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A Framework for Rebuilding Communities in Sri Lanka From 1983 to 2009, the Indian Ocean island of Sri Lanka experienced a bloody and brutal civil war between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Experts claim that over 70,000 lives were lost, with hundreds of thousands more displaced during the three-decades of war. This war was termed the ‘No Mercy War’ by the International Committee for the Red Cross. Its impact is painfully evident in the affected communities, with the most tragic effects being the untold numbers of Sri Lankans who have been maimed, physically and psychologically. The war also took a devastating toll on the municipal and social infrastructures that are meant to hold communities together. |
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Path-Breaking International Masters: Forging a Partnership Between ICAR and the University of MaltaBeginning in October 2010, George Mason University and the University of Malta will offer the first international master’s program in the field of conflict resolution. Students completing the 13-month intensive course at the University of Malta campus will receive a Master of Science in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason and a Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution and Mediterranean Security from the University of Malta. The dual degree program combines the faculties of two renowned educational institutions: Mason’s Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR), the oldest and largest program of graduate conflict studies in the United States, and Malta’s Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic... |
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EGGP Expands its Vision: A Hub for Genocide Prevention Training and Engagement ICAR successfully concluded another Engaging Governments on Genocide Prevention (EGGP) workshop in New York City from March 8–12, in collaboration with the Advanced Consortium on Cooperation, Conflict, and Complexity (AC4) of Columbia University. The most recent EGGP cohort included representatives from: Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Estonia, Greece, the Netherlands, Niger, the Philippines, the Russian Federation, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Switzerland, and Yemen. |
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Protecting Those Most Vulnerable ICAR Certificate Program Hosts Development DiscussionInternational development work has undergone a series of changes in recent years—not since the signing of the foreign assistance act, in 1961, has so much happened so quickly. Most acutely felt is the shift towards “country ownership” of development funding—a change that puts recipient countries in a position to direct development programming within their own borders. This is a vital shift, and far too long in coming, but in its current conception it contains great difficulties. On April 1st, ICAR's Certificate Program hosted an event bringing together Certificate, Masters, and Ph.D. students which was itself a shift in format—convened around a question rather than an issue—and which produced a robust dialogue around those difficulties. |
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ICAR Alumna Honored: The Honorable Deborah A. P. Hersman, GMU's Alumna of the Year On April 14, 2010 the Mason’s Alumni Association hosted the Celebration of Distinction in Dewberry Hall on the Fairfax Campus. This year’s event—attended by ICAR Director, Dr. Andrea Bartoli, Associate Director for Administration, Julie Shedd, and Graduate Admissions and Student Services Director, Erin Ogilvie—was even more of a celebration for the ICAR community than usual, as two ICAR Alumni received awards honoring their accomplishments. The Honorable Deborah A. P. Hersman, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, received the University’s highest alumni acknowledgement, Alumna of the Year, marking the first time that an ICAR alumnus has received the honor. |