WAR AND PEACE AND WAR AN PEACE STUDIES AT UNT
affect political stability in Africa, democratic political culture in Latin America, the effectiveness of international peacekeeping and mediation efforts, and territorial and international river disputes between nations. The most recent additions to the peace studies faculty are John Ishiyama and Marijke Breuning (fall 2008) and Jacqueline DeMeritt (fall 2009). Ishiyama conducts research in democratization and political parties in postCommunist politics, with emphasis on Russia, East Central Europe, and Africa; ethnic politics and conflict; and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Breuning specializes in international relations, with core research interests in comparative foreign policy analysis, as well as in development cooperation and foreign aid. Additional interests include ethnic politics, women/gender and politics, and the politics of international adoption. DeMeritt focuses on human rights issues: why low-level perpetrators participate in government “killing events,” as well as the efficacy of intervention by international actors to protect threatened and vulnerable individuals.
The Academic Program Building on the tradition of scholarly research, UNT established the Peace Studies Program in 2000, offering a certificate, a minor, and the equivalent of a major in peace studies as a concentration within the international studies major. It is the only peace studies program at a four-year educational institution in the south and southwest regions of the United States. According to the Peace Studies website, the undergraduate program “focuses on the questions of why violence occurs and how conflict may be resolved or settled under nonviolent structural mechanisms.” Approved courses for the program come from a variety of departments inside and outside the college.
U.S. Department of Education Grant Another recent accomplishment by Mason and colleagues resulted from a $164,000 U.S. Department of Education grant to fund the Program on Peace, Democracy, and Global Development. Developed in the post-9/11 context, the program “enhanced the university’s capacity to contribute to heightened public awareness of, and interest in, policy issues surrounding the establishment and preservation of peace through democratization and global development,” according to the final project report. Prime among the outcomes of this project was the addition of a six-course minor in Arabic language in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, making UNT the only public university in the DFW metroplex offering such extensive study of this globally important language.
Community Collaboration Recently, Mason and his colleagues have been exploring collaborative opportunities with Peacemakers, Inc., an organization founded in 1987 by Vivian Castleberry of Dallas. Recently retired as the longtime women’s editor of the Dallas Times Herald, Castleberry envisioned sponsoring international women’s peace conferences, supporting international exchanges, and offering community programs related to peace. Mason has been working with Peacemakers to explore synergies between UNT’s academic programs and their outreach efforts. At the first annual Peacemakers Luncheon in Dallas in September 2009, UNT Provost Wendy K. Wilkins expressed her encouragement of these collaborative efforts to establish a joint peace institute at UNT. She characterized the initiative as a perfect way to capitalize on the complementary strengths of Peacemakers, Inc. and UNT’s Peace Studies Program. As this issue of Synergies goes to press, the plan is awaiting final administrative approval.
Study Abroad in The Hague One excellent example of the intersection between the Peace Studies academic program and research initiatives is the award-winning International Law, Peace, and Justice study abroad program in The Hague, organized by political scientists James Meernik and Kimi King. Students on this summer program spend three weeks observing the International Criminal Tribunal, established by the U.N. Security Council to try people accused of war crimes in the former Yugoslavia. In 2007 the program was recognized for the unique opportunities it provides students: it received the Rowman and Littlefield Award for Innovative Teaching in Political Science from the American Political Science Association. G
For more about the Peace Studies Program, go to www.peace.unt.edu/ Information about Peacemakers, Inc. is at www.peacemakersincorporated.org/ The fall 2009 “Synergies” featured an op-ed piece about the Afghanistan War by UNT peace studies scholars Andrew Enterline and Joseph Magagnoli at www.cas. unt.edu/synergies/fall2009/afghanwar_oped.html. Also read “No Good Choices,” about the Afghanistan War, by Enterline and Michael Greig, in “Foreign Policy”: www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2009/11/11/no_good_choices
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