Author Archives: shhudson

Edited Volume Read Along: Global Systems Built on Unequal Foundations

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Edited Volume Read Along: Global Systems Built on Unequal Foundations

We have reached Part III, which is titled “Structural Inequalities.” This is a very broad and significant topic, and the essays featured in this section cover a wide range of problems and solutions. The section begins with an introduction by Dr. Kate Seaman called “Acknowledging and Addressing the Inequalities in the International System.”

In this chapter, Dr. Seaman points out the ways that the fundamental structure of our international systems plays a direct role in the possibilities and limitations of responding to global problems and building peace. Institutions like the UN were created in a period that is very different than our current moment. In 1945 there were only 74 recognized sovereign nations, while today, there are 195. Additionally, colonialism, imperialism, and racist social science, heavily influenced past conceptions of global governance. While conscious values and terminology have changed, the power and influence of that systemic inequality remain. 

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Edited Volume Read Along: How the Digital World Drives Real World Conflict

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Edited Volume Read Along: How the Digital World Drives Real World Conflict

The impact of developing technology on human life and society is so massive that it cannot be understated. It influences all areas of life for communities around the world. Despite this ubiquity, peacebuilders often think of technology as separate from the realm of and forces that generate conflict in the physical world. One way to conceptualize technology is as a tool, implicitly neutral but capable of being used for great good or great evil, depending on how it is wielded. In their chapter “Understanding Digital Conflict Drivers,” authors Helena Puig Larrauri and Maude Morrison present a different framework through which to view technology. In their view, technology is not separate from conflict but operates as an integral part of the forces that drive conflict in the modern era. Technology is not inherently bad, but as a significant part of life, it is also a significant part of conflict. 

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The Foundation of Colonialism in Thought

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The Foundation of Colonialism in Thought

This is an insight written by Stella Hudson on the recent Bahá’í Chair for World Peace Lecture by Dr. Olivia Rutazibwa on “Dignity, Repair & Retreat: reflections on anticolonial and anti-racist solidarity” held on April 5, 2022.

In her talk “Dignity, Repair & Retreat: reflections on anticolonial and anti-racist solidarity” Dr. Olivia Umurerwa Rutazibwa, touches on the many ways that our history of colonialism has shaped our current ways of thinking and epistemic paradigms. So much of how we create and value information and knowledge is centered around western and white ways of thinking. Further, people from marginalized regions and identities, non-white, non-western voices are often actively censored. Acknowledging this unequal framework that upholds much of our intellectual, imagined, and academic spaces can be difficult, as we are steeped in this ideology at every level of development. 

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Edited Volume Read Along: What Are Our Twitter Alternatives?

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Edited Volume Read Along: What Are Our Twitter Alternatives?

In his article “Decentralized Networks vs. The Trolls,” author Derek Caelin discusses the Fediverse. It’s a combination of the words federation and universe, and it is something I had never heard of until reading this chapter. The Fediverse is made up of a number of alternatives to popular social media sites, and they all rely on software developed by ActivityPub. Rather than hosting all users on one central website like Twitter or YouTube, the Fediverse is made up of individual servers that can all communicate with each other, creating opportunities for more niche communities and broader communication. 

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Edited Volume Read Along: Peace Engineering, Peace Data, and Peace Finance

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Edited Volume Read Along: Peace Engineering, Peace Data, and Peace Finance

Chapter 7 is titled “Peace Data, Peace Finance, and Peace Engineering: Advancing the Design of Respectful Spaces and Sustainable Development Goals.” In it, authors Aniek van Kersen, Joseph B. Hughes, Margarita Quihuis, and Mark Nelson discuss ways that new ideologies and methodologies that promote peace can be incorporated into new fields. They particularly focus on engineering, data science, and finance, as well as the synergies they find between these three disciplines. 

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Edited Volume Read Along: The Power of Technology

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Edited Volume Read Along: The Power of Technology

For everyone who is keeping up with our read-along, we’ve finished Part I! Now on to Part II: Technology and Peace. 

In her chapter “ Utilizing Technology for Peace: Seeking New Solutions,” Dr. Kate Seaman sets the tone for this section by raising many complex questions about the role that technology plays in our lives and in global peace. Technological advancements can present exciting opportunities and aid the world in previously unimagined ways. However, like most things, they require critical evaluation and analysis to help mitigate the potential negative repercussions they can bring. New technologies present new ethical and moral quandaries that deserve significant attention and discussion. 

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Edited Volume Read Along: Challenging Authority and Responsibility

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Edited Volume Read Along: Challenging Authority and Responsibility

In her chapter “Fragmented Responsibility in a Global World,” Author Charlotte Ku asks many questions about authority, liability, and obligation.  She begins with a discussion of what responsibilities exist between individual sovereign states. In general, a nation will act in its own best interest, however, in an interconnected world, and especially one desirous of peace, the limit on the actions of one state is when it begins infringing on the sovereignty of another. Continue reading

Edited Volume Read Along: Global Governance Frozen in Time

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Edited Volume Read Along: Global Governance Frozen in Time

In his chapter “New Thinking About Global Governance in an Intermestic World,” author Professor W. Andy Knight looks at the failings of the past in order to prescribe solutions for more effective global governance in the future. He points out that the state of the world since the cold war has become more globalized and disordered. These forces have led to increasing wealth disparity, competition over resources, and social conflict.  Continue reading

Edited Volume Read Along: Democratization, Globalization, and Compassion: The Challenges and Hope for the Future

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Edited Volume Read Along: Democratization, Globalization, and Compassion: The Challenges and Hope for the Future

Professor Craig N . Murphy begins his chapter “Where Democratization and Globalization Meet” with an interesting thought experiment. He calls it a “democratic solution to a global problem.” The problem he addresses is one whose global reach is clear: Climate Change. The disruptive and devastating impact of human industry on the ecological well-being of the Earth is widespread, and while blame is rightly skewed towards wealthy industrialized nations, the consequences affect everyone. 

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New Edited Volume: Fundamental Challenges to Global Peace and Security

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New Edited Volume: Fundamental Challenges to Global Peace and Security

The introduction to Fundamental Challenges to Global Peace and Security: The Future of Humanity begins, “world society faces immediate and long-term threats to peace and security” (Mahmoudi et al., 2022, 1). Given the current combative climate in the world, these words feel all the more hauntingly prescient. 

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Echoes of the Past: Invisibility and Racism

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Echoes of the Past: Invisibility and Racism

This is an insight written by Stella Hudson on the recent Bahá’í Chair for World Peace Lecture by Professor Yohuru Williams on “Simply Because People Refuse to See Me: Black Lives Matter in Historical Context” held on February 8, 2022.

In many ways, this contemporary moment feels unique. The after-effects of 2020 and the ongoing pandemic, the January 6th insurrection, Trump’s presidency, our reckoning with police violence against people of color, anti-Asian sentiments; so many tensions seem to be boiling to the surface. However, Dr. Yohuru Williams’s talk “Simply Because People Refuse to See Me: Black Lives Matter in Historical Context” points out a very significant aspect of our current moment: none of this is new at all. Our contemporary phenomena are echoes of history and reflect the issues, questions, violence, prejudice, and activism of the past. 

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How Big a Crisis is Necessary to Force the World to Work Together?

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How Big a Crisis is Necessary to Force the World to Work Together?

Millions of people have died from a  virus that does not respect national sovereignty or borders. The impact of the pandemic has been immediate and devastating. Short of halting all travel and going into total lockdown, there is no way to contain Covid-19 and all of its variants. We already know from experience that lockdowns and travel bans are ineffective, extremely unpleasant, and detrimental to economies. As in so many situations, the very wealthy will make it through this relatively unscathed, but where does that leave everyone else?

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My Fall Semester with the Baha’i Chair – Stella Hudson

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My Fall Semester with the Baha’i Chair – Stella Hudson

As the semester comes to an end, our interns are taking time to reflect on their work with the Bahá’í Chair for World Peace. The second post comes from our Graduate Assistant, Stella Hudson. 

Starting a new chapter can be daunting, especially in a time filled with such uncertainty. I graduated from college during the pandemic. My junior and senior years were unconventional and were filled with much excitement and also a significant dose of disappointment. I had no idea what to expect from Grad School, but I knew I needed to find a job. 

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Treating the Disease: Street Names as Symptoms of Confederate Legacies

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Treating the Disease: Street Names as Symptoms of Confederate Legacies

This is an insight written by Stella Hudson on the recent Bahá’í Chair for World Peace Lecture on “Confederate Streets and Black-White Labor Market Differentials” co-sponsored by the Critical Race Initiative and the Department of African American Studies on November 16, 2021.

Maryland never seceded from the union, yet we still have plenty of streets named after Confederate figures like Robert E Lee. Houses are adorned with Confederate battle flags despite the state never being a part of the Confederacy, and the statue of Chief Justice Taney, who ruled against Dred Scott in 1857 was only recently removed from its place of honor in front of the State House in Annapolis. Because Maryland remained in the Union, the Emancipation Proclamation, delivered in January of 1863, did not free the people enslaved here. Slavery was not outlawed in Maryland until 1864. 

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Is Inequality Inevitable?

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Is Inequality Inevitable?

This is an insight written by Stella Hudson on the recent Bahá’í Chair for World Peace Symposium on “Inequalities and the Increased Risk of Political Violence” co-sponsored by the Critical Race Initiative and the Department of African American Studies on  October 12, 2021.

What does class inequality have to do with health? According to Professor Kate Pickett, a lot. Dr. Pickett is an epidemiologist, but in her talk “How more equal societies reduce stress, restore sanity, and improve everyone’s wellbeing” she discusses exactly how inequality is bad for public health and well-being and came armed with the statistics to prove it.  Continue reading

Costly Violence

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Costly Violence

This is an insight written by Stella Hudson on the recent Bahá’í Chair for World Peace Symposium on “Inequalities and the Increased Risk of Political Violence” co-sponsored by the Critical Race Initiative and the Department of African American Studies on  October 12, 2021.

What images does the word “violence” conjure? Perhaps it evokes ideas of war, weapons, fistfights, domestic violence, or even violent movies, or cartoon violence. For most people, it does not naturally lead to thoughts of economics. However, this is the connection that Professor Anke Heofler focused on in her October 12th talk, “What are the Global Costs of Violence?” as part of the Inequalities and the Increased Risk of Political Violence Symposium.  Continue reading