PRIO Events

Both Russia and Ukraine appear set for continuing with war even if the prospects for a full military victory seem increasingly unlikely. In this seminar, experts on the topic examined what would be required for a credible peace process to gain traction.

Speakers:

• Tetiana Kyselova, Professor and Senior Fellow at Swisspeace
• Pavel Baev, Research Professor, PRIO
• Laurie Nathan, Professor of the Practice of Mediation, Kroc Institute
• Kristian Berg Harpviken, Research Professor, PRIO

The conversation will be moderated by Pinar Tank, Senior Researcher at PRIO.

This seminar was part of Oslo Peace Days 2023.

For more information about the event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9094.

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On 11 December PRIO had the pleasure of hosting Dr Gillian Howell from the University of Melbourne, Australia. Dr Howell is a musician and researcher whose work investigates the social contributions of music-making in contexts affected by war, displacement, and colonial violence. She engaged in conversation with Chiara Ayad, Member of Masahat, to explore the ways that creative arts can bring voices into dialogue in the aftermath of conflict and how can this support peace, justice, self-determination and intergenerational healing. The conversation was moderated by Cindy Horst, Research Professor at PRIO.

2 minutes of Dr Gillian Howell's presentation was not recorded due to technical difficulties. Gillian began her presentation with an Acknowledgment of Country. This cultural protocol acknowledged that her work takes place on lands traditionally owned by the Wurundjeri people in what is today known as Melbourne, and on Bunuba country in far north-west Australia. She paid her respects to the Elders of these communities and acknowledged their ongoing care for and custodianship of the lands and waterways. She extended this respect to the traditional owners of the lands on which PRIO is located. In Australia, an Acknowledgment of Country is given at the start of a formal meeting or presentation, to show awareness of the traditional ownership of lands, and respect for the First Peoples of a particular location and their Elders.

For more information about the event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9100.

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On 8 December PRIO hosted a panel discussion on the fourth edition of the Women, Peace and Security Index (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and PRIO). The latest edition of the index features new country rankings, deep-dive analysis into political violence targeting women, a spotlight on conflict trends in 2022 and sub-national data for Colombia and Ethiopia. (First few minutes of the seminar was not recorded).

Speakers:

• Elena Ortiz, Research Manager for the Women, Peace and Security Index, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and Lead Author of the Women, Peace and Security Index
• Siri Aas Rustad, Research Director and Project Leader, PRIO
• Signe Gilen, Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security, Ministry for Foreign Affairs
• Kjersti Fløgstad, Director, Nobel Peace Centre

Torunn L. Tryggestad, Deputy Director of PRIO, and Director of PRIO’s Gender, Peace and Security Centre, moderated the discussion.

This event was part of the Oslo Peace Days 2023.

For more information about the event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9095

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On November 21, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing refugees' journeys within their countries of origin and to neighboring countries. As part of the CONMIG project on conflict induced migration, PRIO researchers shared insights from a survey conducted with South Sudanese refugees living in settlements in Northern Uganda. 

Speakers:

• Andreas Forø Tollefsen, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo and University of Oslo
• Cathrine Talleraas, Senior Researcher, Chr. Michelsen Institute and Peace Research Institute Oslo
• Marianne Friisberg Larssen, Research Assistant, Peace Research Institute Oslo
• Sarah Khasalamwa-Mwandha, Associate Professor, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
• Emmanuel Viga, PhD Candidate, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)
• Tale Hungnes, International Director Caritas
• Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo

The panel is monitored by Research Professor Marta Bivand Erdal.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9075

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On November 10, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing how global urban middle classes are growing in the shadow of crises and inequality. Speakers were drawing on examples from cities in Africa and Asia to discuss how these emerging realities challenge current notions of 'development'.

Speakers:

• Markus Roos Breines, Fafo. Author of Becoming Middle Class: Young People's Migration between Urban Centers in Ethiopia
• Arve Hansen, University of Oslo and PRIO. Author of Consumption and Vietnam's New Middle Classes: Societal Transformations and Everyday Life.
• Anu Abraham, PRIO
• Karen Liao, PRIO

PRIO Director Henrik Urdal opened the event and PRIO Researcher Marta Bivand Erdal moderated the conversation.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9076.

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On October 26, PRIO hosted a public seminar to discuss how history shows that technology can change the global balance of power. In the context of growing US and China tensions, Jared Cohen discuss together with experts whether we are seeing the rise of geopolitical swing states and a new era of multi-alignment.

Speakers:

• Jared Cohen, Co-Head of the Office of Applied Innovation and President of Global Affairs at Goldman Sachs and former CEO of Jigsaw (formerly Google Ideas)
• Greg Reichberg, PRIO Research Professor
• Katarzyna Zysk, Professor of International Relations and Contemporary History at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies
• Silvija Seres, Mathematician and Technology Investor

PRIO Director Henrik Urdal moderated the conversation.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9078

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On October 26, PRIO hosted a public seminar in which researchers with complementary expertise were brought together to discuss different perspectives on global AI governance. These include an analysis of the Chinese and EU approaches to AI governance, as well as of the challenges of regulating military AI. This seminar was part of the PRIO AI days 2023.

Speakers:

• Ilaria Carrozza, Senior Researcher, PRIO
• Bruno Oliveira Martins, Senior Researcher, PRIO
• Nicholas Marsh, Senior Researcher, PRIO

Giacomo Bruni, Doctoral Researcher, PRIO, moderated the conversation.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9081

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On Oct 26, PRIO hosted a public seminar on the ethical and legal reflection on AI technologies' increasing integration into warfare. What restrictions or prohibitions should be put in place so that harmful weapon technologies are not fielded? What steps can be taken to ensure an ethical culture within organizations that develop and use new AI-based weapon technologies?

Speakers:

• Greg Reichberg, PRIO Research Professor
• Samar Abbas Nawaz, PRIO Doctoral Researcher
• Cecilie Hellestveit, Fellow, Norwegian Academy of International Law

Henrik Syse, PRIO Research Professor, moderated the conversation.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9079.

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On October 25, PRIO hosted a public seminar to discuss the opportunities and challenges brought about by language-learning models that are used for conflict early-warning systems. The panel reviewed state-of-the-art methods to extract information on political events from large text corpora, such as vast collections of news sources or parliamentary debates, using various artificial intelligence technologies designed to analyze text data.

Speakers:

• Simon Polichinel von der Maase, PRIO Senior Researcher
• Haakon Gjerløw, PRIO Senior Researcher
• Mihai Croicu, Doctoral Researcher
• Sonja Häffner, Research Associate, Center for Crisis Early Warning, University of the Bundeswehr Munich

PRIO Research Professor Håvard Hegre moderated the discussion.

For more information about this event, please visit https://www.prio.org/events/9080.

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On October 6, PRIO hosted a seminar bringing together expert voices from Iraq and Palestine to explore the multifaceted dimensions of collective memory, creating historical narratives and the shaping of political struggles.

• Aida Al-Kaisy
• Nadim Khoury

PRIO Researcher Jørgen Jensehaugen moderated the discussion.

For more information visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9067

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On September 7, PRIO hosted a seminar with an aim illuminate the trajectory of Lebanon's future by convening voices that offer profound insights into the journey towards sustainable change. With a specific focus on grassroots initiatives, civil society engagement, and emerging political dynamics, the seminar aspired to delve into strategies that can reshape Lebanon's governance, foster active citizen involvement, and envision a future founded on social justice. 

Speakers

• Ibrahim Mneimneh, elected Member of Lebanese Parliament and a Leader of the Majmou'at 'amal (Collective Action) movement, whose election in 2022 marked a departure from traditional sectarian politics.
• Mohamad Farida, a Lebanese Economist, who will discuss the needed economic reforms.
• Dima El-Ayache, Activist with the Mada Network, a youth-driven initiative uniting secular clubs across Lebanese universities.

PRIO Research Associate Khaled Zaza moderated the discussion.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9065

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On August 28, PRIO hosted a seminar exploring the experiences of Mexico and Norway in the UN Security Council, while also considering the historical legacies of the countries. The discussion focused on the ability of small states to influence the UN Security Council and identify challenges and opportunities Mexico and Norway faced when advancing various initiatives.

Speakers

• Amb. Mona Juul, former Permanent Representative of Norway to the UN
• Amb. Ulises Canchola, Ambassador of Mexico to Norway
• Louise Olsson, PRIO Research Director
• Cedric de Coning, NUPI Research Professor

The seminar was chaired by PRIO Deputy Director and Director of the PRIO Centre on Gender, Peace and Security, Torunn L. Tryggestad.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9064

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On June 15, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing the potentials and challenges of using visual storytelling in academic research. ​How can human lives be explored through comics, animations and paintings of research? How can visual storytelling be used as a fieldwork method, or as a tool of knowledge production? How do researchers best partner with artists and research participants to share knowledge?

Speakers

• Cindy Horst, Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Maja Janmyr, Professor of International Migration Law, University of Oslo
• Omar Khouri, Interdisciplinary Artist and co-founder of Samandal Comics
• Diala Brusly, Visual artist

The seminar was chaired by Jacob Høigilt, Professor of Middle East Studies at the University of Oslo. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9047

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On June 13, PRIO hosted a seminar on the newly released 2022 global conflict data from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program. The seminar looked at the rise in battle-related deaths, the impact of non-state group involvement in foreign conflicts, and how recent events are changing the conflict landscape.

Speakers

• Shawn Davies, Senior Analyst at the Uppsala Conflict Data Programme. Shawn will present the 2022 conflict data. 
• Håvard Strand, Senior Researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). Håvard will look at the changing conflict trends. 
• Lovise Aalen, Research Professor, Chr. Michelsen Institute. Lovise will talk about the conflict in Ethiopia. 

The seminar was chaired by PRIO Research Professor Siri Was Rustad.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9054

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On June 12, PRIO invited professor Shin-wha Lee, Ambassador for International Cooperation on North Korean Human Rights, to discuss the interconnectedness between North Korean human rights and global/regional security concerns, emphasizing how mainstreaming human rights can serve as a foundation for achieving peace. 

Speakers

• Shin-wha Lee, Ambassador for International Cooperation on North Korean Human Rights, Republic of Korea and Professor, Department of Political Science and International Relations
• Stein Tønnesson, Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Ed Brown, Secretary General, Stefanus Alliance International

The seminar was chaired by PRIO Senior Researcher Ilaria Carrozza and PRIO Director Henrik Urdal welcomed.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9056

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On June 8, PRIO hosted a seminar with Professor Isin from the Queen Mary University of London, who outlined the development of planetary movements in the 21st century and the possibilities of planetary citizenship. 

Speakers

• Engin Isin, Professor Emeritus in International Politics, School of Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University of London
• Cindy Horst, Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) and Co-Director of the PRIO Centre on Culture and Violence
• David Jordhus-Lier, Professor, Department of Sociology and Social Geography, University of Oslo

The seminar was chaired by PRIO Research Professor Simon Reid-Henry.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9048

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On May 22, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing why militaries believe that they are the right institutions to govern a country, what symbols and arguments they use and how democratic forces navigate in this political landscape.

Speakers

• Amara Thiha, Doctoral Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Titipol Phakdeewanich, Dean at the Department of Political Science, Ubon Ratchathani University (Thailand).

The seminar was chaired by PRIO Senior Researcher Marte Nilsen.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9045

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On April 20, PRIO hosted a seminar examining the consequences of China's engagement in the ongoing conflicts and fragile geopolitical balance in the Middle East.

Speakers

• Guy Burton, Adjunct Professor, Brussels School of Governance
• Jonathan Fulton, Assistant Professor, Zayed University

The seminar was chaired by PRIO Senior Researcher Ilaria Carrozza, and PRIO Senior Researcher Júlia Palik offered comments.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9039

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On April 18, PRIO hosted a seminar with three experts that examined the ways through which inclusive peace processes can be developed, maintained, and implemented.

Speakers

• Dag Nylander, Director, Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution (NOREF)
• Wenche Iren Hauge, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Júlia Palik, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)

PRIO's Deputy Director, Torunn Tryggestad will moderate the discussion and give opening remarks.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9036 

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On March 30, PRIO hosted a seminar taking stock of the global food insecurity situation and discussed how it relates to climate change and armed conflict, also in light of the war in Ukraine. 

Speakers

• Máximo Torero, Chief Economist, Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)
  
  
• Rein Paulsen, Head of Office for Emergency and Resilience, Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)
  
  
• Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister of International Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  
  
• Siri Eriksen, Professor, Norwegian University of Life Sciences and Noragric
  
  
• Ida Rudolfsen, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
  
  
• Halvard Buhaug, Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) led the seminar
  
  
• Henrik Urdal, Director of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) welcomed and introduced the speakers.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9033 

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On March 13, PRIO invited Ahmed Tobasi, the Director of The Freedom Theatre in Jenin, Palestine, and PRIO Researcher Sara Christophersen to sit down and share their experiences and discuss the role of art as activism, cultural resistance, assertions of identity, and ongoing shifts in Palestinian narratives. 

The conversation was hosted by PRIO's Middle East Centre and PRIO's Centre on Culture and Violent Conflict. 

The director of PRIO's Middle East Centre, Kristian Berg Harpviken, moderated the conversation and offered opening remarks. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9025 

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On March 8, PRIO invited UN Special Adviser on Solutions to Displacement, Robert Piper, to join a discussion on internal displacement and the gendered impacts of displacement. 

What do data and research have to say about what causes displacement and how? How do various causes of internal displacement affect men and women differently, in the short and long term? What are the short and longer-term consequences of displacement? And what are the gendered impacts of displacement?

Speakers

• Introduction by Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Research Director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
  
  
• Robert Piper, UN Special Adviser on Solutions to internal displacement, presented "Solutions to situations of internal displacement - a gender perspective"
  
  
• Marta Bivand Erdal, Research Professor in Migration Studies at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), presented "Can protracted displacement end?"
  
  
• Halvard Buhaug, Research Director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), presented "We tried to predict flood displacements and failed. This is why"
  
  
• Gunn Jorid Roset, Multilateral Department, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  
  
• Laila Matar, Advocacy and Media Director, Norwegian Refugee Council
  
  

The event was chaired by Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Research Director at PRIO. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9032 

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On February 28, a year after Russia invaded Ukraine, PRIO invited four PRIO researchers to discuss the international implications of the war so far and prospects for the future. The discussion gave special focus to the implications of the conflict for Europe, the Middle East, and the Sahel. 

Speakers

• Pavel Baev, PRIO Research Professor
  
  
• Nicholas Marsh, PRIO Senior Researcher
  
  
• Marie Sandnes, PRIO Doctoral Researcher
  
  
• Pinar Tank, PRIO Senior Researcher
  
  

The discussion was moderated by PRIO Director Henrik Urdal. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9018 

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On February 16, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing terrorism, mental health, and security. 

Recent acts of terrorism in Norway - the 22 July attack, the 2019 Bærum mosque attack, the 2021 Kongberg killings and the 2022 Oslo Pride Parade attacks - illustrate a phenomenon observed in other countries:  that perpetrators and would-be perpetrators of terrorist attacks often suffer from mental illness.

Mental health issues may affect the motivation for an attack and how the attack was planned and executed, in addition to issues of criminal competence and sanity. In response, police and intelligence services increasingly involve health authorities and access health data to prevent and counter violent extremism.

Drawing on ongoing research in Norway and the United Kingdom, this seminar reflected on the political, ethical, and legal dimensions of such efforts, and what the shift in mental health thinking means for security research.

Speakers

• Charlotte Heath-Kelly, Professor in Counterterrorism and Public Policy, University of Warwick
  Charlotte was the keynote speaker addressing the topic of multiagency counterterrorism in Norway and the UK, focusing on intelligence agencies in the care and welfare space.
  
  
• Kristin Bergtora Sandvik, Research Professor, University of Oslo and Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
  Kristin reflected on the legal accountability concerning the 22 July, Kongsberg, and Pride terror attacks.
  
  
• Rita Augestad Knudsen, Senior Research Fellow, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
  Rita addressed the topic of mental health and terrorism, focusing on emerging research and new policy dilemmas.
  
  
• Kristoffer Lidén, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
  Kristoffer chaired the event. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9019 

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On February 15, PRIO hosted a conversation about the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). 

For the past 70 years, UNRWA has provided humanitarian support to Palestinian refugees (currently numbering 5.9 million), as they wait for a political solution. After decades of conflict, such a solution has failed to materialize and UNRWA continues to need to exist. Despite this, it has struggled with persistent underfunding even though humanitarian needs are immense.

In the wake of multiple regional crises, the situation for Palestinian refugees is becoming increasingly precarious, while at the same time, there has been an increasingly politicized debate concerning UNRWA funding in a number of donor countries.

Speakers

• Leni Stenseth, Deputy Commissioner General for UNRWA
• Jørgen Jensehaugen, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Kjersti Berg, Associated Researcher, Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI)

The seminar was moderated by Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Research Director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9017

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On January 19, PRIO hosted a discussion based on Marek Thee's autobiography. ​Marek Thee (1918-99) was a fighter with a typewriter. He lived a dramatic life amidst some of the 20th century's most tragic conflicts.

​In his just-published autobiography, written in the 1990s, we meet him as a young leftist student in the Free City of Danzig (Gdańsk) before the Nazi takeover; an advocate of the Jewish Zionist cause in Palestine during and after the Second World War; a diplomat, foreign service official, and scholar in the post-war Polish Republic; a Polish representative on the Commission for Supervision and Control of the Geneva agreements on Indochina and Laos; a foreign affairs analyst specializing on Asian affairs in Warsaw of the 1960s; and eventually, for the last 30 years of his life, as a peace researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) and the Norwegian Human Rights Institute, once again in exile from his native Poland.

Speakers

• Halina Thee, Marek Thee's daughter and a certified translator
• Mats Tangestuen, Historian and Academic Director, Oslo Jewish Museum
• Stein Tønnesson, former student and colleague of Marek Thee and expert on the Indochina Wars

The panel was chaired by Marta Bivand Erdal, Research Professor at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/9005  

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On December 1, PRIO hosted a session where we provided an overview of the humanitarian borders of Europe, from what the concept entails to how politics and practices of reception are negotiated and reshaped by different actors interacting. 

Topics and speakers

• 'Introduction: Humanitarian borders – pertinence and key issues' by Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, PRIO
  
  
• 'Researchers’ & practitioners’ insights into different humanitarian borders in Europe: Camps in Greece' by Heidi Mogstad, Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI)
  
  
• 'Detentions in the UK' by Maisie Fitzmaurice, PRIO
  
  
• 'Poland’s Eastern borders' by Anna Ratecka, Jagiellonian University
  
  
• 'Search and rescue in the Mediterranean' by Trygve Thorson, MSF Norway
  
  
• 'EU research into new border technologies' by Lise Endregard Hemat, PRIO
  
  
• Comments & insights from respective research' by Polly Pallister-Wilkins, University of Amsterdam and Elisa Pascucci, University of Helsinki

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8981  

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On November 25, PRIO hosted a seminar gathering some of the key stakeholders of the Norwegian drone landscape to discuss the state of the drone industry in Norway, the regulatory efforts to integrate drones in the airspace, and the security and safety issues that persist today. 

Over the last weeks, numerous incidents involving drones have made headlines in Norway. These incidents include multiple drone sightings outside oil platforms and energy installations, drone incursions in the vicinity of airports leading to the temporary closure of some of them, and Russian citizens being arrested at Norwegian border crossing sites and airports in possession of drones and drone-collected data on their way back to Russia. These incidents have brought the presence of drones in civilian airspace to the covers of newspapers in the country.

Speakers

• Jacob Bjelland, State Secretary, Ministry of Transport
• Mats Gjertsen Avinor
• Anders Martinsen, UAS Norway
• Eivind Raknes, Civil Aviation Authority Norway
• Christian Brunsvig, Norwegian Defense Research Establishment (FFI)
• Introduction by Torunn Tryggestad, Deputy Director, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).

The event was chaired by Bruno Oliveira Martins, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8982 

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On November 24 and 25, PRIO hosted an international conference that gathered international experts from around the world as well as key stakeholders in the Norwegian landscape. 

​Over the last few years, the use of drones in civilian airspace has increased dramatically, opening up some opportunities and leading to a wide range of new security challenges, as illustrated by the numerous incidents observed in Norway in recent weeks. In response to this proliferation, significant international, regional, and national efforts have been undertaken to develop regulations to integrate drones safely into civilian airspace.

What security problems arise from drone proliferation in the airspace, and how will this problem-set change as automation and artificial intelligence become more widespread?

What are the frames, scope, and boundaries of the discourse regarding the promises and risks of civil-drone integration?

How can Norwegian and EU authorities adapt regulatory frameworks to integrate drones into civilian airspace while maintaining high safety, security, and privacy standards?

For the full programme and more information about the event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8990  

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Liv Kjølseth i samtale med forfatter Åsne Seierstad om hennes nye bok Afghanerne.

Da Kabul falt og Taliban overtok makten i Afghanistan i august 2021, fikk Jamila plass på det første flyet til Norge. Samtidig inntok krigsherren Bashir hjembyen hennes. En kvinnelig student, med ett semester igjen på universitetet, ble sendt hjem. Der får hun beskjed om å gifte seg med en ukjent mann.

I denne boka reiser Åsne Seierstad tilbake til Afghanistan, tjue år etter at hun skrev Bokhandleren i Kabul. Hun forteller historiene til dem som flyktet fra Taliban og dem som ble igjen. Det er historien om hvordan en jente som selv ble nektet utdanning bruker islam for å kjempe for kvinners rettigheter. Om en ung gutt som rømmer hjemmefra for å bli talibaner og kjempe i hellig krig. Og en jente som blir født når vestlige styrker inntar landet, og som tror at hun etter jusstudiene skal få jobbe og være en del av samfunnet.

Afghanerne er et nært portrett av tre mennesker som går hver sin vei og et land i krig.

For mer informasjon om dette arrangementet: https://www.prio.org/events/8986  

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On November 17, PRIO hosted a panel that took us back to the early autumn of 2021 and examined how the international donor community responded to the Taliban takeover. Humanitarian assistance was rapidly scaled up to prevent the worst-case scenarios.

The panel also looked at the experiences of national and international NGOs who continued working in the rural communities, supporting basic services in health, education, and food security at a time when the international funding of the public sector in Afghanistan was cut off. How has the aid architecture developed over this last year? What opportunities, hurdles, and gaps can be identified in moving from a humanitarian response to sustainable development?

Speakers

• Zarqa Yaftali
• Roxanne Sharpour
• Liv Kjølseth
• Arne Strand

The event was chaired by Karim Merchant. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8987 

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On November 16, PRIO hosted a panel that discussed this statement from The Norwegian Godal Committee from 2017: "The support the Intelligence Service provided to the Special Forces through the National Intelligence Support Team (NIST) was the most comprehensive and resource-intensive part of the service’s involvement in Afghanistan". The data feed into the targeted killings that were an integral part of the Western military operations.

Frank Bakke Jensen stated that Norway is not responsible for whether data collected by us is used for the killing of civilians. But several critics have contested this, arguing that some of the intelligence proved weak and that Norway has a legal responsibility under the Geneva Convention for how its intelligence was used for.

What lessons can we draw from this experience and apply to future intelligence operations? To what extent can we be sure that Norwegian armed forces and Western forces, in general, operate based on correct information in other conflict situations today?

Speakers

• Cecilie Hellestvedt
• Frode Kristoffersen
• Kjetil Hatlebrekke
• Kristian Berg Harpviken

The event was chaired by Laila Bokhari. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8993 

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On November 15, PRIO hosted a seminar on Afghanistan and its neighbouring countries as part of Afghanistan Week 2022. ​

The Taliban have now controlled Afghanistan for over a year, and the relationships between the new rulers and its neighbours are taking shape.​ The level of continuity in the relations between Afghanistan and its neighbours has been striking, as seen in the mounting tensions between the Taliban and its long-time supporter, Pakistan. Furthermore, global shifts – including Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine and China’s steady rise – impacts both Afghanistan and the dynamics within its surrounding regions.

How did the tense neighbourly relations play into the 2021 endgame and the Taliban’s military victory? How do Afghanistan’s neighbours relate to Afghanistan’s new rulers? Can distant powers contribute to aiding Afghans by working with the country’s neighbours?

Speakers

• Ilaria Carrozza, Senior Researcher, PRIO
  
  
• Kristian Berg Harpviken, Research Professor and Director of the Middle East Centre, PRIO
  
  
• Andrew Watkins, Senior Expert on Afghanistan, U.S. Institute of Peace
  
  
• Masood Karokhail

The event was chaired by Arne Strand. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8983 

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On November 11, PRIO hosted a seminar on the development impacts of migration in Asia, and how we can make sense of them, with professor Jonathan Rigg from the University of Bristol.

Jonathan explored why migration 'optimists' and 'pessimists' find such rich empirical pickings in the mobility landscape of Asia. Drawing on work across rural areas of Southeast Asia (Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam) and South Asia (Sri Lanka and Nepal), he sought to shed light on the mixed developmental origins, effects, and impacts of migration on people, communities, and environments.

The seminar highlighted the simple but important point that migration is a process with no natural propensity for enabling and generating good or bad change; context is everything.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8972  

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On November 10, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing the contours of the present crisis in Lebanon, prospects for renewal, and how PRIO's dialogue forum fits into this landscape. Over the last year, PRIO's Middle East Centre has initiated a dialogue forum in Lebanon that has brought together a diverse range of actors from across the national spectrum. These participants, reflecting these new political formations, have engaged in panel discussions around key topics essential to creating a renewed vision for Lebanon.

The seminar will ask the following questions:
What are the contours of this crisis and what does this post-election landscape look like for Lebanese civil society?
How significant has this period been for a better future for Lebanon?
And finally, how can dialogue forums impact processes of renewal?

Speakers

• Maja Janmyr, Professor in International Migration Law, University of Oslo
• Gregory M. Reichberg, Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). Reichberg moderated this seminar.
• Kjetil Selvik, Research Professor, NUPI
• Khaled Zaza, Research Associate in PRIO's Middle East Centre

Opening remarks from Kristian Berg Harpviken, Research Professor and Director of the PRIO Middle East Centre. 

The seminar is part of the series MidEast Breakfast organized by PRIO's Middle East Centre.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8977 

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On September 22, PRIO hosted a seminar discussing how the environmental and climate crises intersect with social inequality in the Middle East and North Africa, and how we root environmental and climate debates within the region in social justice ad equity concerns. 

Speaker

• Sarine Karajerjian, Program Director of the Environmental Politics program at the Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)

Commentator

• Aïda Delpuech, Independent Journalist based in Tunis. 
  
  

The event was moderated by Pinar Tank, Senior Researcher at PRIO. 

The seminar was part of the series MidEast Breakfast organized by PRIO's Middle East Centre.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8968 

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On September 15, PRIO hosted a talk by Sean Sherman, "the Sioux Chief", followed by a discussion about how food can be a catalyst for change.

Sherman is an award-winning American chef, author, and foundation co-founder, who is committed to revitalizing Native American cuisine and in the process re-identifying North American cuisine and reclaiming an important culinary culture long buried and often inaccessible. Sherman presented his work, after which he engaged in a conversation with animator, painter, illustrator, conceptual artist, and muralist Diala Brisly.

The conversation was moderated by Cindy Horst, Research Professor at PRIO and Co-Director of PRIO's Centre on Culture and Violent Conflict. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8964 

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On June 16, PRIO hosted a public seminar to launch new research and discuss the implications of global food insecurity in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This seminar was held in Norwegian. 

Speakers

• Ida Rudolfsen, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Nicholas Marsh, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Roman Vakulchuk, Senior Research Fellow, The Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI)
• Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister of International Development
• Ingvild Langhus, Senior Advisor, Norad's Section for Food

Introduction by PRIO Director Henrik Urdal. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8951 

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On June 16, PRIO hosted a seminar on the strategic implications of global competition over dual-use technology. The seminar discussed topics including global technological competition; AI developments in the US, China, and Russia; the convergence of AI and life sciences; and the security implications of next-generation biotech. 

Speakers 

• Margarita Konaev, Deputy Director of Analysis and Research Fellow at Georgetown's Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET)
• Filippa Lentzos, Senior Lecturer in Science & International Security, King's College London

Comments by Nicholas Marsh, Senior Researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), and Greg Reichberg, Research Professor at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). 

The event was moderated by Ilaria Carrozza, Senior Researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8947  

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On June 7, PRIO hosted a seminar on how Lebanon seems to always be at a crossroads. Two overlapping crises have made the preset moment unlike any other in Lebanon's recent history.

In this seminar, Bassel F. Salloukh from the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies will share his analysis. Rania Maktabi, Associate Professor at Østfold University College, will offer comments, and Kristian Berg Harpviken, Research Professor and Director of the PRIO Middle East Centre will offer opening remarks.  

The seminar is part of the series MidEast Breakfast organized by PRIO's Middle East Centre.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8937

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On June 2, PRIO invited a panel of speakers to discuss local and EU responses to migrants seeking refuge in Greece. Has the EU, however, stepped up its reaction to the overall needs of people seeking international protection, often stuck in limbo in different areas along the external borders, whether in Greece, Italy, or Northern France? How are these responses (or non-responses) seen from the local perspective in Greece seven years after the start of the increased arrivals in 2015? Furthermore, against the background of people fleeing the war in Ukraine, and ongoing discussions about how different categories of migrants are received at EU borders, what can we learn from ongoing rapid responses and mobilization, and what are the lessons that can be learned from the Greek experience?

Speakers

• Welcome and introduction by Marta Bivand Erdal, Research Professor, Migration Studies at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Presentation by Manos Logothetis, Secretary General of Reception and Asylum, Greece
• Presentation by Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Senior Researcher and Research Director, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)

Panel discussion with Manos Logothetis, Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Trude Jacobsen, Secretary General, Dråpen i Havet, and Anna Ratecka, Research Fellow and Doctoral Candidate, Institute of Sociology, Jagiellonian University of Krakow.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8944 

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On May 20,  PRIO hosted a seminar on how education can enable refugees and communities to build durable futures when there is great uncertainty about where these futures will be. Recognizing the protracted nature of refugee situations, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) prioritizes the integration of refugees into the national education systems of host countries. How does this strategy work in practice for refugee children, when education systems focus on creating national citizens of the future? What aspirations do pupils, their communities, teachers, national authorities and donors have for refugee education? Drawing on findings from the REBuilD project, this conference explored these questions with the aim to reimagine what education can offer refugees and nation-states. 

Speakers

• Cindy Horst, Research Professor, PRIO
• Hassan Aden, Doctoral Candidate/ Doctoral Researcher, University of Gothenburg / PRIO
• Abdirahman Edle (Ali), Doctoral Candidate, Institute for Development Studies (IDS), Nairobi and University of Copenhagen
• Anne Marie Eiby, Teacher, Kuben Secondary School in Oslo
• Ronit Cohen, Senior Education Advisor, Save the Children
• Marte Nilsen, Senior Researcher, PRIO

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8935 

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On May 12, PRIO hosted a panel discussing measures to prevent human trafficking in the context of the war in Ukraine, between volunteers' crucial assistance and governments' measures to control and gain oversight. The discussion focused on raising awareness around the power dynamics at play between the refugees, citizen-led volunteer networks and organizations, and governments' tools both for facilitating these forms of assistance and for preventing human trafficking, against the background of ongoing reception efforts of people fleeing Ukraine. 

Speakers

• Edi Mujaj, Senior Adviser, Task Force Against Trafficking in Human Beings (TF-THB), Council of the Baltic Sea States Secretariat
• Guri Tyldum, Researcher at FAFO
• Jan Austad, Norwegian Ministry of Justice
• Despina F. Johansen, Director of Operations, Dråpen i Havet
• Fatou Diallo Ndiaye, Chief of Mission, IOM Norway

The panel was chaired by Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert, Research Director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8941 

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On May 6, PRIO hosted an open lecture with the leader of democratic Belarus Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya who spoke on how the war in Ukraine is affecting the situation in Belarus, and how the pro-democracy movement in the country reacts to the war. What are the possible implications for the Lukashenko regime and for the pro-democracy forces in Belarus?

The lecture was followed by a comment by PRIO Research Professor Pavel Beav on the impact of the developments in Belarus in the anti-war sentiments and activities in Russia. 

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8939 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On April 26, PRIO hosted a discussion reflecting on the questions of what explains the rise in Islamist rebel groups, and how Islamist insurgencies develop. In this discussion, we critically engaged with the account that incomplete modernization prepares the ground for Islamist groups, looked at its applicability to other cases, and examined its possible implications for policy-makers and practitioners. 

Speakers

• Mikael Hiberg Naghizadeh, Doctoral Researcher, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford
• Stig Jarle Hansen, Professor, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU)
• Marianne Dahl, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)

Opening remarks from Kristian Berg Harpviken, Research Professor and Director of the PRIO Middle East Centre. 

The seminar is part of the series MidEast Breakfast organized by PRIO's Middle East Centre.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8933 

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On April 19, PRIO hosted on how the worldwide energy crisis, triggered by the war in Ukraine, has major repercussions in the Middle East. The energy shock poses challenges to those wealthy countries that are pursuing a shift away from their dependence on oil and gas resources, as well as to those struggling economies that rely on energy imports. For the region's energy exporters, the crisis - at least temporarily - brings large economic gains and political leverage. 

Speakers

• Pavel Baev, Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
• Harry Tzimitras, Research Professor and Director of the PRIO Cyprus Centre
• Mathilde Becker Aarseth, Post-Doctoral Researcher, Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages, University of Oslo

Opening remarks from Kristian Berg Harpviken, Research Professor and Director of the PRIO Middle East Centre. 

The seminar is part of the series MidEast Breakfast organized by PRIO's Middle East Center.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8932 

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On March 8, PRIO hosted a panel discussion with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi on how the international community can work together to protect and assist refugees and to find durable solutions to increasingly complex displacement situations. The panelists also discussed the space and place for refugee participation in shaping these processes and outcomes.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.prio.org/events/8921 

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