Peace Summit 2023

The John and Pat Hume Foundation and Community Dialogue, in partnership with the Glencree Centre for Peace & Reconciliation, Youth Action NI, Holywell Trust, Ulster University and Integrated Education Fund today launched the Peace Summit 2023. Twenty-five years on from the Good Friday Agreement the summit has took stock of the status of the peace process. The Chair played an integral role in working with the partners in drafting the Consultation Report launched on 3 March 2023. The partners are keen to hear your views on the peace process in Northern Ireland 25 years on. Read the document and reply to b.hamber@ulster.ac.uk.

Medical Education in Conflict


As Ulster University’s School of Medicine moves into its second year of existence, and our medical students start to undertake more clinical placement, we have been thinking more about the places where they will work and the patients with whom they will interact. Our partner medical school is St George’s University of London, and so all curriculum materials relate to a London based environment.

Our own setting is of course different, and one thing that sets it apart from London is the fact that is recognised to be a society emerging from conflict . Through its international Conflict Research Institute (INCORE), Hume O’Neill Peace Chair and work in the Schools of Psychology and Social Sciences (to give some examples), Ulster University has committed to exploring the impact of conflict on a range of areas in Northern Ireland.

The Chair will participate in an initiate conversation with students and educators about their views of medical education in a post-conflict setting. If you would like to join us on Weds 16 November 2022, 6:30pm (online) sign up here.

Youth, Peace & Security: Article

In September 2022, the Chair with Eliz McArdle published the article “Youth, Peace and Security: Fostering local and global exchange” in Fund Focus, The Newsletter of the International Fund for Ireland. The article outlines some of the lessons from the ongoing Youth, Peace and Security Leadership Series. The article can be read in full here.

The Problem with Men?

On 5 August 2022, the Chair delivered the PJ McGrory Public Human Rights Lecture as part of the Féile an Phobail.

The lecture discussed masculinity in a global landscape of rising national fervour, armed conflict, gender-based violence, pandemics and endemic inequalities. It explored the link between violent masculinities and inter-personal, community and political violence and instability, while calling for new understandings of masculinities that can disrupt dominant narratives and lead to positive social change.

Magee Summer School

The Chair is delighted to announce a new Summer School on the Magee Campus of Ulster University on 8-18 July 2022. Applications open.

The Peacebuilding, Public Order and Conflict Management Summer School run by The Department of Conflict Resolution, Human Security and Global Governance at the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies, University of Massachusetts Boston, (UMASS) in partnership with Ulster University’s INCORE and the John Hume and Tip O’Neill Chair in Peace and community-based charity International Peace Education Resources (IPER) invite applications for the 2022 Summer Institute on Peacebuilding, Public Order and Conflict Management. This unique programme is back in a new location in person after two years of pandemic shut down.


Described by one former participant as ‘life-changing’, this exciting course is led by Professor Marie Breen-Smyth. It is delivered by UMASS and Ulster University professors from INCORE and the Hume O’Neill Chair, Rural Community Network, Holywell Trust, Bloody Sunday Trust, the Newgate Centre, as well as high profile activists and politicians from across the spectrum in Northern Ireland.

This year, we will be based in person on Ulster University’s Magee Campus, in Derry Londonderry. The programme includes classroom-based work, a film screening and panel discussions alongside study visits to sites and events in Armagh, Portadown, Derry Londonderry and Belfast where you will meet local community organisations who participate in the design and delivery of the programme.

The Summer School is also an international experience. Sitting with diverse classmates from around the globe, participants will draw comparisons between the local situation and other societies such as South Africa, Nigeria and Israel / Palestine.

Application Form, Bursary Information and Summer School Flyer

If you want to find out more about costs, logistics and bursaries, click here.

Partners

Youth and Psychosocial Support

Brandon Hamber; Denis Martinez; Marlies Stappers; David Taylor; and Thomas Unger have published “Youth, Peace and Security:  Psychosocial Support and Societal Transformation“.

This paper explores the key issue of mental health and psycho-social services (MHPSS), from a youth-specific perspective. Drawing on the assertions and recommendations of the YPS Progress Study, and coupled with the increasing attention to MHPSS within the sustaining peace agenda, this policy brief pays special attention to the role of youth-specific psycho-social services as a vital dimension of transformative youth resilience, essential to both addressing the consequences and prevention of violent conflict.

This is a report commissioned by Interpeace for their Outside the Box: Amplifying youth voices and views on Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) policy and practice series.


Watch a Video Summary of the Report


Download the Report

Youth Visions for Peace

On 29 March 2022, the Chair – with partners The John and Pat Hume Foundation, International Fund for Ireland (IFI), and Interpeace – hosted “Visions for Peace – Perspectives on Local and Global Youth Practice”.

Speakers addressed the questions: How do we engage young people in peacebuilding? What vision do our young people hold for a peaceful society? How does that influence what we prioritize when doing this work?

The event was Chaired by Professor Hamber with the following speakers:

Andy Hamilton is currently a Research Associate at Ulster University. He recently completed his PhD study titled Theorising Youth Sector Peacebuilding in Northern Ireland.

Eliška Jelínková is a Co-Director at the United Network of Young Peacebuilders and a co-chair of the Global Coalition on Youth Peace and Security.

Ali Altiok is a doctoral student in Peace Studies and Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. His research examines political inclusion and securitization of young people in the context of peacebuilding processes.

The seminar series is a partnership between Ulster University (INCORE, the Centre for Youth Research and Dialogue & TJI), The John and Pat Hume Foundation, John Hume and Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Peace, International Fund for Ireland (IFI), and Interpeace.