International Peace Research Association

International Peace Research Association (IPRA) is a peace research organization founded in 1964.


IPRA has consultative status with Economic and Social Council of the UnitedNations (ECOSOC)

IPRA is a member of International Social Science Council (ISSC)


History

Founded in 1964, IPRA developed from a conference organized by the "Quaker International Conferences and Seminars" in Clarens, Switzerland, 16-20 August 1963.The participants decided to hold international Conferences on Research on International Peace and Security (COROIPAS), which would be organized by a Continuing Committee similar to the Pugwash Conferences.

Under the leadership of John Burton, the Continuing Committee met in London, 1-3 December 1964. At that time, they took steps to broaden the original concept of holding research conferences. The decision was made to form a professional association with the principal aim of increasing the quantity of research focused on world peace and ensuring its scientific quality.

An Executive Committee including Bert V A. Roling, Secretary General (The Netherlands), John Burton (United Kingdom), Ljubivoje Acimovic (Yugoslavia), Jerzy Sawicki (Poland), and Johan Galtung (Norway) was appointed.This group was also designated as Nominating Committee for a 15-person Advisory Council to be elected at the first general conference of IPRA, to represent various regions, disciplines, and research interests in developing the work of the Association.

Since then, IPRA has held 23 biennial general conferences, the venues of which have been chosen with a view to reflecting the association's global scope. IPRA, the network for peace researchers, has just held its 24th General Conference in Japan in July 2012 which provided researchers from all parts of the world to exchange actionable knowledge about this issue in order to advance theory, policy, and practice worldwide.

The next IPRA General Conference will be held in Istanbul, Turkey in August 2014.


In 1989, IPRA received the UNESCO Prize for Peace Education.

The Past IPRA General Conferences

1. Groningen, Netherlands (1965) 2. Tallberg, Sweden (1967) 3. Karlovy Vary, Czechoslovakia (1969) 4. Bled, Yugoslavia (1971) 5. Varanasi, India (1974) 6. Turku, Finland (1975) 7. Oaxtepec, Mexico (1977) 8. Königstein, West Germany (1979) 9. Orillia, Canada (1981) 10.Győr, Hungary (1983) 11.Sussex, England (1986) 12.Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1988) 13.Groningen, Netherlands (1990) 14.Kyoto, Japan (1992) 15.Valletta, Malta (1994) 16.Brisbane, Australia (1996) 17.Durban, South Africa (1998) 18.Tampere, Finland (2000) 19.Suwon, South Korea (2002) 20.Sopron, Hungary (2004) 21.Calgary, Canada (2006) 22.Leuven, Belgium (2008) 23.Sydney, Australia (2010) 24. Tsu, Japan (2012) 25. Istanbul, Turkey (To Be Held In 2014)

Secretaries General of IPRA

1964-1971 Bert V. A. Roling (The Netherlands) 1971-1975 Asbjorn Eide (Norway) 1975-1979 Raimo Vayrynen (Finland) 1979-1983 Yoshikazu Sakamoto (Japan) 1983-1987 Chadwick Alger (USA) 1987-1989 Clovis Brigagao (Brazil) 1989-1991 Elise Bouding (USA) 1991-1994 Paul Smoker (USA) 1995-1997 Karlheinz Koppe (Germany) 1997-2000 Bjoern Moeller (Denmark) 2000-2004 Katsuya Kodama (Japan) 2004-2008 Luc Reychler (Belgium) 2008-2010 Kevin Clements (New Zealand) 2010-2012 Jake Lynch (Australia) & Katsuya Kodama (Japan) 2012- Nesrin Kenar (Turkey) & Ibrahim Seaga Shaw (Sierra Leone/UK)

Presidents

Vice-presidents

At the conference in 2000, the posts of President and Vice Presidents were abolished.

Regional Associations

IPRA has five regional associations:

IPRA COMMISSIONS (in alphabetical order)

1. Art and Peace Commission

2. Conflict Resolution and Peace Building Commission

3. Development and Peace Commission

4. Eastern Europe Commission

5. Ecology and Peace Commission

6. Forced Migration Commission

7. Gender and Peace Commission

8. Global Political Economy Commission

9. Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Commission

10. Internal Conflicts Commission

11. International Human Rights Commission

12. Nonviolence Commission

13. Peace Culture and Communications Commission

14. Peace Education Commission

15. Peace History Commission

16. Peace Journalism Commission

17. Peace Movements Commission

18. Peace Negotiations and Mediation Commission

19. Peace Theories Commission

20. Reconciliation and Transitional Justice Commission

21. Religion and Peace Commission

22. Security and Disarmament Commission

23. Sport and Peace Commission

24. Youth and Peace Commission

25. Peace Tourism Commission

Working Groups

External links