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Conflict and Violence

Our work provides a nuanced and realistic understanding of the relationship between violence, conflict, security and development. It aims to help policymakers, practitioners and citizens to develop policies and practices that strengthen people’s efforts to secure their own lives and livelihoods and improve the functioning of political institutions responsible for security and the management and prevention of conflict, and for the development of peace.

We examine the multiple layers and contexts in which violence manifests – from household to state and global level – and pinpoint the links and overlaps between these layers. This includes exploring the nature of, and responses to conflict and violence in rapidly expanding urban areas.  We have a done pioneering work on the dynamics of micro-level conflict, violence and development as well as on citizen action in violent contexts. Our research on gender, men and masculinities and gender-based violence has provided new insights on how to change attitudes, norms and behaviours for equality, peace and justice.

Another focal area is the dynamics of policy processes around conflict, violence and security examining the key framing and narratives. We explore non-traditional forms of security, especially linked to water, energy, food and health as well as post conflict and state building issues affecting service delivery and livelihoods, and are also developing new participatory approaches to peacebuilding. 

People

Patricia Justino

Professorial Fellow

Rebecca Mitchell

Postgraduate Researcher and Programme Manager

Gauthier Marchais

Research Fellow

Jeremy Allouche

Professorial Fellow

Jeremy Lind

Professorial Fellow

Juan Carlos Muñoz-Mora

Post Doctoral Researcher

Marinella Leone

Research Fellow

Robin Luckham

Emeritus Fellow

Programmes and centres

Recent work

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Showing 229–240 of 15404 results

News

IDS at the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)

From the 10 to 21 March, people from all over the world will gather in New York for the sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69), which marks the thirtieth anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. While progress on rights has...

11 March 2025

Past Event

Time for a rethink of the tax identification number?

This event will highlight key insights from the forthcoming publication, co-produced by the World Bank and IDS-based International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD), on tax identification numbers.

11 March 2025

Opinion

Development spending cuts will hit women and girls

This year’s International Women’s Day has just passed, with UN Women calling for rights, equality and empowerment for all women and girls.  However, this task has just got much harder after the drastic cuts made to international development budgets by the US, UK and the Netherlands in the...

10 March 2025

Past Event

Countering Backlash: Towards a feminist future

The very ideas – let alone the possibilities – of gender and social justice are under attack the world over. These attacks are becoming increasingly acute, multi-layered, and globally resonant, seeking to erase language, movements, legal frameworks, and even entire communities. Watch...

10 March 2025

News

How ICTD research is shifting the debate on gender and tax

According to the World Economic Forum, it will take until 2158 to reach full gender parity at the current rate of progress, which is why this year’s International Women’s Day theme is focused on Accelerating Action. Today, we are looking back at the International Centre for Tax and...

7 March 2025

Student Opinion

Feminism, unpaid care, and getting a job in the policy space

Harshita Kumari, MA Gender & Development Class of 2023, shares her advice for those looking for a job in development and public policy, such as engaging with immersive fellowship programmes that give vital experience working on live policy projects. Harshita works at the Quantum Hub, a...

Harshita Kumari, MA Gender & Development Class of 2023

7 March 2025

News

Podcast: Strategies for building solidarities for gender justice

Significant progress on gender equality has been made in past decades, but in recent years gender and sexual rights have become increasingly under threat from a global wave of backlash. In this special podcast to celebrate International Women’s Day, IDS Fellow Deepta Chopra is in...

6 March 2025

Why learn with us.

In an extraordinary time of challenge and change, we use more than 50 years of expertise to transform development approaches that create more equitable and sustainable futures. The work you do with us will help make progressive change towards universal development; to build and connect solidarities for collective action, locally and globally. The University of Sussex has been ranked 1st in the world for Development Studies for the past five years (QS World University Rankings by Subject).

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