Democratic Process Institute visits Edinburgh to discuss youth engagement in conflict resolution

On Wednesday 11 December, 15 delegates from across Turkey visited Edinburgh as part of the Democratic Progress Institute’s comparative study visit. Laura Wise and Robert Wilson of the Political Settlements Research Project led a session on ‘Navigating Inclusion in the Changing Landscape of Peace Processes’ with the group, drawing on PSRP research and parallels with PSRP work supporting women’s meaningful inclusion in peace processes across the Middle East and North Africa in a discussion that encouraged participants to reflect on the opportunities and challenges for youth inclusion in peace processes globally.

In her presentation, Laura Wise set out the broader research questions of the PSRP and invited the delegates to think further about the examples they were familiar with and the inclusion conundrums involved in the various stages and levels of process. By addressing the salient questions surrounding inclusion, the presentation offered a nuanced conception of how inclusion can be understood. Questions and challenges over who is included, why they are included and how different types of inclusion can be managed in order to navigate the tensions between these different forms of inclusion, were all put to the audience. The PA-X Peace Agreement Database was also shown to the delegates and there was a brief break in the presentation, giving the group a chance to ask Laura questions regarding its function.

Following on from this and picking up on some of the themes discussed by Laura, Robert Wilson gave a presentation on the Yemeni Voices Project, setting out the broader challenges and wider questions around ethics and design involved in the interactive inclusion project. Examples of the potential power of civic groups in Yemen traditionally excluded from the national process were explained. To add further context to these examples, the staging website was then shown to the delegates and the power of the iterative nature of the project in gathering Yemeni experiences and viewpoints was also explained.

You can read more about the event on the PSRP website and see the full event report.