IPRA NEWS UPDATES: JUNE 2021
Overview
2021 has been a year of fresh starts for the IPRA Governing Council—highest decision-making body between IPRA’s conference-based Assemblies and Membership meetings. Its representative body of scholars from every region of the world, with gender neutrality and an aim for broadening inclusivity, has met the challenge of the world pandemic with a commitment to never return to the “old normals” of oppression and war. |
New projects, program areas, and deepening commitments to our existing work have been a hallmark of the year thus far. Get involved to learn more and influence the new directions of the world’s most interdisciplinary, future-facing, scientific organization.
As IPRA looks forward at the second half of 2021, we are excited also to announce that we were just selected by the Community Solutions Program of IREX, a nonprofit educational and development organization recommended by colleagues at the IPRA Foundation, to serve as host to two mid-career Fellows who will work to build IPRA as they work to expand their own career horizons. The Council has prioritised supporting IPRA Commissions, who engage in the most grassroots and daily aspects of the quest for effective peace research. Thus, in this issue of the Newsletter and subsequent ones, we will be spotlighting the work of IPRA’s Commissions so that getting involved and helping IPRA grow becomes easier and more harmonious.
- The next General Conference and Assembly in 2023 will be held in Trinidad and Tobago. With input and support from both the Latin American Peace Research Association (CLAIP) and North America’s Peace and justice Studies Association (PJSA), a conference planning committee has already begun meeting—with discussions of conference themes, mass open festivities, youth and student focused activities and much more. The preliminary Logo has been designed and shared. Contact us if you’d like to get involved in this historic international gathering.
- The Communications/Publications committee of IPRA has been refreshed, with Roy Tamashiro as chief editor of the IPRA Newsletter, Cris Toffolo and two new members, Janine Joyce and Maria Subert joining the Editorial Team hence adding energy and expertise. Other sub-committees are at work to fully integrate IPRA, its regional associations with the Journal of Resistance Studies, IPRA’s other main professional journal at the cutting edge of new perspectives on scholarship and movement-building. In addition, the 2020-initiated community website IPRA Peace Search, a part of the Waging Nonviolence peace news service, continues to go strong, alongside our foundational https://iprapeace.org, the latter being the formal and official site. The new IPRA YouTube channel is another part of our growing communications network, as is the IPRA LinkedIn group page.
- IPRA’s dynamic Executive Committee comprises diversity with representation from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and USA. Best wishes to the newly-(re)elected Marcela Agudelo (Colombia), Stephen Amoah (Ghana), Wim Laven (USA), Sri Nuryanti (Indonesia) and Nils Vidar Vambheim (Norway), who join SGs Matt Meyer and Christine Atieno in service of day-to-day oversight of work.