Fragility & Peace


Despite declines in interstate conflict, violence prompted by weak institutions, protracted grievances, broken social compacts, illicit transnational networks, and outside intervention have redefined notions of conflict and fragility. ISE seeks to unpack these new collective understandings, exploring features of conflict and violence and broader drivers such as climate change, poor social cohesion, and migration. We are supporting new and innovative perspectives on peacebuilding, informed by comprehensive analyses of modern peace processes.

Event | When Everything is a Priority - ISE at the World Bank's Fragility Forum

The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the acute leadership challenges during shock events – decision-making, sequencing and strategy are made more challenging yet profoundly more critical. In periods of crisis – whether it be conflict, political…

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COVID-19 Makes the Case for Getting Development in Fragile States Right

Photo: World Bank Group This article originally appeared in Abt Associate’s Governance and Development Soapbox Blog By Nelly Mecklenburg and Jessica Mackenzie What does the COVID-19 response and commitments for more effective development in fragile states have…

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Sharing Community Response and Recovery Actions During COVID-19

ISE is working with the Movement for Community Led Development, and community-led organizations globally to collate and share ways in which CLD and CDD have been responding to the primary and secondary effects of the…

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Re-examining the Terms of Aid

The goal of development in fragile states is well established: to help forge pathways out of fragility towards self-reliance and to deliver inclusive and sustainable social, economic, and security outcomes for citizens. The way to…

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Participatory Development: The Case for Substantive Facilitation

Afghanistan’s Citizens’ Charter program is national in scope, which means that the core model of facilitation must be able to adapt to a tremendously broad range of socioeconomic environments. This is particularly important as the…

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Afghanistan’s Citizens’ Charter and Inclusive Development: Afghanistan’s Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Kuchi Population in the Citizens’ Charter

Afghanistan’s nomadic and semi-nomadic populations are highly vulnerable and are generally excluded from development interventions. The Citizens’ Charter aims to work with this population to provide key services. This brief sets out key areas that…

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