Thank you to all those who joined us via Livestream! Watch highlights from the Future of Peace Summit, held on June 15, 2016 at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, DC. To watch the videos, including Summit Presentations and Interviews with the Speakers, visit here.
Join Diplomatic Courier and the Institute for Economics and Peace to mark the 10th edition of the Global Peace Index, the world’s leading measure of country peacefulness, and discuss the major challenges and opportunities for peace in the decade ahead.
The Global Peace Index, which ranks 162 countries on their peacefulness using 23 different indicators, has helped shift the world’s conversation about peace to a positive, achievable and tangible measure of human wellbeing and progress. The Index is included in thousands of university courses, is referenced by international media and used by the world’s major multilateral organizations including the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. News articles about the 9th edition of the Global Peace Index, released in June 2015, appeared in 75 countries and reached over 1.5 billion people. The Global Peace Index also led to the creation of the Institute for Economics and Peace, a global think tank that has made significant intellectual contributions in fields as diverse as terrorism, risk, the economic costs of violence and the study of positive peace, or the empirically derived attitudes, institutions and structures of more peaceful societies.
The focus of the summit will be the main challenges and opportunities for peace over the next decade. Is the world becoming more or less peaceful? What countries and regions have improved the most in peace and why? How do you build support for long-term investments in peace in a world dominated by crisis response? What role can data and analytics play in supporting peace-building efforts? And what is the best way to get needed information into the hands of policymakers and other stakeholders? The summit will seek to address these questions, while at the same time providing a road map for the kinds of investments, such improved rule of law, control of corruption, and the establishment of a sound business environment, that create and sustain more peaceful societies over the long-term.
Matthew Bishop is the US business editor and New York bureau chief of The Economist. He co-founded and advises the #givingtuesday campaign and the Social Progress Index. Bishop is the author of several books, including Philanthrocapitalism: How Giving Can Save the World (described as “important” by President Bill Clinton) and The Road From Ruin. He is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Role of Business. He wrote the report of the Taskforce on Social impact Investment, which was established by the G8.
Michelle Breslauer is the Americas program director for the Institute for Economics and Peace, communicating research to engage diverse stakeholders in IEP’s programming. In this role, she produces conferences, publication releases and partnerships for the range of IEP research, such as the Global Peace Index and Global Terrorism Index, and established the Mexico program and office. She works closely with UN agencies, contributing to consultations and global discussions on the Sustainable Development Goals.
Lord Browne of Ladyton (Des Browne) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Kilmarnock and Loudoun from 1997 to 2010. As a back-bencher, he served on the Northern Ireland Affairs and Public Administration Select Committees. In 1998, he became the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to Donald Dewar, Secretary of State for Scotland. In 2000, he became PPS to Adam Ingram, Minister of State for Northern Ireland. Subsequently, he served on the first Joint Committee on Human Rights. .Since 2014, Lord Browne has served as NTI's Vice Chairman.
Chic Dambach’s wide ranging career includes President of the Alliance for Peacebuilding, President of the National Peace Corps Association, and Chief of Staff for Congressman John Garamendi. Together with Peter Yarrow, he led the Operation Respect program to address bullying, ridicule, and violence in schools. His memoir, Exhaust the Limits, the Life and Times of a Global Peacebuilder, features a lifetime of service and successful initiatives for peace. He is a Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellow and adjunct faculty at both Johns Hopkins University and American University.
Thomas Debass serves as the Deputy Special Representative for Global Partnerships/Managing Director in the Secretary’s Office of Global Partnerships (S/GP). He is responsible for managing the office and provides thought leadership on partnerships related to economic growth, global finance, entrepreneurship, and innovation. Thomas has played a leading role in promoting and institutionalizing the role of public private partnerships as a tool for advancing foreign policy and development objectives.
Aubrey Fox is the Executive Director of the US office of the Institute for Economics and Peace. Prior to joining IEP, Aubrey was a member of the senior leadership team of the Center for Court Innovation. Aubrey is the co-author of Trial & Error in Criminal Justice Reform: Learning from Failure (Urban Institute Press, 2010). Aubrey is on the Board of Trustees of the Centre for Justice Innovation, an institution that seeks to promote criminal justice reform in the United Kingdom. from Caracas, Venezuela, he has lived and worked in Paris since 1960.
John Garamendi joined the U.S. House of Representatives on November 5, 2009. He brings nearly four decades of public service to the House Armed Services and Transportation & Infrastructure committees. As California’s 46th Lieutenant Governor, Garamendi was Chair of the Commission for Economic Development, where he transformed this important body into a powerhouse to advocate for workforce development, vocational education, and research. As Chair of the California State Lands Commission, he led the fight against new offshore oil drilling.
Shannon N. Green is director and senior fellow of the Human Rights Initiative at CSIS. Prior to joining CSIS, Ms. Green was senior director for global engagement on the National Security Council staff. She was also involved in the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism and in efforts to discredit and delegitimize ISIL and counter its propaganda. From 2008 to 2013, Ms. Green worked at the Center of Excellence on Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Before joining the AfP, she was the President and Founder of the Cypress Fund for Peace and Security, a foundation making grants in the areas of peacebuilding and nuclear nonproliferation. From 2003 to 2004, she was a visiting scholar at the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies, focusing on issues of justice in post-conflict peacebuilding. She previously served as associate director of the Stanford Center for International Security and Cooperation and deputy director of the Stanford Center on International Conflict and Negotiation.
Carrie Hessler-Radelet, the 19th Director of the Peace Corps, was sworn in on June 25, 2014. Prior to this, she served as the agency’s acting Director and deputy director from 2010–14. A member of a four-generation Peace Corps family, Hessler-Radelet began her career in international development as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Western Samoa (1981–83), teaching secondary school with her husband, Steve Radelet. She went on to spend more than two decades working in public health, focusing on HIV/AIDS and maternal and child health.
John Hewko is the general secretary of Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation. Before joining Rotary in 2011, he was vice president of operations and compact development at the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). An attorney, John was an international partner with the law firm Baker & McKenzie, specializing in international corporate transactions in emerging markets. In 1991-92, he assisted the Ukrainian Parliament in drafting the initial laws on foreign investment, anti-competition, and corporations.
After five years at the White House, Frances launched a brand new division of POLITICO’s audience solutions team called Social Enterprise, which aims to bolster content, partnerships and events with purpose-driven organizations, foundations, nonprofits and private sector partners with strong corporate social responsibility. At the White House, Frances was instrumental in balancing a series of initiatives that the President placed as a priority for global engagement priorities as well as advancement in U.S. Public Diplomacy Issues.
Mary D. Kane became President and CEO of Sister Cities International in October 2011. Ms. Kane leads the membership, youth and education, development, and advocacy programs to strengthen the sister city network around the world. Prior to joining Sister Cities International, she was an Executive Director with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, where she was responsible for identifying and building strategic alliances for the Chamber. Before joining the Chamber, Ms. Kane was the Secretary of State in Maryland and a former Assistant State’s Attorney.
Founder & Executive Chairman Integrated Research Ltd; The Charitable Foundation; Institute for Economics and Peace
@GlobPeaceIndex
Steve Killelea is an accomplished entrepreneur in high technology business development and at the forefront of philanthropic activities focused on sustainable development and peace. After successfully building two international software companies, Steve decided to dedicate most of his time and fortune to sustainable development and peace. Steve founded Integrated Research Ltd (IR), an Australian publicly-listed company. Through Steve’s direction as CEO and now as Chairman, IR has built an impressive, world-class customer base to make it one of Australia’s leading software companies.
Ms. Lindborg has spent most of her career working in fragile and conflict affected regions around the world. Prior to joining USIP, she served as the assistant administrator for the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA) at USAID. From 2010 through early 2015, Ms. Lindborg led USAID teams focused on building resilience and democracy, managing and mitigating conflict and providing urgent humanitarian assistance. Ms. Lindborg led DCHA teams in response to the ongoing Syria Crisis, the droughts in Sahel and Horn of Africa, the Arab Spring, the Ebola response and numerous crises.
Sandra Melone is the Executive VP of Search for Common Ground, one of the world’s leading international non-governmental organizations working in peacebuilding and conflict transformation. SFCG has headquarters in Brussels and Washington, 55 offices in 34 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, over 700 staff, partnerships with hundreds of organizations, and funding from a large, international platform of donors. Prior to becoming EVP, Sandra established SFCG’s headquarters in Brussels, and founded the Women's Peace Centre in Burundi.
Ana C. Rold is the CEO and Publisher of the Diplomatic Courier, a global affairs media network. Ms. Rold also teaches Comparative Politics at Northeastern University and has served as the Editor-in-Chief of the annual commemorative publications of the G7, G20, and APEC Summits since 2009. Ms. Rold is also a co-founder of corporate publishing firm, Medauras Global, which specializes on private and public sector special publications, magazines, reports, and books.
Christopher Schroeder co-founded the content/social platform healthcentral.com (backed by top Silicon Valley venture capital) sold in 2012. He also ran washingtonpost.newsweek interactive. He is an active venture investor in the United States and sits on the board of the American University of Cairo School of Business and serves as an advisor to Middle East incubators Flat6Labs, Oasis500 and the new Wamda Fund for A-round investing. He is an angel investor in consumer-facing content and social companies like Vox Media and Skift.
Dr. Vendley is the Secretary General of Religions for Peace International. He is a member of its World Council which consists of 60 senior religious leaders from all continents. He coordinates the activities and projects of Religions for Peace in 90 national and 5 regional councils. Religions for Peace is the world’s largest and most representative multi-religious coalition advancing peace by working to advance multi-religious consensus on positive aspects of peace as well as concrete actions to stop war, help eliminate extreme poverty and protect the earth.
What interventions are likely to bring peace in the next decade?
Matthew Bishop, US Business Editor & New York Bureau Chief, The Economist
Bill Vendley, Secretary General, Religions for Peace
Sandra Melone, Executive Vice President, Search for Common Ground
Moderator: Melanie Greenberg, President & CEO, Alliance for Peacebuilding
Michelle Bresslauer, Director, America's Program, Institute for Economics and Peace
Thomas Debass, Deputy Special Representative for Global Partnerships, US Department of State
Shannon Green, Director and Senior Fellow, Human Rights Initiative, CSIS
Christopher Schroeder, Author, Startup Rising: The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East
Moderator: Frances Holuba, Director of Social Enterprise, POLITICO
Diplomatic Courier is a global affairs media network that connects global publics to leaders in international affairs, diplomacy, social good, and more. Diplomatic Courier’s global network spans 180 countries and five continents. Readers can find us in print, online, mobile apps, video, and social media. We are also the creators and hosts of the futuristic global series of events called the World in 2050. We hosted the first one in 2013 to explore the Future of Diplomacy. Since then, we’ve tackled several megatrends such as food, jobs, philanthropy, cities, and more. To learn more visit: www.diplomaticourier.com
The Institute for Economics and Peace is the world’s leading think tank dedicated to developing metrics to analyze peace and to quantify its economic value. It does this by developing global and national indices, calculating the economic cost of violence, analyzing country level risk and understanding positive peace. IEP uses innovative research and communications to impact traditional thinking on matters of security, defense, terrorism, and development. It aims to empower the academic community, civil society, private sector, international institutions and governments with the knowledge to proactively use peace to achieve their desired goals. Fore more information, visit: www.economicsandpeace.org
The 2016 Global Peace Summit will take place at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center. Follow the signs to The Pavilion. The nearest metro is Gallery Place/Chinatown on the Red Line. The Federal Triangle station is connected to the Ronald Reagan Building by a covered passageway. Exit at 13th and G Streets, NW. Walk south on 13th Street to Pennsylvania Avenue. The Ronald Reagan Building is at 13th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.