Exploring the conflict management trajectories of Northern Ireland and Sri Lanka, this book engages in a discussion that highlights the importance of ‘decolonising’ approaches to peacebuilding and conflict management in deeply divided societies. Existing knowledge on the topic is largely produced in the Western academy, using global North-centric approaches. This book, written by a researcher from the global South who navigates the political life of a deeply divided society in Western Europe, begins a conversation on a new, 21st century re-conceptualization of ethno-national conflict in deeply divided societies, based on a paradigm of decolonising. This book will appeal to policymakers and practitioners in peacebuilding and related areas worldwide, and students of peace and conflict studies, as well as a general readership with an interest in decolonial approaches to world politics.

In this book 25 authors from the Global South (19) and the Global North (6) address conflicts, security, peace, gender, environment and development. Four parts cover I) peace research epistemology; II) conflicts, families and vulnerable people; III) peacekeeping, peacebuilding and transitional justice; and IV) peace and education. Part I deals with peace ecology, transformative peace, peaceful societies, Gandhi’s non-violent policy and disobedient peace. Part II discusses urban climate change, climate rituals, conflicts in Kenya, the sexual abuse of girls, farmer-herder conflicts in Nigeria, wartime sexual violence facing refugees, the traditional conflict and peacemakingprocess of Kurdish tribes, Hindustani family shame, and communication with Roma. Part III analyses norms of peacekeeping, violent non-state actors in Brazil, the art of peace in Mexico, grass-roots post-conflict peacebuilding in Sulawesi, hydrodiplomacyin the Indus River Basin, the Rohingya refugee crisis, and transitional justice. Part IV assesses SDGs and peace in India, peace education in Nepal, and infrastructure-based development and peace in West Papua. • Peer-reviewed texts prepared for the 27th Conference of the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) in 2018 in Ahmedabad in India.• Contributions from two pioneers of global peace research:a foreword by Johan Galtung from Norway and a preface by Betty Reardon from the United States.• Innovative case studies by peace researchers on decolonising conflicts, security, peace, gender, environment and development in the Anthropocene, the new epoch of earth and human history.• New theoretical perspectives by senior and junior scholars from Europe and Latin America on peace ecology, transformative peace, peaceful societies, and Gandhi’s non-violence policy.• Case studies on climate change, SDGs and peace in India; conflicts in Kenya, Nigeria, South Sudan, Turkey, Brazil and Mexico; Roma in Hungary;the refugee crisis in Bangladesh; peace action in Indonesia and India/Pakistan; and peace education in Nepal.

This book focuses on how Indigenous knowledge and methodologies can contribute towards the decolonisation of peace and conflict studies (PACS). It shows how Indigenous knowledge is essential to ensure that PACS research is relevant, respectful, accurate, and non-exploitative of Indigenous Peoples, in an effort to reposition Indigenous perspectives and contexts through Indigenous experiences, voices, and research processes, to provide balance to the power structures within this discipline. It includes critiques of ethnocentrism within PACS scholarship, and how both research areas can be brought together to challenge the violence of colonialism, and the colonialism of the institutions and structures within which decolonising researchers are working. Contributions in the book cover Indigenous research in Aotearoa, Australia, The Caribbean, Hawai'i, Israel, Mexico, Nigeria, Palestine, Philippines, Samoa, USA, and West Papua.

This Handbook explores the ways in which religion among the African people has been applied in situations of conflict and violence to contribute to sustainable peace and development. It analyzes how peacebuilding inspired and enabled by religion serves as the foundation for sustainable development in Africa, while also acknowledging that religion can also be a tool of destruction, and can be used to fuel violence and underdevelopment. Contributors to this volume offer theoretical discussions from existing literature, as well as experiences of practitioners, to deepen the readers’ understanding on the role of religion and religious institutions in peacebuilding and development in Africa. The Handbook provides reflections on possible future developments as well, thereby aligning with the goals of SDG 16.

This is a thought provoking study, which through a blend of theory, activism, and detailed empiricism, exposes a paradox at the heart of peace thinking: the tension between colonial and universalist epistemology and liberation or self determination. It is a much needed contribution. Prof. Oliver Richmond Univ. of Manchester Author of "The Transformation of Peace" (2007) In this book, Victoria Fontan questions the pre-established assumptions that exist in peace and conflict studies, and brings forward an alternative epistemology that relates to non-conventional initiatives for peace that exist in various parts of the world. She argues that the first step toward decolonizing peace and conflict studies must be our realization that we are powerless in facing the destruction and injustices that we invariably bring with our peace. Victoria Fontan is Associate Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies and Head, Department of Peace and Conflict Studies at the UN-mandated University for Peace in Costa Rica. She conducted field research in Lebanon, post-Saddam Iraq, DR Congo, Somaliland and Kashmir. Recently, she has been exploring post-liberal dimensions of Peace and Conflict Studies.

Incisive contributions from leading and emerging scholars in the field of Peace Studies In the Wiley Blackwell Companion to Religion and Peace, a team of renowned scholars delivers an authoritative and interdisciplinary sourcebook that addresses the key concepts, history, theories, models, resources, and practices in the complex and ambivalent relationship between religion and peace. The editors have included contributions from a wide range of perspectives and locations that reflect diverse methods and approaches. The Companion provides a collection grounded in experience and context that draws on established, developing, and new research characterized by academic rigor. The differences between the approaches taken by several religious traditions are fully explored and numerous case studies highlight relevant theories, models, and resources. Accessible as either a standalone collection or as a partner to the Companion to Religion and Violence, this edited volume also offers: A thorough introduction to religion and its search for peace, including the relationships between religion and peace and theories and practices for studying the interplay between religion and peace Comprehensive explorations of religion and peace in local contexts, including discussions of women's empowerment and peacebuilding in an Islamic context Practical discussions of practices and embodiments of religion and peace, including treatments of museums for peace and self-religion in global peace movements In-depth examinations of lived Christian theologies and building peace, including discussions of Martin Luther King Jr. and spiritual activism in Scotland Perfect for students and scholars of peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peace building, the Wiley Blackwell Companion to Religion and Peace will also earn a place in the libraries of anyone professionally or personally interested in the field of Peace or Religious Studies, International Relations, History, Politics, or Theology.

Sustainable peace involves more than simply including youth in official peacebuilding mechanisms or recognizing their local peacebuilding work; it requires a transformation in thinking about the youth as actors in the world of security and peace. Using case studies from around the globe, the contributors to this volume analyse why states are afraid of their young people, why 'youth participation' in formal peace processes matters but is insufficient, and ways that young people are working outside of official systems to create and nurture peace on their own terms. The volume offers guidance for ways to bridge the disconnect that exists between institutional assumptions and expectations for youth as peacebuilders and the actual sustainable peace leadership of youth. Throughout, it emphasises a critical approach to peacebuilding with, for and by youth.