using the case of Iraq, this study evaluates existing torture prevention policies used during war and then considers what might contribute towards evidence-based prevention. It asks first, do existing policies stop the practice of torture and, if not, what effects do they have on torturers, if any? It does this by mapping torture techniques against known prevention policies over time in a given area. Using the same technique, it identifies how torture becomes routine and how groups of serial torturers form, develop and disappear. This study aims to improve existing anti-torture military training, supplementing existing law-based models with social scientifically informed proposals for training changes. It will also generate proposals to improve monitoring strategies for sites of confinement in war. It explains retrospectively how existing policies interact with torture subcultures, and prospectively, how this knowledge may contribute to better prevention strategies. It may thus also contribute to better post-conflict transitions as soldiers become security officers. $141,602
SEARCH FOR COMMON GROUND, Harare, Zimbabwe (Project Director(s): Eunice Njovana): SFCG and the Ecumenical Peace Building and Reconciliation Trust (EPART) aim to build a religious Peace Network in Zimbabwe by working with eminent leaders at the national level. The network will then identify three flash-point areas where it will replicate its structure by training three local inter-religious non-violence committees. Both the national and local committees will be trained in conflict transformation techniques, and given small stipends to take concrete actions. The project aims to mobilize the religious community to promote a culture of non-violence in sensitive, flash-point areas during the electoral cycle. Two specific objectives contribute to the achievement of this goal: (1) to strengthen the ability of the religious community to lead a socio-cultural shift in favor of non-violence; and (2) to generate opportunities for collaboration among religious leaders in support of a culture of zero-tolerance for violence. $128,843
SWISSPEACE , Bern, 7 Switzerland (Project Director(s): Heinz Krummenacher): This project will establish a platform to foster inclusive judicial reform in Guinea. Specifically, the project will (1) conduct preparatory workshops with partners; (2) develop M&E tools; (3) hold trainings for 50 magistrates on roles & responsibilities, independence and impartiality, and deontology and ethics; (4) hold trainings for 50 CSO participants the on roles of judiciary and civil society in a democracy; (5) hold joint magistrate-CSO workshops to develop a joint judicial reform action plan; (6) support CSOs to launch public awareness campaigns about judicial reform; and (7) distribute the resulting action plan, debriefings and lessons learned reports to interested parties. This project aims to build the capacity of judicial personnel and to give civil society a voice in the judicial reform process. Collaborating with strategic local partners, the project will facilitate judicial reform by building a joint civil society/judiciary platform that allows for mutually agreed upon solutions. $108,257
THE FILMMAKERS COLLABORATIVE, Boston, MA (Project Director(s): Hopewell Chin’ono, Andrew Meldrum, and Lorie Conway): This project will result in a full-length documentary. The co-producers will first film interviews with Beatrice Mtetwa and several of her defendants, and additional interviews with legal experts will explore the broader context of Ms. Mtetwa's work. After filming, the team will spend 6-8 months on the post production and editing stages, and will then develop an outreach and distribution campaign that includes screenings by interested organizations and at an international film festival. This project seeks to raise awareness about the relationship of the rule of law to human rights and democracy by educating viewers about Beatrice Mtetwa's efforts to uphold the rule of law in Zimbabwe. $117,421
THE ROYAL INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, London, United Kingdom (Project Director(s): Jane Kinninmont): Extensive interviewing of both Iraqi foreign policy actors and figures from various sectors who engage with Iraqis in the realm of foreign policy will take place during a field trip to Iraq and through activities in the UK and, US. Workshops in London and Washington DC will gather leading academics, US and UK policy-makers and Iraqi foreign policy actors, to address a series of issues elucidating the patterns and processes of Iraq's national interests and foreign policy dynamics. The project seeks to bring an understanding of a key area of importance to Iraq – foreign policy – that is often overlooked and understudied. It will underline the country’s foreign policy potential to be a formative factor in the region’s security, as well as influencing Iraq’s domestic stability. The findings of the research will be published in both English and Arabic on the Chatham House website and will be widely disseminated through the network of Iraq Foreign Policy experts. $119,281
UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO, Albuquerque, NM (Project Director(s): Sharon Erickson Nepstad): To address these four questions, I will compile a database on all nonviolent uprisings from 1900-2011. Using secondary resources and newspaper accounts, I will create a dataset with information on structural conditions, strategic actions, organizational factors, international influences, and political context on 109 movements. I will use the technique of Qualitative Comparative Analysis to analyze the data. Once I interpret the results, I will conduct a close analysis of key cases to provide more details on causal processes and outcomes. This project’s goal is to develop a comprehensive understanding of civil resistance dynamics. I aim to discern which factors contribute to the nonviolent overthrow of dictatorships and which factors prolong authoritarian rule. This knowledge will shed light on the problems that can derail nonviolent movements; it will also enable nonviolence practitioners to develop effective resistance strategies and discern the type of international support that would benefit their cause. $110,674
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, AUSTIN, Austin, Texas (Project Director(s): Jason Brownlee): The project tests rival hypotheses of inter-communal conflict to determine whether anti-Coptic violence has originated in selective law enforcement by officials or, instead, if confessional tensions stem from a lack of crosscutting ties in civil society. Data will be collected in Cairo from major newspapers and interviews, then coded and analyzed in Austin. The dataset will help explain variations in attacks across geography and time, including the last years of Mubarak’s rule and first year after his ouster. The paramount objective is to reduce inter-communal insecurity and violence. The project will provide actionable lessons for NGO workers, policy makers and officials in Egypt who are working to establish a sustainable democracy. Results from the data collection and analysis will offer robust support for increasing civil society connections across confessional communities and/or for reforming the Egyptian electoral system to foster genuine pluralism and integrate the Coptic community as a critical “swing” constituency in the electorate. $109,484
UNIVERSITY OF THE WESTERN CAPE, Bellville, South Africa (Project Director(s): Nicolaas Steytler): Initially, 16 experts on devolution (8 Kenyan and 8 South African) will be paired up to write 8 pairs of papers on various aspects of devolution and peacebuilding in Kenya and South Africa. The papers will then be presented at a roundtable which is attended by key stakeholders interested in devolution and peacebuilding in Kenya. Following the roundtable, the papers, with a concluding chapter by the editors, will be edited and published as a book. The book will then be disseminated in Kenya, South Africa and elsewhere in Africa. The project has three main objectives: (1) to examine the successes and failures of implementation of devolution for peace in South Africa and the lessons that Kenya can learn from South Africa; (2) to enhance scholarship on devolution in Kenya; and (3) to build a network of scholars, practitioners and institutions involved in the process of devolution for peacebuilding in South Africa and Kenya. $107,140
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON, Seattle, WA (Project Director(s): Philip N. Howard): This project will construct the first large-N event database of incidents in which digital media has been used for civic engagement, non-violent conflict, and political activism. A successful pilot was undertaken last year, and the current focus of work is to complete the coding and build online analysis and visualization tools. In the final phase, the project team will launch a public release of both raw data and key findings for use by foreign policy analysts, journalists, and the interested public. This initiative seeks to raise the level of foreign policy expertise in the evolving dynamics of international relations in a digital era. Specifically, this work will address the need for broad perspective and cross-case comparison of how digital media has had an impact on non-violent outcomes. $82,442
WAR CHILD CANADA, Toronto, Canada (Project Director(s): Linda Liutkus): The project will include: (1) adaptation of existing SGBV materials into a comprehensive prevention and response toolkit, (2) creation of SGBV prevention and response M&E system, (3) training and capacity building of local partner staff on new SGBV prevention and response programming and M&E system, (4) implementation of SGBV prevention and response programming in two local communities in the Fizi District, (5) ongoing M&E of SGBV programming, and (6) the creation of best practice guidelines based on lessons learned through program implementation. This project seeks to address the problem of widespread SGBV in the DRC by strengthening civil society organizations' ability to design and carry out SGBV prevention and response programming. It will influence the thinking and activity of those on the front line of the SGBV issue by assessing the needs of women, communities and civil society organizations and subsequently developing tools and resources that will facilitate more effective violence prevention and services for victims. $119,599