Doctoral candidates from all over the world attended PRIO's PhD-level course on Gender, Peace and Conflict.

On 23-25 May, the GPS Centre, in collaboration with the NORHED II project, Partnership for Peace: Better Higher Education for Resilient Societies, and the Research School on Peace and Conflict, hosted doctoral candidates from all over the world at the PhD-level course "Gender, Peace and Conflict".

This course presented theories and approaches to the of study of the gendered dimensions of peace and conflict, with a particular focus on the gendered aspects of all the phases of conflict cycles (before, during, and after) – from conflict risk to conflict prevention and resolution. The course addressed thematic issues such as international normative frameworks on women, peace and security, sexual violence in armed conflict, DD&R processes, conflict mediation and peace agreements, international peace operations, and transitional justice. It offered participants the opportunity to engage in discussions with both scholars and Norwegian diplomats working directly with issues related to peace and conflict.

The course is organized on a semi-regular basis, and is led by Senior Researcher Jørgen Jensehaugen (PRIO), Deputy Director Torunn L. Tryggestad (PRIO), Research Director Louise Olsson (PRIO), and Research Professor Inger Skjelsbæk (PRIO). Course lecturers included Special Representative for Women, Peace, and Security Signe Gilen (Norwegian MFA), Senior Researcher Ragnhild Nordås (PRIO), Postdoctoral Fellow Anne-Kathrin Kreft (University of Oslo), Senior Researcher Wenche Hauge (PRIO), Director Henrik Urdal (PRIO), Research Professor Siri Aas Rustad (PRIO), Assistant Professor María del Pilar López-Uribe (Universidad de los Andes), and Doctoral Researcher Julie Marie Hansen (PRIO).

This course is the first in a series of courses co-funded by the Section for Peace and Reconciliation at the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the NORHED II project funding for a global network on Peace and Conflict and Human Rights research. Course attendees included doctoral candidates from four of our partner universities: African School of Economics (Benin), Birzeit University (Palestine), Makerere University (Uganda) and Universidad de los Andes (Colombia).