Peace diplomacy - career as a diplomat

Title: Peace diplomacy

Name: Alvaro Cedeño

Position today:  Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the WTO

Former Ambassador of Costa Rica to Japan

Country: Costa Rica

MPCT class: 2002-2004

Topic of Master’s thesis: MINUGUA: the UN verification mission in Guatemala: the perceptions of civil society organizations in Guatemala about the role of MINUGUA regarding indigenous peoples.

When I arrived in Tromsø as a member of the first MPCT class in 2002, Dr. Ole Mjøs told me that his inspiration for creating the MPCT program came from a speech that Dr. Arias gave at a UNESCO conference in Paris in 1998. I always tell this story as a funny coincidence. I graduated MPCT in 2004. In 2006 I joined the administration of Dr. Arias, who had inspired Dr. Mjøs to create the MPCT many years before.

My study in Peace and Conflict Transformation has been fundamental for my performance in diplomatic postings. The MPCT program has broadened my mindset and intellectual competencies while analyzing conflicts and negotiating solutions. These skills have been precious tools that I employ every single day on the job. 

As a diplomat I can say: We need many more peacemakers!