Collecting data on conflict resolution trends began in the 1960s with the early empirical research by the Correlates of War Project. 1 However, little international follow up on the study was done until the surprisingly optimistic findings of the Human Security Report appeared in 2005. 2 The study reported a decline in armed conflict and war fatalities, and its findings increased interest in conflict resolution research.   read more >>

Governments and institutes devote immense resources to learning how to avoid a relapse into war in post-conflict situations. But there is only a limited focus on preventing conflict in seemingly stable regions that are actually susceptible to violence.   read more >>

Since the end of the Cold War, rapid progress in commercial technology, along with the War on Terror and international peace enforcing missions, have been driving precision and remote control warfare. But these weapons do not fulfil the promise of ‘bloodless’ war.   read more >>

The global health policy landscape has changed considerably over the past decade. There is more money available to allocate to health initiatives than ever before, a large percentage of which has come from private funds and public private partnerships (PPPs). Some experts have welcomed these changes, while others have had considerable reservations. Despite positive developments, such as increased access to antiretroviral therapy for patients with HIV/AIDS, the health situation in poor countries and for the poor communities of rich countries remains abominable. It is often in the world’s poorest countries that the highest percentage of health costs is met with private, out-of-pocket spending. This creates poverty traps that can be impossible for people to escape.   read more >>

Expectations were high that authoritarian regimes would not survive the expansion of capitalism. However, in the Middle East there are strong currents that underpin authoritarianism. Trying to impose democracy from the outside will not help. Only changes in economic structures will show results in the long term.   read more >>

Denmark was among the most generous aid donors from 1960 to 2000. A new government in 2001 reduced Danish assistance considerably and put more emphasis on security issues. Denmark now has a renewed focus on aid, particularly in Africa.   read more >>

Since the end of the civil wars in Central America in the 1990s there has been considerable fear of violent street gangs, or maras. The countries in the region have implemented various anti-gang policies and approaches, with mixed results.   read more >>

Last year more the solar industry made record profits. The worldwide demand for PV solar systems grew from a mere 125 megawatts (MW) in 1999 to 4,500 MW in 2008. This huge increase in demand was largely due to market incentives, in particular the feed-in tariff (FiT). The FiT was first introduced in Denmark, then on a larger scale in Germany and later in Spain. It works as follows: utility companies are obliged by law to accept - and give priority to - renewable energy (wind or solar) that ‘third parties’ produce and feed into the electricity grid. They also have to pay a fixed amount per kilowatt hour (kWh), guaranteed for many years (20 in Germany, 25 in Spain). To cover the costs of the FiT scheme, utility companies are permitted to raise the price per 1 kWh that households pay for their electricity. In most cases, the costs of the incentive scheme do therefore not appear in government budgets.1   read more >>

Ineke Malsch is the director of Malsch TechnoValuation, and a consultant on technology and society. The title of this weblog is a literal translation of the Dutch project title 'Nanorecht en Vrede'. The aim of this project is to introduce the international dimension in the Dutch national public dialogue on nanotechnology, by focusing on potential future implications of nanotechnology, its applications on global peace and security, and on the interests of people in developing countries, o...   read more >>