Peace and Conflict Studies: Getting Started

"Finding peaceful solutions to the world's increasingly complex problems will be a huge task, which must also be based upon knowledge, experience and research. I hope that this important new Encyclopedia will reach a global lay audience as well as policy makers and academic experts andencourage many thousands of readers to study further and work harder for the peace on which our whole future depends." -From the Foreword by His Holiness the Dalai LamaThis innovative, multivolume encyclopedia charts the interdisciplinary field of Peace Studies, offering a comprehensive survey of the full range of historical, political, theoretical and philosophical issues relating to peace and conflict. All major figures are covered, as well as major events,organizations, theories, and much more. Each entry is signed by a leading scholar in the field, contains a bibliography for further reading, and is cross-referenced with other useful points of interest within the encyclopedia. In addition to A-to-Z entries, the Encyclopedia also includes a peacechronology, key documents and appendices.Key subjects covered include: world leaders (Mahatma Gandhi, Margaret Mead, Cesar Chavez, Martin Luther King, Jr., Lucretia Mott); major events (Cuban Missile Crisis, Dayton Accords, Good Friday Agreement, Lebanon Hostage Crisis); organizations (Greenpeace, League of Nations, United Nations, Savethe Children, International Committee of the Red Cross); theories (Civil Disobedience, Conscientious Objection, Feminism and Peace, Power and Nonviolence Theory, Eco-Pacifism, Gay Rights); and current events (Chemical and Biological Weapons, Human Rights, War Crimes, Terrorism).

This encyclopaedia provides a comprehensive overview of major theories and approaches to the study of peace and conflict across different humanities and social sciences disciplines. Peace and conflict studies (PCS) is one of the major sub-disciplines of international studies (including political science and international relations), and has emerged from a need to understand war, related systems and concepts and how to respond to it afterward. As a living reference work, easily discoverable and searchable, the Palgrave Encyclopedia of Peace and Conflict Studies offers solid material for understanding the foundational, historical, and contemporary themes, concepts, theories, events, organisations, and frameworks concerning peace, conflict, security, rights, institutions and development. The Palgrave Encyclopaedia of Peace and Conflict Studies brings together leading and emerging scholars from different disciplines to provide the most comprehensive and up-to-date resource on peace and conflict studies ever produced.

This Companion examines contemporary challenges in Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS) and offers practical solutions to these problems. Bringing together chapters from new and established global scholars, the volume explores and critiques the foundations of Peace and Conflict Studies in an effort to advance the discipline in light of contemporary local and global actors. The book examines the following eight specific components of Peace and Conflict Studies: Peace and conflict studies praxis Structure-agency tension as it relates to social justice, nonviolence, and relationship building Gender, masculinity, and sexuality The role of partnerships and allies in racial, ethnic, and religious peacebuilding Culture and identity Critical and emancipatory peacebuilding International conflict transformation and peacebuilding Global responses to conflict. It argues that new critical and emancipatory peacebuilding and conflict transformation strategies are needed to address the complex cultural, economic, political, and social conflicts of the 21st century. This book will be of much interest to students of peace and conflict studies, peace studies, conflict resolution, transitional justice, reconciliation studies, social justice studies, and international relations.

This major new Handbook provides a cutting-edge and transdisciplinary overview of the main issues, debates, state-of-the-art methods, and key concepts in peace and conflict studies today. The fields of peace and conflict studies have grown exponentially since being initiated by Professor Johan Galtung half a century ago. They have forged a transdisciplinary and professional identity distinct from security studies, political science, and international relations. The volume is divided into four sections: understanding and transforming conflict creating peace supporting peace peace across the disciplines. Each section features new essays by distinguished international scholars and professionals working in peace studies and conflict resolution and transformation. Drawing from a wide range of theoretical, methodological, and political positions, the editors and contributors offer topical and enduring approaches to peace and conflict studies. The Handbook of Peace and Conflict Studies will be essential reading for students of peace studies, conflict studies and conflict resolution. It will also be of interest and use to practitioners in conflict resolution and NGOs, as well as policy makers and diplomats.