The launch of the 6th NI Peace Monitoring Report took place on 21 December 2023 at the headquarters of the Community Relations Council (CRC) in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The event included input from the Chair of the Peace Monitor Report Steering Group, Emeritus Professor Adrian Guelke, as well as Professor Ann Marie Gray, who led the research team.
This is the 6th in the series of Northern Ireland Peace Monitoring Reports, the first of which was published in February 2012. In each case CRC has coordinated the project and published the report, with financial support from The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust.
Directly involved in the production of this Report were Professor Ann Marie Gray (UU), Dr. Jennifer Hamilton (UU), Dr. Gareth Hetherington (UU), Dr. Grainne Kelly (UU), Dr. Brendan Lynn (UU), Dr. Paula Devine (QUB), Dr. John Topping (QUB), Dr. Richard Martin (London School of Economics), and the Community Relations Council (CRC), supported by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Published November 2023.
Jacqueline Irwin, Chief Executive Officer of CRC, provided insight into the Peace Monitor Report.
“We are grateful to The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust for the long-term commitment to this project, without which these reports would not be possible,” Jacqueline said. “The independence of each report has been an important component of the process.”
As well as being independently funded, the Report is independently authored. It collates data that is produced independently of the report. The whole process is also overseen by an independent advisory panel which draws on a range of academic disciplines.
“Each report gathers and examines data on a wide range of topics relevant to our peace journey,” Jacqueline said. “The data is set out in an indicator framework which has four dimensions, and this has been maintained throughout the series of reports. As the reports now span over a decade, the authors have ensured that the data is gathered in a largely consistent way. The consistency of the reports structure allows us to measure the distance travelled over time towards a peaceful and inclusive society or away from it.”
The Report reveals the complex picture of events, providing the opportunity to consider them in the context of deeper stresses in society.
“This is a challenging task,” Jacqueline added. “Peace processes are not linear – this makes them difficult to monitor. They are multi-dimensional, acted on by events taking place now but also by deep memory and hurts passed from generation to generation. The process of building and sustaining peace is dynamic. Everyone is involved in large and small ways in shaping the future.”
Further Info
CRC hopes the Peace Monitor Report will be a valuable tool for shaping plans and setting the course for the contribution we all make to sustaining peace.
For all enquiries about the Report, please contact Professor Ann Marie Gray by email: am.gray@ulster.ac.uk
Read the online version of the Peace Monitor Report 6.