The Centre for Security Governance (CSG), Balsillie School of International Affairs (BSIA), and Wilfrid Laurier University Global Studies department (WLU) are hosting a series of eight online seminars on “Contemporary Debates on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding.”
The fifth instalment in this series will be held on the theme of “The Future of Peacekeeping”. The event, which will take place on November 3, 2016 at 12:30pm EST, will be open to the public and free to attend.
About the Event
Peacekeeping missions are one of the most visible and celebrated activities of the United Nations (UN), with over 125,000 personnel currently serving in 16 missions across 4 continents. The nature and scope of peacekeeping missions have evolved significantly since the inaugural UN Truce Supervision Organization mission was launched in 1948. Today’s peacekeepers do far more than monitor ceasefires and separate warring parties; they are employed to manage conflicts within weak and fragile states and facilitate peacebuilding and development activities. However, the UN’s record in these new complex and multi-dimensional missions is mixed, as seen in Rwanda, South Sudan and the Democratic of Republic of Congo.
The peacekeeping landscape appears ripe for further change. Building upon a seminal review of peacekeeping operations, member states, including Western states, pledged in 2015 to modernize UN peacekeeping and provide an additional 40,000 troops. Innovation has become a buzzword around UN peacekeeping missions, exemplified by the use of new technologies, such as unmanned aerial vehicles, or the increased attention paid to gender issues, marked by the establishment of all-female peacekeeping units.
Poised to enter a new era of peacekeeping, it is important to explore these recent developments and what they mean for broader peacebuilding processes. This will be the central question addressed at the fifth instalment of the Centre for Security Governance’s eSeminar series on “Contemporary Debates on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding”, presented in collaboration with the Balsillie School of International Affairs and Wilfrid Laurier University’s Department of Global Studies. Our distinguished panelists will each give brief introductory remarks, followed by an open Q&A period where participants will be able to engage the panel directly. The event, which will take place on November 3, 2016 at 12:30pm EST, will be open to the public and free to attend.
For more information and to register, click here.
Tags: eSeminar, peacebuilding, peacekeeping, SSR
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