This talk is based on an ongoing collaborative research project which investigates how different regional and security organizations implement the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda across Europe, Africa, and Asia. Focused on the African Union and its related regional economic communities, this presentation will discuss the mapping of communities of practice in this field and how they set priorities on women, peace, and security in a shifting geo-political landscape. This talk will focus on the practices and networks developed and promoted by key women in the region, from the negotiation of National and Regional Actions Plans to recent interventions in the Sahel.
Dr. Yolande Bouka is an Assistant Professor of gender and politics and international relations at Queen’s University in Canada. She is the co-director of Research Network on Women, Peace, and Security, a program funded by the Department of National Defence (Canada). Prior to her academic appointment, she worked as a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in the Conflict Prevention and Risk Analysis Division, focusing on Africa’s Great Lakes Region. Her research focuses on gender, political violence, and race and international relations. The key questions driving her multidisciplinary research agenda is how vulnerable groups and individuals understand and navigate structural and political violence and how these experiences influence the social and political landscapes of conflict-affected societies. Her current research is a multi-sited historical and political analysis of female combatants in Southern Africa. She is also a co-investigator on a project comparing how regional organization such as NATO, ASEAN, and the African Union implement the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda. Her research has received support from the Fulbright Scholar Program, the American Association of University Women, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
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This event is co-sponsored by the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School and the Program on Negotiation (PON) at Harvard Law School.
Persons with disabilities who would like to request accommodations or have questions about physical access may contact Laura Botero at laura_botero@hks.harvard.edu or 617-384-7575 in advance of the program or visit.