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Facilitating Nation Building in Ukraine
Twenty years ago Ukraine gained its independence and started its path towards a free market economy and democratic governance. Where is it now after the change of four presidents and the Orange Revolution? According to the Freedom House Annual Report in 2011, on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 representing the highest level, civic society in Ukraine scored at 2.75, democracy scored 4.61, and corruption scored 5.75. The Report further states that national political power in Ukraine is consolidated in the hands of President Yanukovych, who regained control over the cabinet, the security service, and the prosecutor general after the restoration of the constitution in October 2010 to its pre-2004 state. Despite President Yanukovych’s... |
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The Impact of 9/11 on Conflict Resolvers: 10 Years in PerspectiveThe effects of the fall of the Twin Towers in 2001 rippled through the conflict resolution field like a pebble thrown into a pond – or perhaps more like a meteor. The effects described by practitioners in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 were numerous and varied, from realizing a need to learn about traumatic stress to questioning the very idea of neutrality. As a part of her doctoral research published in 2006, S-CAR alumna Dr. Alma Abdul-Hadi Jadallah completed 53 interviews with lead, mid-level, and grass-root practitioners in the conflict resolution field to explore and document these effects. Ten years later, Kommon Denominator (KD), a conflict management consulting firm affiliated with S-CAR, investigated... |
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Explore Your Opportunities: Grants at S-CARParaphrasing a concept described in his lecture titled “The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams,” Randy Pausch, who was a Computer Science Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, said that we can sometimes achieve our dreams by “enabling the dreams of others.” Though admittedly a bit utopian, this is the view I have decided to take of grant funding. It is a means to an end that, when applied correctly, has the potential to allow not just the grant recipient, the Principle Investigator (PI), to realize her or his dreams, but also to allow those who are touched by the PI’s work to break cycles of violence, successfully restructure violent organizations, reach out to international and global support networks, increase their access to information, and many, many other outcomes that provide them with the ability to realize their full... |
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Dr. Howard Thurman: A Disciple of Peaceful Conflict ResolutionPreparing to teach a three-day retreat on the Life, Teachings, and Spirit of Dr. Howard Thurman, I am reminded of the extensive time spent with him while researching and writing my dissertation. What is most memorable is how his thoughts and words touched my personal life. Thurman’s life is an example of rising above poverty and racial segregation to elevate the self above the circumstances of his surrounding and its story is inspiring. His longing and commitment to elevate the human condition above the grip and grind of pervasive deep-rooted conflicts offer a beacon of hope to all who experience his teachings. Born in 1900, 27 years after President Lincoln ended slavery, and in the midst of the resurgence of slavery through... |
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S-CAR Professor Meets US Congressman
It was a merging of two worlds, with my boss sitting to the left and my professor to the right. As they talked shop - with US Congressman Michael Honda reflecting on his required reading (Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of theOppressed) and his Japanese American internment experience in Camp Amache, Colorado, and Dr. Dennis Sandole expounding on "smart security" and root causes of conflict - there was a clear synergy of thought. This was not your usual lobby visit. This was a collegial confab between two septuagenarians who had spent their lives building peace in this troubled world. Needless to say, it was a treat for me to watch two men whom I admire, espousing the virtues and veracity of peacebuilding... |
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Arthur Romano, S-CAR Assistant ProfessorS-CAR is very pleased to welcome a new faculty member. Dr. Arthur Romano joins the School as an Assistant Professor in the undergraduate program. Arthur received his PhD from Bradford University in the United Kingdom where he wrote his dissertation on how international educators who focus on issues of peace and justice have developed pedagogical practices that are epistemologically congruent with insights of complexity theory. For this study, he drew on qualitative data from interviews he conducted with peace educators in India, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. From 2004 to 2006, while at Bradford University, Arthur was a Rotary World Peace Fellow. Arthur brings to S-CAR a wealth of teaching and practice experience. He is... |
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Lisa Shaw, S-CAR Director of Field ExperienceThis fall, Lisa Shaw transitioned to the role of Director of Field Experience at George Mason’s School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (S-CAR) from that of Undergraduate Student Services Director in Fairfax. Lisa describes her new position as “integrating and coordinating the learning aspects of field experience,” which includes the Applied Practice and Theory (APT) Internship and Thesis options required for a graduate degree. She supervises and coordinates field experience with the undergrad program, which includes the internship and study abroad programs. She will be focusing on four core areas of field experience: coordination, collaboration, innovation and research. Lisa will be missed at Undergraduate Student... |