The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) was a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone from 1999 to 2006. It was created by the United Nations Security Council in October 1999 to help with the implementation of the Lomé Peace Accord, an agreement intended to end the Sierra Leonean civil war. UNAMSIL expanded in size several times in 2000 and 2001. It concluded its mandate at the end of 2005, the Security Council having declared that its mission was complete.
Peace and conflict studies is a social science field that identifies and analyzes violent and nonviolent behaviors as well as the structural mechanisms attending conflicts, to understand those processes which lead to a more desirable human condition. A variation on this, peace studies, is an interdisciplinary effort aiming at the prevention, de-escalation, and solution of conflicts by peaceful means, based on achieving conflict resolution and dispute resolution at the international and domestic levels based on positive sum, rather than negative sum, solutions.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (S/RES/1325), on women, peace, and security, was adopted unanimously by the UN Security Council on 31 October 2000, after recalling resolutions 1261 (1999), 1265 (1999), 1296 (2000), and 1314 (2000). The resolution acknowledged the disproportionate and unique impact of armed conflict on women and girls. It calls for the adoption of a gender perspective to consider the special needs of women and girls during conflict, repatriation and resettlement, rehabilitation, reintegration, and post-conflict reconstruction.
Peacebuilding is an activity that aims to resolve injustice in nonviolent ways and to transform the cultural and structural conditions that generate deadly or destructive conflict. It revolves around developing constructive personal, group, and political relationships across ethnic, religious, class, national, and racial boundaries. The process includes violence prevention; conflict management, resolution, or transformation; and post-conflict reconciliation or trauma healing before, during, and after any given case of violence.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1612, adopted unanimously on 26 July 2005, after recalling resolutions 1261 (1999), 1308 (2000), 1314 (2000), 1325 (2000), 1379 (2001), 1460 (2003) and 1539 (2004), the council established a monitoring and reporting mechanism on the use of child soldiers.
The United Nations Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) is a United Nations intergovernmental advisory body of both the General Assembly and the Security Council that supports peace efforts in conflict-affected countries. A key addition to the capacity of the international community in the broad peace agenda, it was established in 2005 with the passage of both A/RES/60/180 and S/RES/1645 Mr. Sérgio França Danese (Brazil) is the incumbent chair of the PBC.
The United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY Peacebuilders) is a global network of young people and youth organisations active in the field of peacebuilding and conflict transformation. UNOY Peacebuilders was founded in 1989 and is working with youth mostly in violent conflict and post war regions. The core activities of UNOY Peacebuilders are capacity building as well as advocacy and campaigning.
The Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation, is an autonomous, non-governmental, non-profit foundation established in 1962 in memory of Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the United Nations.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1265, adopted unanimously on 17 September 1999, in the first resolution to address the topic, the council discussed the protection of civilians during armed conflict.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1888 was unanimously adopted on 30 September 2009. It was introduced by United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who also presided over the session. The resolution established the United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict.
The U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security was adopted when President Barack Obama signed an executive order on December 19, 2011, 11 years after the United Nations Security Council adopted United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace, and security. It specified initiatives and activities that will empower and enlist women and girls in efforts to achieve international peace and security. The U.S. NAP was formally revised in June 2016. On June 11, 2019, the White House released the U.S. Strategy on Women, Peace, and Security, which superseded the National Action Plan.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2250 was unanimously adopted on 9 December 2015 at the initiative of Jordan.
The Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict (OSRSG-SVC) is an office of the United Nations Secretariat tasked with serving the United Nations' spokesperson and political advocate on conflict-related sexual violence, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict (SRSG-SVC). The Special Representative holds the rank of Under-Secretary-General of the UN and chairs the UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict. The mandate of the SRSG-SVC was established by Security Council Resolution 1888, introduced by Hillary Clinton, and the first Special Representative, Margot Wallström, took office in 2010. The current Special Representative is Pramila Patten of Mauritius, who was appointed by UN Secretary General António Guterres in 2017. The work of the SRSG-SVC is supported by the UN Team of Experts on the Rule of Law/Sexual Violence in Conflict, co-led by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPO), Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the UN Development Programme (UNDP), also established under Security Council Resolution 1888.
Sustainable Development Goal 16 is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations in 2015, the official wording is: "Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels". The Goal has 12 targets and 23 indicators.
Hajer Sharief is a Libyan peace and human rights activist. She co-leads the work of the Together We Build It (TWBI) organization in Libya. In 2011, and at the age of 19, Sharief co-founded TWBI to build peace in Libya and promote human rights. She is one of UN Women's 12 Champions on Women, Peace and Security, and Human Rights; and a member of the Extremely Together young leaders initiative, begun by Kofi Annan and the Kofi Annan Foundation. In 2020, Forbes named Sharief as one of "Africa's 50 Most Powerful Women", and she was listed by Avanec Media among their "100 Most Influential African Women" for 2020. A winner of the Student Peace Prize in 2017, she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.
Women have regularly participated in global peacekeeping efforts, including through the United Nations. Although participation greatly increased in the last decade of the 20th century and the first two decades of 21st century, women remained significantly underrepresented in peacekeeping operations in 2023. The participation of women in peacekeeping operations differs significantly between military contingents, military observers, staff officers versus police units. Gender stereotypes and discrimination often limit women's opportunities for advancement and leadership roles within international organizations and military institutions. Additionally, women often face discrimination and harassment in male-dominated peacekeeping environments.
Gatwal Yul, also known as Gatwal Augustine Gatkuoth Yul, is a South Sudanese refugee living in Uganda. He fled hundreds of miles to Uganda at the age of 11 from South Sudan. He is the founder of the Upper Nile Institute and Young Adult Empowerment Initiative. He is also a 2017 fellow of the US Institute of Peace, a 2019 Obama Foundation African leader, and the recipient of the 2018 Peace Direct's Tomorrow's Peacebuilders Award.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2535 is a resolution that attempts to further support the concept of including youths in peace processes.
The UN Sustaining Peace Agenda is a comprehensive concept and framework adopted by the United Nations (UN) to address the root causes of violent conflict and foster long-term peace and stability. It encompasses activities aimed at preventing the outbreak, escalation, continuation, and recurrence of conflict while promoting reconciliation, recovery, and sustainable development. The concept marks a paradigm shift from post-conflict peacebuilding to a preventive and inclusive approach to global peace efforts.
Justice Call is an international non-governmental organization based in New York, USA, tasked with promoting peace, justice, and youth empowerment globally. The organization focuses on creating inclusive spaces for dialogue and collaboration, particularly in conflict-affected regions, with a mission to build just, equitable, and sustainable societies. Justice Call operates through partnerships with over 200 youth-led organizations across 17 countries in the MENA region and collaborates with global institutions such as the United Nations, Peace Boat and the International Criminal Court (ICC).
