Publications
Articles, publications, books, tools and multimedia features from the U.S. Institute of Peace provide the latest news, analysis, research findings, practitioner guides and reports, all related to the conflict zones and issues that are at the center of the Institute’s work to prevent and reduce violent conflict.
Peacekeeper’s Lesson Learned: 'Let Them Talk First'
It was mid-January and we were in our third and final day of training 35 officers of the 8th Benin Battalion who are slated to join the United Nations peacekeeping force this month in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). While a few of these soldiers had been on such a mission before, most would be venturing for the first time into a conflict that has taken millions of lives since it began in the late 1990s.
More International Engagement on DRC Needed, Former U.N. Special Rep Says at USIP
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), though afflicted by conflict for nearly two decades, has made limited progress on several key issues but needs continued international support and engagement to help consolidate the gains, the former special representative to the United Nations secretary general told an audience at the Institute on December 11.
USIP Hosts International Gathering on Water Security and Conflict Prevention
Assuring access to water of adequate quantity and quality in the face of increasing challenges poses a growing risk of future conflicts. But in preventing any outbreak of conflict, better water management can play a vital role in building peace and cooperation, a variety of officials and specialists said at the Water Security and Conflict Prevention Summit held at the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) on September 10.
USIP, Partners Release Report on Realizing ‘Responsibility to Protect’
Despite the war-weariness of Americans and political and institutional obstacles, the United States should take the global lead in fulfilling the "Responsibility to Protect," an international norm aimed at protecting civilians from genocide and mass atrocities, two senior U.S. foreign policy figures said July 23 at the release of a report issued by the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), the U.S. Holocaust Museum and the Brookings Institution. The Responsibility to Protect principle is generally ...
Obama’s Africa Trip Seizes on Progress to Trumpet Economic Potential
President Barack Obama’s first extended trip to Africa will seize on democratic and economic progress in the three countries on his itinerary – Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania – to inspire further advances across the continent and encourage more American companies to plunge in.
Combating Sexual and Gender Based Violence in the Midst of Conflict in the DRC
Through a grant from the United States Institute of Peace, a new project has begun in the eastern province of South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to enhance support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). SGBV is a recurring problem in armed conflict, with notoriously high rates in the DRC.
Clean Hands in Peacekeeping: The U.N. Needs to Do More
In the wake of a United Nations report on atrocities committed at the end of last year by Congolese government soldiers and M23 rebels, USIP Jennings Randolph fellow Carla Ferstman sees a disconnect between the U.N.’s human rights standards for host government forces and those set for militaries that participate in its own peacekeeping contingents.
Eastern Congo: Changing Dynamics and the Implications for Peace
On February 22, 2013, the U.S. Institute of Peace convened a panel of experts to discuss recent developments in the war and their implications for peace. Raymond Gilpin, director of USIP’s Center for Sustainable Economies, was joined by John Prendergast and Sasha Lezhnev, both from the Enough Project who recently returned from the region, and Adotei Akwei of Amnesty International.
Instability in the DRC
USIP’s Raymond Gilpin and Brett Boor examine how conflict minerals are a symptom – and not the cause – of the continued instability in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
USIP: Teaching African Peacekeepers How to Keep the Peace
USIP trained hundreds of African peacekeepers in seven nations this year in how to negotiate and mediate the peace.