As a national, nonpartisan, independent Institute, the U.S. Institute of Peace draws on our exceptional convening power to create opportunities for diverse audiences to exchange knowledge, experiences, and ideas necessary for creative solutions to difficult challenges. We serve as an important, neutral platform for bringing together government and nongovernment, diplomacy, security, and development actors, and participants across political views. The Institute’s events help shape public policy and priorities to advance peaceful solutions to conflict and strengthen international security.
On April 11, USIP hosted Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) — chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism and a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs — for a conversation exploring his views on how U.S. policy toward Tunisia should adjust to new realities on the ground.
On August 6, USIP and ODI hosted a panel discussion featuring peacebuilding experts and practitioners from North Africa. The online conversation looked at the implications of COVID-19 on peacebuilding at the local level in three particular North African contexts: Libya, Tunisia, and Egypt.
Join USIP for a conversation with the Tunisian Minister of Defense Abdelkrim Zbidi, where we will discuss the dynamics of North Africa and how the U.S. and Tunisia are working together to promote regional security. The event will look at the risks of continued upheaval, as well as how the current uncertainty opens the door for democratic reform that was not possible in pre-2011 North Africa.
As actors from Syria, Libya, and other countries marked by violence are taking steps towards building new constitutions, USIP and Inclusive Security are convening a panel to draw out lessons for policymakers by discussing women’s roles in constitution-making, gender equality in constitutional provisions and their implications for long-term, inclusive peace and security.
Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaoui discussed the U.S. partnership and Tunisia’s own development and influence in the region, in a discussion at the U.S. Institute of Peace on Tuesday, March 14.
On December 5, to mark the Fifth Annual Arab-American Day, the League of Arab States and the U.S. Institute of Peace hosted a discussion with Arab women leaders, academics and policymakers, including the newly-elected Minnesota House Representative and Somali American, Ilhan Omar, on how education and economic opportunities can engage women and men in supporting women’s voices, equality and success.
On September 13, the U.S. Institute of Peace, Search for Common Ground and other partners held a Conflict Prevention and Resolution Forum including USAID Agency Youth Coordinator Michael McCabe. Speakers, including youth leaders, discussed how young women and men are leading such work and what policymakers can do to ensure that the largest generation of youth the world has ever known is not left on the sidelines.
Countries from Myanmar to Chile have moved from autocratic regimes to more inclusive forms of government, though their experiences continue to be fraught with difficulties. On September 8, the U.S. Institute of Peace hosted a symposium exploring recent research on what factors encourage or inhibit peaceful transitions and how nascent democracies can overcome their fragility. The discussion included a focus on a new study released by Chatham House on Zimbabwe’s potential for peaceful democratic transition.
On May 10, the Conflict Prevention and Resolution Forum held a discussion at the U.S. Institute of Peace on women, social media and extremism.
The longstanding United Nations call for countries to adopt National Action Plans to involve women in issues of national security repeatedly stumbles in much of the Middle East and North Africa. The U.S. Institute of Peace had a discussion on May 4 on how these roadblocks can be overcome, especially amid the current upheaval.