The Centre for Peace Studies celebrates its 15th Anniversary

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The Centre for Peace Studies (CPS) was formally established in December 2002. Ole D. Mjøs launched the idea of peace studies at the University of Tromsø in 1998. The idea informed an international conference themed Higher Education for Peace at UiT in 2000. Later, support from UiT rectors Tove Bull and Jarle Aarbakke, and through direct funding by the Bondevik Government helped establishing the CPS. Since then, CPS has worked tirelessly to promote its Master's Programme in Peace and Conflict Transformation (MPCT), develop its research profile and fostered numerous outreach activities.

As of October 2017, 239 students from 50 different countries graduated successfully from the MPCT programme. The MPCT programme is multi-disciplinary and the CPS is a part of the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education. The Master programme as well as peace research draws on perspectives from several academic disciplines. CPS has hosted Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, high level politicians, and accomplished researchers. In Tromsø and internationally, CPS staff and affiliates have initiated and promoted projects which emphasize dialogue. In cooperation with Students’ Network for Peace and Tromsø International Film Festival (TIFF), CPS has established the annual Norwegian Peace Film Award.

Worldwide student recruitment, international collaborative research and broad outreach activities have made CPS a vehicle for UiTs internationalization strategy. The exhibition profiles CPS´s international engagement. It provides insights into life at CPS, and especially efforts at understanding and transforming conflict situations. CPS is a dynamic multicultural arena which engages students and researchers to investigate what elements may contribute to the successful management of conflicts and what alternatively can help to create peace. Centre for Peace Studies invites people from the whole of Tromsø to reflect upon how we all can contribute to peace building and conflict resolution.

Peace is a process! It must be created and nurtured!

Peace in progress! www.peace.uit.no

Milestones of CPS

1998:

Professor Ole Danbolt Mjøs proposes UiT to become the Peace University of the North - with research and education on peace, conflict resolution and human rights

1999:

UiT supports the development of a new study programme in peace, ethnicity and democracy

2000:

500 people attend the Tromsø conference Higher Education for Peace concerning the contributions of universities to peace culture in the world

2001:

The first curriculum for a two-year, English-taught master's programme in Peace and Conflict Transformation (MPCT) is developed. UiT is allocated 2 million kroner by the Bondevik Government to support the CPS/MPCT programme

2002:

In August, the first 18 students enrolled in the MPCT programme. CPS is formally established with Ole Danbolt Mjøs as Board Chairman, and Associate Professor Vidar Vambheim as acting Academic Director from December 2002

2003:

Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik gives a speech at the formal opening of CPS in November

2004:

Archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Desmond Tutu visits CPS in September. Associate Professor Peter Stuart Robinson is appointed Acting Academic Director

2005:

Professor and peace researcher Charles Webel is appointed Academic Director

2006:

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai, from Kenya, visits CPS in October

2007:

After being a five-year pilot project, CPS becomes a permanent unit at the University of Tromsø. Rachel Caroline Papa from Norway was the 50^th Master’s student graduated at CPS. Professor Ida Hydle is appointed Acting Academic Director

2008:

Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of the microcredit institute Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus, from Bangladesh, visits CPS in September. Professor Tone Bleie is appointed as Academic Director

2009:

Nobel Peace Prize winner and human rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi, from Iran, visits CPS in February. Student Peace Prize Laureate 2009, Elkouria Amidane, from Western Sahara, visits CPS in March.
The Foreign Minister of Bangladesh, Dr Dipu Moni, visits CPS in April.
Leymah Gbowee screens her award winning film “Pray the Devil Back to Hell” at CPS. (later she became laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011)

2010:

CPS research strategy is adopted. Its thematic areas include: Post-War Reintegration, Land Matters, Transitional Justice, Dialogical Approaches, Post-Colonial Education and Symbolic Expressions.
Founder of the Central Asia Institute and author of Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace, Greg Mortenson, visits CPS and donates NOK 120 000.
Mahdjure Darmawan from Indonesia was student number 100 graduated at CPS.
A CPS-based expert/research group on reintegration of ex-soldiers is formed, and a 3-country study funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Somalia, Nepal and Afghanistan)

2011:

Student Peace Prize Laureate 2011 and Roma spokesman Duško Kostić, from Croatia, visits CPS in February. CPS director Tone Bleie is engaged for three months at the UN headquarters in New-York as a Counselor for 22 UN organizations involved in peace-building programs (IAWG-DDR)

2012:

The studies on reintegration in Somalia, Nepal and Afghanistan are completed and launched
Start of cooperation with Russian universities from Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, Petrozavodsk

2013:

Christine Smith-Simonsen is appointed Academic Director in January
In May a CPS delegation visits our new partners AUCA in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Thorbjørn Waal Lundsgaard- student number 150 graduated in June
The Barents Peace Education Network formally established in Tromsø during the BPEN start-up conference in Tromsø 18-22. November 2013
In December, a CPS delegation visits our partners Project Haiti at Port au Prince

2014:

CPS hosts the NFU Conference 2014 “On Whose Terms?”
Managing Communication in Collaborative Development Research Venue: University of Tromsø, Tromsø
CPS co-arrange the workshop “Managing Diversity” with partner AUCA in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
BPEN 1 Practical Peace Work training session in Lillehammer in October
BPEN 2 Practical Peace Work training session in Murmansk in December
International winter school in Karelia, Russia (November 2014)
Conference “FRONTIER - COLDFRONT - PEACEFRONT. Celebrating 200 years of

Northern Peace” (November 2014)

2015:

CPS workshop “Local Peace Processes in the context of Global Governance”, January 2015
CPS-PRIO Workshop “Obstacles to peacebuilding in Eastern Africa” in May 2015
CPS co-arrange a summer school with AUCA at Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan
CPS hosts the EuPRA conference “THE FRAMING OF EUROPE: Peace Perspectives on Europe’s Future” (September 2015)
International winter school in Karelia, Russia (November 2015)
Debendra Bahadur Thapa- graduated student 200 in (December 2015)

2016:

In April, CPS contributed to a Boko Haram seminar, hosted by VCS. Multiple factors under-pin the motivations and violent acts of Boko Haram. The seminar attempted to elucidate some of the reasons that lead many civilians to support or join the organization
Start of cooperation with 2 universities in Japan: TOYO university and Tokyo Univeristy of Foreign Studies
Meeting of BPEN partners in Tromsø and Reed cross street mediation course (May 2016)
International BPEN symposium for students and teachers in Murmansk (May 2016)
International winter school in Karelia, Russia (November 2016)

2017:

Start of EPSE collaboration (Eurasia Peace Studies Exchange) Georgia, Ukraine, Kirgizstan, Germany, Norway
Research seminar in St. Petersburg, Russia “Theories of Conflict. Norwegian and Russian Perspectives” with a participation of scholars from UiT, NTNU and 5 Russian universities
CPS organizes international conference “Understanding Peace in the Arctic “ in June 2017
Student number 239 graduated MPCT in June 2017