Project Reports
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The Research Network on Women, Peace and Security conducts research on women, peace, and security in Canada and abroad. Find on this page research findings from its members and research leads related to its three strategic challenges.
What We Heard | No Women, No Peace? Gender and Multilateral Security Governance
The project explains why the WPS agenda was adopted in different regional settings and how this has impacted security dynamics in Africa, Southeast Asia, North America and Europe. It compares the African Union, ASEAN and NATO, as three international organizations that have interpreted WPS with three distinct, though overlapping, logics. The project rests on hundreds of interviews (ongoing) and the analysis of thousands of scholarly and policy materials, which provide thorough content analysis to make sense of the narratives and practices that shape contemporary understandings of WPS and security practices across these three regions. (Written by Ayewa Donkoh, UOttawa)
DREAM Lab (Defence Resources, Exploring Alternatives to Militarism): 2023 Report
The DREAM lab was a product of Dr. Megan MacKenzie’s vision to support students in reimagining alternative ways that defence funds could be spent and allocated. The aim of the lab is to adopt a critical lens in considering what current defence spending protects against and compare this to how funds might be used differently to address pressing human security threats. The purpose of the inquiry was to demystify and make defence budgets more tangible by treating these funds as zero-sum, comparing losses against other social and public spending, demonstrating the types of projects which could be funded by cutting traditional military spending.
Revisiting the impact of Cybersecurity, COVID-19, and Conflict Nexus on Women Human Rights Defenders
In this report, Hafsa Afailal and Muzna Dureid examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the progress and commitment of Women Human Rights Defenders, Activists, and Peacebuilders and assess the effectiveness of its coordination and coping mechanisms. The study takes a holistic approach, examining the interplay between Cybersecurity, COVID-19, and Conflict (triple C) Nexus. The goal is to enhance women's meaningful participation in conflict prevention, resolution, and peacebuilding.
Where is the Peace in WPS? Addressing demilitarization as a key priority
Militarization is a barrier to meaningful peace and security in Canada and around the world. The purpose of this paper is to highlight existing government policy relationships to militarization, to demonstrate how this impedes efforts to bolster global peace and security, and to present alternative options for the future. Pursuing demilitarization is necessary for upholding Canada’s commitment to Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) priorities, and should be prioritized in future Canadian National Action Plans (NAP). We hope that this will inform future policy development across relevant portfolios, including National Defence, Status of Women, Global Affairs, Public Safety, and International Trade.
This report was generated by members of the Women, Peace, & Security Research Network. Created through a working group of experts, dialogue was initiated around what demilitarization means in the context of the WPS Agenda priorities in Canada. Contributors included academics, government officials, activists, and nongovernmental organization representatives.
