SLIDE DECK: Myanmar: Conflict, continuity and change, Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, February 2018
This presentation, hosted by the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame, explores the current state of peacebuilding in Myanmar as it relates to the peace process, intercommunal violence in the country’s west, and the role of Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. It draws distinctions between the appearance of change and much deeper conservative forces of military and political power that maintain the status quo. Effective peacebuilding requires more attention to these deeper forces and their interaction with more visible political and conflict dynamics.
AUDIO: Myanmar and International Peacebuilding, with Stephen Gray
In this interview by Meredith Smith, Stephen Gray talks about recent work in Myanmar and his extensive experience in the conflict resolution field, sharing stories, insights and career advise for current students and aspiring peacebuilders.
VIDEO: Innovating new forms of public participation in peace processes in the midst of war, BuildPeace 2017
This short talk presented to the BuildPeace 2017 Conference in Bogota describes the process and outcomes from implementing systemic action research in Myanmar. The presentation argues that by taking a systems view and empowering local communities in conflict settings to be the agents of change according to the priorities that they themselves define, peacebuilding efforts can be more scalable and sustainable. A recipe for effective bottom up peacebuilding and testament to often overlooked capacities of local communities to articulate and implement peacebuilding better than outsiders can.
REPORT: Peace and Conflict Chapter: Baseline Assessment for Myanmar’s Hydropower SEI, IFC
This study for the International Finance Corporation explores the effects that armed conflict has on hydropower development, and inversely, the impacts that armed conflict has on hydropower development. It is one of eight dimensions affecting hydropower development in Myanmar. More specifically, this component of the SEA seeks to understand the issues that give rise to and result from patterns of ethno-political conflict in Myanmar.
BLOG POST: Group Cohesion and Peace Processes: Implications and Strategies for Mediators, USIP
Drawing on a wide range of cases, including Burma, Colombia, Senegal, and Uganda, this Peace Brief discusses the internal cohesion of non-state armed groups, explains how weak cohesion can undermine a peace process, and offers various strategies that those supporting peace processes can deploy to mitigate such risks.
BLOG POST: Can Myanmar’s peace process learn from international experience?
The 21st Century Panglong Conference represents an important milestone in Myanmar’s long march to peace. But it is only one step in a much longer process to end to the violence that has long limited this country’s great potential…The pathway forward is outlined in a framework for political dialog that has been negotiated following 2015’s Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement.
BLOG POST: Shock announcement: scientists reveal that everything is going to be OK
In a shocking announcement, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have discovered that everything is actually going to be OK. Their report, released Tuesday, claims that people have developed an unhealthy obsession with bad news, which warps their view of reality, and leaves them prone to histrionic fits of rabid frothing. Instead of worrying about end times, the report claims, people should just kick back, skin up, and listen to Chromeo.
INFOGRAPHICS: Comparative Insights for Myanmar’s Peace Process
These infographics, created for Hope International Development Agency, compare international experience of peace processes to the situation in Myanmar and provide advice about what we can do to realize the huge benefits of peace.
ARTICLE: Myanmar’s New Government: Intentions Still Unclear
To genuinely deliver on its promises for peace and reconciliation, the new government will need to build more inclusive parliamentary and non-parliamentary processes than the country has ever seen, without allowing descent into the ‘chaotic democracy’ the army fears. The critical question is how broad the new government’s definition of reconciliation will be…
VIDEO: Animating continuity and change: hidden patterns in Myanmar and implications for aid
This animated video presents a systems mapping of Myanmar’s peace and reform process. The analysis demonstrates how invisible factors can generate unintended consequences when they interact with our own interventions, which typically are targeted at ‘problems’ that are most visible.
