In my professional opinion as a reconstruction expert, I fully support the Obama Administration with their bold move to withdraw 10,000 troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year, and all 33,000 surge troops by September 2012.

 

If America had unlimited resources, time, and funding it would be ideal to continue rebuilding Afghanistan.

 

But, the reality is that the American, and global, economy are largely dictating the direction of the mission activities in…

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Conflicts are understood as “any situation in which two or more social entities or parties (however defined or structured) perceive that they posses mutually incompatible goals” (Mitchell 1981:17).



War has always been barbaric and civilians have always been involved in warfare, either willingly or unwillingly. Yet, the rising number of intrastate wars attests that the UN Charter preamble… Continue

Traditionally, multinational military forces have accomplished a wide range of tasks while intervening in armed conflicts.



Combat operations, inter-positional activities, as well as assisting civilians in meeting basic needs, have been included as part of a military’s mandate. It is not a new phenomenon for troops to rebuild schools, dig wells, offer food and medical aid, build and manage emergency camps for refugees and internally displaced persons, evacuate civilians, as well as… Continue

For those who are not trained military planners – like most of us –, the terminology of measuring effectiveness and measuring performance can be very confusing.

For example: “DPs are used to develop MoPs which, in turn, are used to develop MoEs which depend upon the environment and which, in turn, are used to develop MoFEs. Each MoM could be a MoP or an MoE.”

Even if the acronyms…

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Worldviews are useful ways to understand why stakeholders intervene in crises and why they measure their successes in a particular way. Stakeholders translate their worldviews into practice differently, which can cause misunderstandings among sectors working towards the attainment of peace and security.

 

For example, militaries think that having the ability to measure the effectiveness of something gives one control over that thing. Western militaries put emphasis on designing…

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The international community has spent the past century agreeing on standards of the human condition which States are bound to uphold for their people.

 

Values such as the rule of law and human rights are espoused as essential elements in secure, stable, and prosperous states and are evidenced by universal characteristics that include democratic elections, transparent courts and corrections systems, absence of ethnic, racial and religious persecution, and various…

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How intervention stakeholders “imagine” their work informs their contextual perspectives.



How we view the world is how the world responds to us.



We are in a reflexive relationship with our world: how we see it, is how it is.



Peace and development stakeholders function in the context we see and create. We are all functioning in different worlds, yet we are working side by side in the field.



This concept is useful in understanding why stakeholders… Continue

There are two dominant methods for measuring success in international interventions.



The first measures outcomes and is focused upon goal attainment and achieving “end states”.



The second measures process, and focuses on ways to shape the environment so that intervention activities can lead to goal achievement.



It would be over-simplification to suggest that the military and defence sectors focus on the former while the humanitarians and development field focus… Continue

Enormous funding disparities exist between the development of organizations such as NATO and the rest of the stakeholders of peace operations and civilian crisis management.



With trillions of dollars spent in the last fifty years on improving the systems of command, control, communication, coordination, and information technology, it is not surprising that other sectors have fallen behind the defence sectors in terms of planning, measuring progress, monitoring, evaluation, and… Continue

Effectively and accurately measuring the postwar human condition is the next step in identifying successful intervention projects and programs.



The success of peace operations is relatively easy to determine at the macro level. Lives are being saved, or they are not. Stability is either present, or it is not. And, the operation is either facilitating democratic transformation, or it is not. Perceiving operational successes, however, as black and white progress towards peace and… Continue

Peace & Conflict Planners Canada Inc.

www.pcpcanada.com

 

Position: Research and Analysis Project Intern

Term: 3-6 months

Remuneration: Unpaid internship; potential for future employment

Location: Virtual, and/or Ottawa, Ontario

 

Project Description:

 

Project Identigenesis® strengthens and enhances local economies and cultures to counter the negative results…

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Peace & Conflict Planners Canada Inc.

Position: Interactive / Social Media Project Intern

 

Term: 3-6 months

Remuneration: Unpaid internship; potential for future employment

Location: Virtual, work from home, and/or Ottawa, Ontario

 

Project Description:

 

Project Identigenesis® strengthens and enhances local economies and cultures to counter the negative results of state failures, including transitioning…

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Peace & Conflict Planners Canada Inc.

www.pcpcanada.com

 

Position: Virtual Chief Executive Officer

Term: 1 year, with potential extension based on interest of both parties

Remuneration: based on successful fundraising initiatives and project funding secured; and/or partnership with opportunity for shareholding

Location: Virtual and/or Ottawa,…

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