ICAR Engages Governments Multi-Year Genocide Prevention Initiative Begins

The Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, along with the Columbia University's Center for International Conflict Resolution and the United Nations Studies Program, has begun a multi year advanced training and capacity development program on the prevention of genocide called Engaging Governments in Genocide Prevention (EGGP). These trainings have an explicit goal of adding to the momentum of a growing network of alumni who continue to confront challenges and share lessons based on their national experience. This expanding network will act as a conduit for future engagement at the regional and sub-regional levels with the goal of convening future regional prevention summits, to be hosted by EGGP alumni. The program consists of three core components.

The first component involves a week-long training of UN member state diplomatic, intelligence, military and human rights personnel. From these trainings, the state officials are empowered with the skills, motivation, and access to resources to confront genocide at the state level.

The second component involves the development of individual state policies to promote genocide prevention and the prevention of mass atrocities through country profiles and assessments of the individual states' preparedness. These profiles encourage states to reflect upon their unique experiences, explore individual states' specific strategies to combat genocide, and encourage states to officially develop early warning and genocide prevention policies.

The third component involves connecting EGGP participants to each other through an interactive network of promoting and supporting ongoing efforts to institute active early warning systems and genocide prevention measures and facilitate the convening of regional and subregional summits on genocide prevention, early warning, and the prevention of mass atrocities.

The overarching objective of the EGGP program is to provide a concrete tool - that is, cooperative, early warning knowledge management - to assist states in preventing genocide in their own countries and to build a lasting network of continuing engagement to promote genocide prevention globally. This objective will be achieved by three tangible project goals:
(1) involving states in critical thinking about genocide;
(2) providing potential and key actors for change with technical training and tools and assisting them to practice their newly acquired skills; and
(3) building a lasting global network for the exchange of genocide-related information.

The program's success will be determined by the extent to which distinct knowledge communities, diplomatic, military, intelligence and human rights based interest sections, coordinate policy development, share resources and information, and facilitate knowledge management and dissemination through ongoing intra- and inter-state collaboration, including the sub-regional, regional and inter-regional levels.

Ultimately, it is hoped, through these trainings, the EGGP program will enable the effective implementation of genocide prevention policies domestically and abroad.