Posts Tagged ‘United Nations’
Shrinking Space in the Name of Countering Terrorism: Why the United Nations Must Deliver on Civil Society Commitments
By Junko Nozawa Civil society actors—communities, victims’ rights groups, religious, and other authorities that follow traditional customs—have long been recognized as valuable partners in violence prevention and conflict resolution efforts. Recognition for their contributions to the field of preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) and terrorism has been more muted, despite the critical role that…
Read MoreA Bias for Action on Climate Change: An Addendum to the Command’s Planning Guidance for 2020
By Tom Persico The commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) is its highest-ranking officer. He is responsible for laying out the agenda in the years to come in a publication called the Commandant’s Planning Guidance. The 38th Commandant of the Marine Corps calls for a new fighting model to be a better fighting force…
Read MoreThe Gendered Impact of COVID-19: What Policymakers Can Learn from Gender and Conflict
By Bethan Saunders and Courtney Bale Dunlevie During this global public health crisis, leaders have used conflict-based language to describe the COVID-19 pandemic. From President Trump’s declaration of becoming a “wartime president” to Xi Jinping’s “people’s war,” they have cast the coronavirus as a metaphorical foe to be vanquished. Rhetorical flourishes aside, this public health…
Read MoreLearning from Climate Strikers: How to Increase Popular Engagement in International Relations
By Jennifer Zhang The foreign policy community puts out thousands of reports and position papers each year. Yet, these publications often receive little attention outside of diplomatic circles and vanish into a vortex of briefings and communiqués whose recommendations are rarely carried out. Reasons for low engagement This lack of interest can potentially be traced to the steep…
Read MoreTaking a Look at the Financials: How to Solve the Humanitarian Situation in Yemen
By Pierrepont Johnson Mark Lowcock, the humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator for the United Nations, is tired of sounding like a broken record during his monthly Security Council briefings. Every month, I update the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Yemen. Today marks my fifteenth briefing and the thirty-sixth you will have heard since…
Read MoreEliminating Global Threats: The Difficulties of Reducing Foreign Terrorist Fighters
By Robert Kang On March 22, 2019, the Trump administration announced the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Sarah Sanders, White House spokeswoman, briefed the press on the president’s planned withdrawal of 2,000 U.S. troops from Syria. She went on to claim that the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces had driven…
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