Inclusive Peace Project
Funded Value:
£503,043
Funded Period:
Feb 23 - Jan 26
Funder:
ESRC
Project Status:
Open
Project Category:
Research GrantProject Reference:
ES/X010864/1
Principal Investigator:
Neophytos Loizides
Watch some of our key project videos
Negotiated peace settlements are at the cornerstone of international relations, peace-making, and democratic governance. In conflict zones and deeply divided societies around the world, from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Burundi to Cyprus and Syria, international third-party conflict mediators frequently recommend power-sharing between rival ethnic groups as a means of ending wars and building peace. Yet we still know very little about whether past and current proposals (e.g., by the UN) are seen as acceptable from a citizens' perspective or about how precisely to negotiate, implement, and adapt the most advantageous trade-offs among parties in conflict. Answering these questions is critical to ensure the durability of peace processes, the consolidation of democracy, and potentially the restoration of multi-ethnic societies.
In INCLUSIVEPEACE, we propose a comparative and multi-methods research program that investigates how power-sharing settlements emerge, perform, and evolve. We specifically aim to address two common critiques in the study of power-sharing settlements focusing on adoptability and adaptability. First, power-sharing settlements cannot be easily negotiated and adopted and are often negotiated between political elites, excluding the wider society. Secondly, when they are adopted, parties struggle to renegotiate, adapt, or even identify their most problematic provisions, while citizens are given little opportunity to effect change in the new political arrangement. We will address these critiques by using qualitative approaches, including archival research and elite interviews as well as quantitative methods, including experiments and longitudinal public opinion surveys focusing on citizens, community leaders, and government policies in six representative cases around the world.
Inclusive Peace submit written evidence to UK Parliament's Northern Ireland Committee
28th February 2025
The team of PAIS staff along with collaborators submitted evidence to the inquiry under the title “The Government's new approach to addressing the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland”. The submission drew on various findings from projects funded primarily by the United States Institute of Peace and the Open Research Area 7 Inclusive Peace project (ESRC) to explain the reasons why more inclusive, transparent and accountable processes are necessary for victims of violence and the wider legitimacy of political settlements. The written evidence was published on the parliament's website here. You can also read written submissions from other individuals and organisations here.
WEBINAR:
Prospects for Inclusive Governance In Syria: Identifying Challenges and Opportunities
18th December 2024
WATCH HERELink opens in a new window.
Political change is taking place at pace in Syria and discussions are now emerging about the country’s future governance arrangements. Experts are highlighting that a unique opportunity now exists to engage with inclusive negotiations over new governance arrangements but have also warned about the inherent challenges now facing Syria. Syria’s rebel leadership is reaching out to global public opinion to build legitimacy and secure much-needed reconstruction aid. Kurds, Druze, Christians and other groups in Syria are also eager to maintain support while they prepare for the new governance arrangements that will follow over the months and years ahead. External actors are, for the most part, suggesting that some form of inclusive governance is necessary to maintain an element of stability, prevent further massive displacement and even enable Syrian refugees to return home. Israel meanwhile has already begun bombing military targets in Syria before a transitional government has even been appointed.Inclusive governance has the potential to broaden participation among the larger ethnic and religious groups of Syria without excluding minorities. However, to develop credibility and legitimacy, ideas on future institutional arrangements and the extent and nature of inclusive governance will have to be developed in a Syrian-led, Syrian-owned process. This event aimed to contribute to the evolving discussion about how inclusive governance might be built in Syria and the opportunities and challenges that will face such a process. The organizers invited initial thoughts from expert Syrian scholars about how inclusive governance might be modelled within the region and what they see as the opportunities and limits of such a process.
Aimee Smith joins Inclusive Peace as Research Fellow
2nd December 2024
I joined the Inclusive Peace project in December 2024 as a Research Fellow at the University of Warwick. I am involved in the development, implementation and analysis of quantitative research in Northern Ireland. My research interests revolve around the sociology of youth with a particular focus on education and peace. In my most recent role at University College Dublin (2020-2024) I worked on mixed-methods longitudinal studies in schooling in Ireland and Sierra Leone. I have also been involved in a number of projects developing and evaluating interventions in peacebuilding and educational attainment in Ireland, the UK and internationally.
Belfast Book Launch (by Prof Feargal Cochrane)
11th October 2024
Inclusive Peace was delighted to host the launch for Prof Feargal Cochrane's new book, Belfast: The Story of a City and its People, on Friday 11th October at the University of Warwick. You can watch the event hereLink opens in a new window.
Publications
The UK Government’s new approach to addressing the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland (N. Loizides, A. Smith, F. Cochrane)
Since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, successive British governments have sought to address the legacy of Northern Ireland’s past. The last such effort resulted in the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023, which ended almost entirely the system of criminal prosecutions, inquests and civil claims associated with the Troubles. These were replaced by ‘reviews’, to be carried out by a new body, the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR). Profs Neophytos Loizides and Feargal Cochrane, with Dr Aimee Smith, provided recommendations as part of their work on the InclusivePeace project. These were incorporated into this NI Affairs Committee report.
Reforming Dayton: Citizen’s Perspectives (V. Grbavac, K. Kubo, A. McCulloch & E. Morgan-Jones)
By conducting a survey containing an embedded conjoint experiment, we find that citizens in Bosnia and Herzegovina have stronger preferences for reforms that directly impact their everyday lives, and which elicit widespread public support. We suggest a path forward through iterative and consultative reforms that enhance public goods. You can read the policy brief hereLink opens in a new window.
Is Labour listening on Legacy? (A. Smith, F. Cochrane)
The current Labour administration came into government with a commitment to ‘repeal and replace’ the 2023 Legacy and Reconciliation Act. Its election manifesto claimed it was not fit for purpose: ‘The Legacy Act denies justice to the families and victims of the Troubles. Labour will repeal and replace it, by returning to the principles of the Stormont House Agreement, and seeking support from all communities in Northern Ireland.’ You can read the full article hereLink opens in a new window (page 9).
Unlocking the Cyprus Peace Process: Backstops could be an option (N.Loizides, M. Onurkan-Samani, E. Kaymak & C. Psaltis)
A team of Greek and Turkish Cypriot academics have published a joint piece mapping the way forward after the Geneva summit addressing the gaps in the current process. The article is authored by four members of the Greek-Turkish Forum working for decades on the Cyprus problem and following months of consultations with civil society organizations and the UN. Entitled ‘Unlocking the Cyprus Peace Process: Backstops could be an option’, the article examines why backstops have become the new buzzword in international mediations; what are the precedents in Cyprus and elsewhere; and most feasible proposals for the future. The article is available hereLink opens in a new window.
Conferences
Inclusive Peace presence at international conferences will be recorded here.
Impact
Conflict Resolution and Mediation Workshop, Cyprus (10-13th March 2025)
Inclusive Peace participated in the 4-day Conflict Resolution and Mediation Workshop held in the Green Line in Cyprus. Organized by Cypology, a multi-communal youth initiative that bridges academic research with public engagement, this field trip included participants from both communities in Cyprus, Greece and Turkey as well as from the broader region including Lebanese, Israeli and Palestinian youth. The training featured a Kelman interactive problem solving workshop (by Maria Hadvipavlou), a Café Diplomatico negotiations training (by Betul Celik and Neophytos Loizides) and a field trip “We Are Not Ghosts: Varosha Narratives” through the poetry stations of the soundwalk by Nafia Akdeniz as well as presentations by leading academics and civil society leaders in Cyprus and the broader region https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100081319602807.
Citizen Inclusion in International Mediations, University of Ottawa (10th June 2024)
Organized by Inclusive Peace PIs, Allison McCulloch and Neophytos Loizides in conjunction with the Forum of Federations, this half-day workshop aims to bring together researchers and policymakers from a select group of countries and institutions currently involved in supporting international mediation and peacebuilding. Drawing on the findings of the Inclusive Peace research project, discussion focused on both thematic and practical aspects of inclusive peacebuilding, and the lessons to be learned from the case studies explored in the research. The event offered opportunities for networking and cross-learning in the areas of citizen inclusion in peace settlements, the approaches and priorities of Canada and its international partners supporting peacebuilding through power-sharing, and practical experiences of inclusive power-sharing settlements in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.
In convening academics, senior government officials, and senior members of the diplomatic community, the workshop aimed to identify key achievements and limitations in current mediation efforts to foster sustainable peace in conflict-affected countries. With a focus on the practical implications of the Inclusive Peace research findings, the workshop sought to initiate an ongoing dialogue between key stakeholders working on inclusive peacebuilding internationally. Through the discussion, the event further aimed to highlight key insights and principles that can support more effective peacebuilding approaches, and inform the development of a policy document reflecting emerging good practice in Citizen Inclusion in Peace Mediations.
Videos from the event can be viewed on our YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4e3jMsGTLQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIe-lywNDTA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S2FVMwHb_E
Inclusive Peace collaborators meet in New Caledonia (20-25th February 2023)
The University of New Caledonia (UNC) has hosted an Inclusive Peace meeting to discuss options for a survey to gather views from citizens on the future status of the Pacific territory.
Contact
If you have any questions or would like to know more about the InclusivePeace project, please get in touch:
inclusive.peace@warwick.ac.uk or neophytos.loizides@warwick.ac.uk
