Generating Respect for Humanitarian Norms: The Influence of Religious Leaders on Parties to Armed Conflict
Lead Research Organisation:
University of York
Department Name: York Law School
Abstract
Humanitarian norms aim to 'humanise' war by requiring parties to armed conflict to protect civilians from attacks, detainees from abuse, and to facilitate humanitarian assistance. Yet, across the globe and all too often, civilians are killed, detainees are ill-treated, and hospitals and aid convoys are bombed. This situation portrays the need for the identification of new approaches aimed at generating greater compliance with humanitarian norms. This project proposes such a novel approach. It focuses on the role that religious leaders (can) play in influencing state and non-state armed actors to internalise humanitarian norms with the ultimate aim of enhancing the protection of members of communities affected by war.
The project is premised on the observation that religious leaders of various faiths have over the past decades put forward interpretations of religion that further the respect of humanitarian norms or, on the contrary, that come in direct conflict with them. In so doing, religious leaders are relying on a special type of legitimacy anchored in tradition or charisma, which shapes them as particularly influential societal actors in many conflict situations. By mapping their role in armed conflicts in Libya, Mali, Myanmar and Colombia, the project will enhance the understanding of what types of messages religious leaders put forward and how these relate to humanitarian norms. The project will seek to understand the influence of religious interpretations on the parties to the conflict through 320 interviews with religious leaders, selected current and former members of armed actors, and individuals belonging to affected communities in the four countries. By crafting and piloting guidelines for humanitarian organisations, the project will enable practitioners to engage with religious leaders on the ground with the aim to explore the most effective ways in which religious leaders can support humanitarian norms and influence parties to a conflict to comply with these norms. The perspectives of religious leaders on the role they can play to 'humanise' war, and those of members of affected communities, will be portrayed to wider audiences through 40 digital stories (short recordings with audio, video, photographic and textual material).
The project has been designed and will be developed in close partnership with the humanitarian organisation Geneva Call and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. Two other key humanitarian organisations are supporting the project and will be involved in its activities, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Diakonia Global International Humanitarian Law Centre, alongside an academic institution, the Observatory on International Humanitarian Law of the University of Buenos Aires.
The project is premised on the observation that religious leaders of various faiths have over the past decades put forward interpretations of religion that further the respect of humanitarian norms or, on the contrary, that come in direct conflict with them. In so doing, religious leaders are relying on a special type of legitimacy anchored in tradition or charisma, which shapes them as particularly influential societal actors in many conflict situations. By mapping their role in armed conflicts in Libya, Mali, Myanmar and Colombia, the project will enhance the understanding of what types of messages religious leaders put forward and how these relate to humanitarian norms. The project will seek to understand the influence of religious interpretations on the parties to the conflict through 320 interviews with religious leaders, selected current and former members of armed actors, and individuals belonging to affected communities in the four countries. By crafting and piloting guidelines for humanitarian organisations, the project will enable practitioners to engage with religious leaders on the ground with the aim to explore the most effective ways in which religious leaders can support humanitarian norms and influence parties to a conflict to comply with these norms. The perspectives of religious leaders on the role they can play to 'humanise' war, and those of members of affected communities, will be portrayed to wider audiences through 40 digital stories (short recordings with audio, video, photographic and textual material).
The project has been designed and will be developed in close partnership with the humanitarian organisation Geneva Call and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. Two other key humanitarian organisations are supporting the project and will be involved in its activities, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Diakonia Global International Humanitarian Law Centre, alongside an academic institution, the Observatory on International Humanitarian Law of the University of Buenos Aires.
Planned Impact
In addition to academic impact aimed at scholarly audiences, the project seeks to achieve societal impact of a conceptual, capacity-building, and instrumental nature for three groups of users and beneficiaries.
(1) The humanitarian sector is a primary user of this research. The humanitarian sector is an umbrella term that refers to: (i) the project partners, Geneva Call and the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief; (ii) other key humanitarian organisations including the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Diakonia Global International Humanitarian Law Centre which are explicitly supporting the project, and other humanitarian practitioners active in non-governmental organisations; (iii) experts of UN mechanisms and agencies and of other intergovernmental organisations that operate in conflict and post-conflict settings; (iv) national policy-makers with portfolios covering humanitarian aspects (foreign affairs, justice, development).
The project takes as its starting point the necessity articulated by the humanitarian sector to understand the role played by religious leaders in times of armed conflict and specifically their potential to generate greater respect for humanitarian norms. As such, it seeks to increase the sector's knowledge and understanding of the ways religious leaders do and can influence behaviour of parties to armed conflict and the ways that it might most effectively engage with religious leaders. It shall achieve this through targeted publications (tailored policy brief for Geneva Call, background study for the UN Special Rapporteur); the drawing up and piloting of Guidelines for the Effective Humanitarian Engagement with Religious Leaders and a related article published in a practitioners' journal; a series of planned events which bring together humanitarian practitioners, religious leaders and scholars; and by establishing the 'Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms' network as a permanent framework of interdisciplinary exchange on the topic. Impact generation will be facilitated by the co-production of the research with the project partners (e.g. CoI is Geneva Call staff), and the knowledge exchange and output dissemination by project supporters and the Advisory Board, which includes key staff of humanitarian organizations and members UN mechanisms working in conflict areas across the globe.
(2) Religious leaders in the case study countries (Libya, Mali, Myanmar and Colombia) are a main user group. The project seeks to increase religious leaders' knowledge and understanding of how their religious interpretations relate to humanitarian norms, foster their ownership of these norms, and build their capacity to articulate these norms to their communities. The project methodology is geared towards the participation of religious leaders in the research and the shaping of its outputs. For example, they will benefit of training on digital storytelling and participate in the making of digital stories which in turn allows for their views and perspectives to be heard; they will participate in the planned events (workshop, conference), and be integral members of the 'Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms' network. The Advisory Board itself includes a lay minister from South Africa, and the planned events will seek to attract the participation of religious leaders from other conflict settings to expand the circle of beneficiaries.
(3) Communities affected by armed conflict are the main beneficiaries of this project in the long-term. By supporting and fostering increased collaboration and facilitating engagement between the humanitarian sector and religious leaders around humanitarian norms the project seeks to contribute to strengthening the compliance with IHL and IHRL by parties to armed conflict, which in turn should result in better protection of members of communities affected by war.
(1) The humanitarian sector is a primary user of this research. The humanitarian sector is an umbrella term that refers to: (i) the project partners, Geneva Call and the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief; (ii) other key humanitarian organisations including the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Diakonia Global International Humanitarian Law Centre which are explicitly supporting the project, and other humanitarian practitioners active in non-governmental organisations; (iii) experts of UN mechanisms and agencies and of other intergovernmental organisations that operate in conflict and post-conflict settings; (iv) national policy-makers with portfolios covering humanitarian aspects (foreign affairs, justice, development).
The project takes as its starting point the necessity articulated by the humanitarian sector to understand the role played by religious leaders in times of armed conflict and specifically their potential to generate greater respect for humanitarian norms. As such, it seeks to increase the sector's knowledge and understanding of the ways religious leaders do and can influence behaviour of parties to armed conflict and the ways that it might most effectively engage with religious leaders. It shall achieve this through targeted publications (tailored policy brief for Geneva Call, background study for the UN Special Rapporteur); the drawing up and piloting of Guidelines for the Effective Humanitarian Engagement with Religious Leaders and a related article published in a practitioners' journal; a series of planned events which bring together humanitarian practitioners, religious leaders and scholars; and by establishing the 'Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms' network as a permanent framework of interdisciplinary exchange on the topic. Impact generation will be facilitated by the co-production of the research with the project partners (e.g. CoI is Geneva Call staff), and the knowledge exchange and output dissemination by project supporters and the Advisory Board, which includes key staff of humanitarian organizations and members UN mechanisms working in conflict areas across the globe.
(2) Religious leaders in the case study countries (Libya, Mali, Myanmar and Colombia) are a main user group. The project seeks to increase religious leaders' knowledge and understanding of how their religious interpretations relate to humanitarian norms, foster their ownership of these norms, and build their capacity to articulate these norms to their communities. The project methodology is geared towards the participation of religious leaders in the research and the shaping of its outputs. For example, they will benefit of training on digital storytelling and participate in the making of digital stories which in turn allows for their views and perspectives to be heard; they will participate in the planned events (workshop, conference), and be integral members of the 'Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms' network. The Advisory Board itself includes a lay minister from South Africa, and the planned events will seek to attract the participation of religious leaders from other conflict settings to expand the circle of beneficiaries.
(3) Communities affected by armed conflict are the main beneficiaries of this project in the long-term. By supporting and fostering increased collaboration and facilitating engagement between the humanitarian sector and religious leaders around humanitarian norms the project seeks to contribute to strengthening the compliance with IHL and IHRL by parties to armed conflict, which in turn should result in better protection of members of communities affected by war.
Publications
Assaleh M
(2020)
Mapping of Armed Conflicts & Religious Leaders' Involvement in Mali
Cismas I
(2021)
Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law, Volume 22 (2019)
| Title | Digital Stories Series: "Reflections on Mali - Religious Leadership, Armed Conflict, and Respect for Humanitarian Norms" |
| Description | The 'Reflections on Mali' series comprises five short videos that capture the viewpoints of religious leaders, policy analysts, and humanitarians on the role of religious leadership in the context of the Malian armed conflicts. The participants in the videos are: - Mohamed Ahmad El Ansari, President of the Collective Council of Young Nomads for Action and Development - Sylla Fatoumata Cissé, Technical advisor, Ministry of Edducation, Mali - Alphadi Wangara, Iman of the Sisi Yahu mosque, Timbuktu - Aminata Samaké, Responsible of programme, Diakonia International Humanitarian Law Centre - Thierno Hady Thiam, Vice-president, High Islamic Council of Mali & President of the working group "Human rights and religions" The videos were produced by Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini and are based on filmed interviews carried out by Piergiuseppe Parisi and Mohamed Assaleh in 2021 in Mali, as part of the fieldwork for the Generating Respect Project. The videos are in French with English subtitles. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | The Generating Respect Project team has received positive feedback from stakeholders concerning the videos and their co-production. The view count for each of the five videos can be seen on the Generating Respect Project YouTube channel: @generatingrespectproject |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Title | GRP Researchers in Conversation, Episode 1: "Religious Leaders & Armed Conflict in Colombia" |
| Description | GRP Researchers in Conversation: Religious Leaders & Armed Conflicts is a video series launched in 2021 that draws on research findings from the project Generating Respect for Humanitarian Norms: The Influence of Religious Leaders on Parties to Armed Conflict. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Impact | This video seeks to make the Generating Respect Project research accessible to wider professional audiences and the general public and was publicised on YouTube (view count available here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMBrUv48Yjo&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.generatingrespectproject.org%2F&feature=emb_logo) and social media. |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Title | GRP Researchers in Conversation, Episode 2: "Religion and Compliance in War" |
| Description | In the second episode of GRP Researchers in Conversation, Professor Emiliano Buis engages us in a discussion of religion and compliance in war. Professor Emiliano J. Buis is Chair of Public International Law, International Humanitarian Law and Law of Disarmament, Non-Proliferation and Weapons Control at the University of Buenos Aires Law School and the Director of the Observatory of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). He is a member of the Generating Respect Project Advisory Board. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | This video seeks to make the Generating Respect Project research accessible to wider professional audiences and the general public. It was publicised on YouTube (views count: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rze-NJPHs4g&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.generatingrespectproject.org%2F&feature=emb_logo) and social media. |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Title | GRP Researchers in Conversation, Episode 3: "Female religious leadership in Mali and the camera" |
| Description | What are the challenges of generating knowledge about the role of religious leaders in a conflict-ridden country like Mali through videos? What can the camera capture and communicate more effectively than academic articles? How can the visibility of a Muslim female religious leader contribute to empowering women in Mali? Dr Piergiuseppe Parisi, (University of York) addresses these questions in conversation with filmmaker Mr Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini and Malian religious leader Madame Cissé Zeinab Keita as part of the 72nd Political Studies Association (PSA) Conference. The event was conceived as a reflection on the fieldwork that Dr Parisi and Mr Braguinsky Cascini conducted in Mali in July-August 2021 as part of the Generating Respect Project, an ESRC-funded research project hosted at the Centre for Applied Human Rights and York Law School, and, in particular, on their encounter with inspiring Madame Cissé. It brings together the perspectives of a researcher, a filmmaker, and a research participant. This event complemented the exhibition of the digital story 'Madame Cissé, prédicatrice de l'équité' during the PSA Conference. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | This video seeks to make the Generating Respect Project research accessible to wider professional audiences and the general public. It also aims to engage into a conversation on using digital storytelling as part of applied research, hence its presentation during the PSA Conference in 2022. View count on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMbdBRxBN8w&t=10s |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Title | GRP digital story: "Madame Cissé, prédicatrice de l'équité" |
| Description | The digital story Madame Cissé, prédicatrice de l'équité was produced by Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini and is based on filmed interviews conducted by Piergiuseppe Parisi and Mohamed Assaleh in 2021 in Mali, as part of the fieldwork for the Generating Respect Project. Ioana Cismas and Ezequiel Heffes have also contributed with content and feedback. This video is in French with English subtitles. It forms part of the Geneva Peace Week 2021 digital series A Leap of Faith: Effective Engagement between Religious Actors, Humanitarians and Peacebuilders. The digital series is co-organised by the International Center on Religion and Democracy, Inclusive Peace, the United States Institute of Peace, the Centre for Applied Human Rights and Geneva Call. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | The Generating Respect Project uses digital stories both as a research method and an impact generation tool. |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Title | GRP digital story: "Mahmoud Dicko, l'imam qui appartient à la terre" |
| Description | The digital story "Mahmoud Dicko, l'imam qui appartient à la terre" was produced by Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini and is based on filmed interviews carried out by Piergiuseppe Parisi and Mohamed Assaleh in 2021 in Mali, as part of the fieldwork for the Generating Respect Project. Ioana Cismas and Ezequiel Heffes have also contributed with content and feedback. This video is in French with English subtitles. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | Digital stories were used as a research method and impact generation tool in both Mali and Colombia with the quadripartite purpose of (a) providing participants with the opportunity to link the research themes to their personal lived experiences; (b) making the research material more accessible to a wider, non-academic audience; (c) providing visibility to communities affected by the conflict, as well as actors who strive to mitigate the consequences of armed conflicts including religious actors; and (d) keeping an audio-visual record of the field research process. In addition, the audio-visual material gathered provides invaluable contextual information that will help the viewer to situate the research in its context. The digital storytelling consultant and the researchers prioritised at all times the security and wellbeing of the participants. The development of the final digital output is a collaborative process during which the digital storytelling consultant and the researchers collaborate closely to ensure that the output captures information that is relevant and representative of the research findings. In turn, this process stimulates a dialogue between professionals with different backgrounds and generates conversations around the role of the digital language as a tool to both communicate the research findings and generate new empirical data. |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Title | GRP digital story: "The Catholic Church and Armed Groups" |
| Description | The digital story "The Catholic and Armed Group" draws on interviews conducted by Piergiuseppe Parisi and Yolvi Lena Padilla Sepulveda in 2022 and 2023 in Colombia, as part of the fieldwork for the Generating Respect Project. Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini produced the video. The video is in Spanish with English subtitles. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | This digital story was presented as part of the workshop "Liderazgos Religiosos En El Conflicto Armado Colombiano: Retos Y Oportunidades", organised by the University of York's Centre for Applied Human Rights and the York Law School in partnership with the University of Cauca, on 13 March 2023 in Popayan. The conference was targeted towards scholars, humanitarian practitioners, religious leaders and former members of armed groups in Colombia. |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/resources |
| Description | The Generating Respect Project addressed the following overarching research question: How do religious leaders influence the behaviour of State and non-State parties to armed conflicts and can their religious interpretations lead to humanitarian norms-compliance? The answer is a resounding yes - the research has established that religious leaders can and do influence armed actors' compliance with international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Our key findings, summarised below, will have particular relevance to humanitarians, donors supporting norms-compliance activities, scholars across multiple disciplines, and religious leaders. 1. Who and what are religious leaders? The Generating Research Project proposes a broad definition of religious leadership drawing on an interdisciplinary literature review and empirical evidence gathered through over 250 interviews. Religious leaders are actors that: - Have a formal or informal affiliation to religion, spirituality, or belief, - Make a claim of special legitimacy - anchored predominantly in charisma or tradition to interpret religion and to persuade or command obedience from followers, communities, or other actors, - Exercise leadership individually or collectively, through formal or informal groups, networks, organisations, or institutions, - Operate as State or non-State actors, - Are most often institutionally external to armed actors, yet can also be part of their political or military structures. Informal and collective expressions of religious leadership are important because they correct for intra- and extra-religious exclusions, which usually manifest themselves in relation to women and minorities. Female religious leaders are not visible to the humanitarian or scholar's eye not because they do not exist, but because often they are excluded from visible, formal authority positions or choose to express their leadership collectively. 2. How do religious leaders influence armed actors? The mechanisms of social influence at their disposal (persuasion and legitimate control, as well as in some circumstances coercive control) and the sources of legitimation on which they draw (tradition and charisma) explain the ability of religious leaders to achieve deeper forms of socialisation compared to those generally available to rational-legal authorities, such as law-enforcement agencies, courts, and parliaments. 3. Their influence on humanitarian norms-compliance can be classified by type, nature, and outcome of impact. Religious leaders can influence armed actors directly, which presupposes the existence of direct access and channels of communication between them, or indirectly, mediated by other societal actors, communities, or individuals within the armed body. In the first case, we find religious leaders attached to State armed forces and non-State armed group's military wings - they are religious personnel. We also find them leading political departments or acting as military commander and supreme religious authority of non-State armed groups, thus co-founding military and religious structures. 4. The majority of religious leaders, however, are institutionally external to armed actors - the priest, the imam, and the rabbi, but also, a pastor's wife who negotiates humanitarian access with non-State armed groups, a high Islamic council that demands the release of detainees, a Buddhist monastery that offers shelter and food to civilians of all faiths and none displaced by a military junta, or the children, women and men forming the Indigenous Guard, a collective institution of self-protection coloured with a spiritual shade. 5. The outcome of religious leaders' influence on armed actors' behaviour can be positive - leading to, or encouraging, norms-compliance - or negative - leading to, or justifying, violations. Finally, the impact of this influence can be lasting and profound, resulting in the internalisation of norms or temporary and superficial in which instances behavioural conformity stops when promise of rewards and threats of violence cease, or the desire for group identification ends. 6. Most importantly, for operational purposes, the research has shown that influence is a relational process shaped by: - Endogenous factors to both religious leaders and armed actors. These can include values, objectives, and ideology; ethnic, cultural, or social background; organisational structure; access and communication channels; position on international humanitarian norms. - Contextual factors, including conflict dynamics, perception of religious leaders and armed actors; and relation with and involvement of third parties. Understanding the interaction between these factors in practice allows for a contextualised assessment of religious leaders' actual and potential influence on armed actors. It also provides clarity in two other respects: religion is not - and thus should not be essentialised as - the explanatory variable of religious leaders' influence, nor is the outcome of this influence (positive/ negative) predetermined by it. 7. Why to engage? Engagement appears the evident path considering the access, social and religious capital that religious leaders possess, and the role they can play as norm-compliance influencers. We present a more nuanced perspective. Engagement can be driven by pragmatic, necessity, and value-based arguments, or a combination thereof. It often occurs against a background of (very real) risks for religious leaders and various challenges for humanitarian organisations. It also requires a level of commitment to understand, learn, care, and perhaps feel. Engagement may not always fit with a humanitarian organisation's goals, mandates, priorities, capacity, and resources. |
| Exploitation Route | The Generating Respect Project has been designed to respond to a practical need identified by our project partner Geneva Call, and other humanitarian organisations. 1) At a very practical level, the academic, digital and operational outputs of the project, provide evidence and guidance for the humanitarian sector and religious leaders on why and how to engage with each other, with the ultimate aim of enhancing humanitarian protection of communities affected by war. As noted in the Narrative Impact section, some project partners are already operationalising the research findings. 2) At a theoretical and methodological level, we hope that the Generating Respect Project outputs will a) strengthen the trend of understanding norms-compliance as an eminently interdisciplinary field; and b) focus the attention of scholars on the potentialities of co-productive research conducted with practitioners. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org |
| Description | Based on consultations with project partners, broader knowledge exchange activities (see Engagement Activities), and informal discussions with humanitarian practitioners, donors, and religious leaders, we can preliminary identify three types of impact emerging from the Generating Respect Project, as follows: 1) Instrumental impact - This strand of impact is particularly noticeable in respect to Geneva Call, the project partner. The co-productive manner in which this project was developed over the past three years - enabled by the openness of the humanitarian organisation to work with academia - has resulted in findings and outputs (some general, some specifically tailored to Geneva Call's mandate, priorities and needs) that have shaped the development of organisational policy. At this stage, one department is implementing the bespoke strategy for humanitarian engagement with religious leaders developed by the Generating Respect Project and providing feedback on the experience. Another department is keen to replicate the Generating Respect Project (conflict mapping, interviews, development of strategy, operationalisation) in another region. There is strong, mutual interest that the partnership between the University of York and Geneva Call extends beyond the formal end of the Generating Respect Project. 2) Conceptual impact and capacity-building. The Generating Respect Project has set out to provide the conceptual and empirical evidence base for understanding how religious leaders act as influencers of armed actors' behaviour in armed conflict, why and how humanitarians should engage with them, and why donors should support such activities. It is too early to judge whether the conceptualisations and practical recommendations provided in the Considerations and Guidance on the Humanitarian Engagement with Religious Leaders have had a conceptual or capacity-building impact in the humanitarian field. Nonetheless, even at this early stage, our engagements suggests an increased interest in religious leaders as relevant actors in humanitarian norms-compliance work from some humanitarian organisations and donors. Some humanitarians have invited the Generating Respect Project research team to provide talks or trainings and build capacity within their organisations for this specific type of humanitarian engagement. Importantly, many religious leaders (and in particular female religious leaders) who had been involved in the Generating Respect Project as research participants, events' attendees, or were otherwise consulted have expressed a keen interest to develop their capacity in the area of humanitarian norms-compliance. To support the three strands of impact and ensure the continuity of the Generating Respect Project's relevance after its formal finalisation, two new structures have been created at the Centre for Applied Human Rights at the University of York: - The Generating Respect Hub will provide operationalisble socio-legal research on norms-compliance in armed conflict that focuses on and leverages the influence potential of societal actors, including but not limited to religious leaders. Distinctively, the Hub will develop research projects co-productively, in partnership with, and embedded in interested organisations. - The Generating Respect Network is a collaborative platform for religious actors, practitioners and scholars working in or on conflict, crisis, and post-conflict contexts. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy |
| Impact Types | Policy & public services |
| Description | Influence on policy and practice of project partner |
| Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
| Policy Influence Type | Contribution to new or improved professional practice |
| Description | Discretionary Funding (Impact) |
| Amount | £2,235 (GBP) |
| Organisation | University of York |
| Department | York Law School |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 02/2023 |
| End | 03/2023 |
| Title | Key informant and stakeholders interviews - Libya |
| Description | Between 10 December 2021 an 9 March 2022, 10 interviews were conducted with security/conflict experts, religious leaders, tribal leaders and social council members. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The data is being used to develop academic, digital and policy outputs of the Generating Respect Project. |
| Title | Key informant and stakeholders interviews - Syria |
| Description | During the period 28 October - 23 December 2021, 21 interviews were carried out with academic experts, humanitarians, armed actors based in or with relevant knowledge of Syria. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The data is being used to develop academic, digital and policy outputs of the Generating Respect Project. |
| Title | Key informant interviews - Colombia |
| Description | The Generating Respect Project has conducted 30 interviews with scholars and humanitarian practitioners with expertise in the conflict dynamics and role of religious leaders in armed conflicts in Colombia. The interviews were conducted by Jonathan Zaragoza and Yolvi Padilla. The aim of the interview findings is to facilitate the testing of the project hypotheses, and to inform and shape the in-country data collection strategy. The dataset is confidential. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The interviews have been transcribed and translated (where needed) and are currently being analysed. Some of the preliminary findings have been published in Assaleh M, Padilla Y, Rush C, Sloan L, Zaragoza-Cristiani J. (2020) "Religious leaders as brokers of humanitarian norm-compliance: Insights from the cases of Colombia, Libya, Mali and Myanmar" and Zaragoza- Cristiani, J. (2020), "Generating Respect for Humanitarian Norms: The Influence of Religious Leaders on armed groups in Colombia" (see Publications). Further publications based on the dataset include an academic article and a book chapter (to be finalised in 2021). The findings are also instrumental in shaping the in-country fieldwork strategy. |
| Title | Key informant interviews - Mali |
| Description | The Generating Respect Project team has conducted 30 interviews with scholars and humanitarian practitioners with expertise in the conflict dynamics and role of religious leaders in armed conflicts in Mali. The interviews were conducted by Jonathan Zaragoza and Mohamed Assaleh. The aim of the interview findings is to facilitate the testing of the project hypotheses, and to inform and shape the in-country data collection strategy. The dataset is confidential. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The interviews have been transcribed and translated (where needed) and are currently being analysed. Some of the preliminary findings have been published in Assaleh M, Padilla Y, Rush C, Sloan L, Zaragoza-Cristiani J. (2020), "Religious leaders as brokers of humanitarian norm-compliance: Insights from the cases of Colombia, Libya, Mali and Myanmar" (see Publications). Further publications based on the findings include an academic article, a book chapter and policy paper for Geneva Call (to be finalised in 2021). The findings are also instrumental in shaping the in-country fieldwork strategy. |
| Title | Key informant interviews - Myanmar |
| Description | The Generating Respect Project team has conducted 24 interviews with scholars and humanitarian practitioners with expertise in the conflict dynamics and role of religious leaders in armed conflicts in Myanmar. The interviews were conducted by Christopher Rush, Khin Thet San and Ioana Cismas. The aim of the interview findings is to facilitate the testing of the project hypotheses, and to inform and shape the in-country data collection strategy. The dataset is confidential. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The interviews have been transcribed and translated (where needed) and are currently being analysed. Some of the preliminary findings have been published in Assaleh M, Padilla Y, Rush C, Sloan L, Zaragoza-Cristiani J. (2020) "Religious leaders as brokers of humanitarian norm-compliance: Insights from the cases of Colombia, Libya, Mali and Myanmar" (see Publications). Further publications based on the dataset include an academic article and a book chapter (to be finalised in 2021). The findings are also instrumental in shaping the in-country fieldwork strategy. |
| Title | Key informant interviews - Yemen |
| Description | During the period 15 October 2021 - 23 February 2022, 11 interviews were carried out with academic experts, journalists, and scholars with relevant knowledge of armed conflict in Yemen. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The data is being used to develop academic, digital and policy outputs of the Generating Respect Project. |
| Title | Stakeholders interviews - Colombia |
| Description | During the period 28 January - 20 February 2022, Generating Respect Project researchers conducted fieldwork in Colombia. They have conducted: - 23 research interviews with religious and spiritual leaders, indigenous and peasant communities, former guerrilla members, lawyers, civil servants and scholars; - 10 video interviews with religious leaders, indigenous and peasant communities, former guerrilla members and civil servants. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The data is being used to develop academic, digital and policy outputs of the Generating Respect Project. |
| Title | Stakeholders interviews - Mali |
| Description | During the period 24 July - 19 August, Generating Respect Project researchers conducted fieldwork in Mali. They have conducted: - 16 research interviews with religious scholars, religious leaders, armed actors, and civil servants - 10 short video interviews with humanitarian workers, policy analysts, religious leaders and religious scholars; - 5 long video interviews with two imams, one female religious leader and scholar, and high level civil servants. 2 of these interviews have been published as digital stories, see section on Artistic outputs. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The data is being used to develop academic, digital and policy outputs of the Generating Respect Project. |
| Title | Stakeholders interviews - Thailand/Myanmar |
| Description | During the period October 2021 - February 2022, an associate of the Generating Respect Project conducted fieldwork in one state in Myanmar, conducting 9 interviews with religious leaders, members of armed groups, member of political party and member of civil society organisations. Generating Respect Project conducted 25 further interviews with actors involved or affected by armed conflicts in Myanmar during their Feb-March fieldwork trip to the Thai region bordering Myanmar. The interviewees are: religious leaders, current armed actors, members of diaspora communities, women's organisations, local and international humanitarian and human rights organisations. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | The data is being used to develop academic, digital and policy outputs of the Generating Respect Project. |
| Description | Collaboration with the Observatory on International Humanitarian Law, School of Law, University of Buenos Aires |
| Organisation | University of Buenos Aires |
| Country | Argentina |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The research team has sought to link and provide a platform for the relevant work of the Observatory on International Humanitarian Law at the School of Law of the University of Buenos Aires to the Generating Respect Project. This has been achieved through participation of the director of the Observatory in project events (see below). |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Observatorio de Derecho Internacional Humanitario at the School of Law of the University of Buenos Aires has provided support to the Generating Respect Project through the participation of its director on the research's Advisory Board and facilitation of contacts. Feedback on project outputs, suggestions for key informants, and inputs into how to develop the research further were particularly helpful. |
| Impact | Participation in two project events/outputs: - Generating Compliance With Humanitarian Norms: The Less-Explored Avenues, Geneva, May 2020 - Online Symposium on Compliance in Armed Conflict, 2020, with the contribution titled "Beyond Law, Beyond Reason: The Role of Emotions in Generating Compliance with International Humanitarian Law" |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | Partnership with Geneva Call |
| Organisation | Geneva Call |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | The Generating Respect Project developed a strong and fruitful partnership with the humanitarian organisation Geneva Call. The contributions made by the research team to this partnership include: 1) co-production of research and several research outputs; 2) provision of empirical findings and conceptual frameworks to inform Geneva Call's policy of engagement with religious leaders; 3) design of a bespoke Geneva Call Strategy for Engaging Religious Leaders in a specific region, drawing on the Generating Respect Project findings; 4) co-organisation of online events and workshops in Mali and Jordan; 5) participation in Geneva Call strategic meetings and consultations in the area of the project; 6) mentoring and capacity building (research skills) for Geneva Call researchers. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Geneva Call make a fundamental contributed to the development of the Generating Respect Project proposal. The organisation's knowledge of local contexts and facilitation of access to local stakeholders and networks have been instrumental in the project's implementation during its entire life-span. Illustrative of the close collaboration and co-productivity of the research are the following aspects. 1) Ezequiel Heffes, Geneva Call's senior policy and legal advisor was the co-investigator of the Generating Respect Project. He provided strategic conceptual and operational support; 2) Geneva Call staff in various countries have contributed to the Generating Respect Project research and the implementation of operational findings. Specifically, a) they led or have been involved in the mapping of armed conflicts and religious leaders in Mali and Libya; b) in arranging and/or conducting interviews with humanitarian practitioners, religious leaders, armed actors and members of local communities; c) in co-drafting project outputs and providing feedback; d) in implementing project findings including by developing specific activities and engagement. 4) Contributing with funding to the research on Syria and Yemen; 5) Project events co-organisation; 6). Staff in Geneva Call headquarters and country offices met regularly with the project's PI and CoI and the wider research team to ensure the smooth running of the research and impact-generation. 6) The organisation was also represented on the project's Advisory Board. |
| Impact | The following outputs have resulted from this collaboration: 1. Cismas I, Heffes E. (2021). Not the Usual Suspects: Religious Leaders as Influencers of International Humanitarian Law Compliance. Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law, Volume 22 (2019). (pp. 125-150). 2. Assaleh M, (2020). Mapping of Armed Conflicts & Religious Leaders' Involvement in Mali. 3. Assaleh M, Padilla Y, Rush C, Sloan L, Zaragoza-Cristiani J. (2020). Religious leaders as brokers of humanitarian norm-compliance: Insights from the cases of Colombia, Libya, Mali and Myanmar. 4. Heffes, E, Cismas I. (2020). Online Symposium on Compliance in Armed Conflict. 5. Heffes, E, Cismas I. (2020). New Avenues to Generate Respect for Humanitarian Norms: Introduction to the Symposium on Compliance in Armed Conflict. 6. Key informant interviews - Mali (2020) 7. Stakeholder interviews - Mali (2021) 8. Co-organisation of workshop with religious leaders in Bamako in July 2021. 9. Bongard P. (2021) Consultancy report on engagement with religious leaders in Mali. 10. Cismas I., Heffes E. (2021), The Generating Respect Project - Examining Religious Leaders as Influencers of Norm-Compliance in Armed Conflict 11. El Jamali H (2021), Mapping of Armed Conflicts and Religious Leaders' Involvement in Libya 12. Contributions of Abenza O.A., Assaleh M., El Jamali H., Furlan M. to conference papers presented at the Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms Compliance in Armed Conflict: Roles, Influence, Engagement, 8-10 December 2021. 13. Assaleh M., Parisi P. (2022), Atelier de réflexion sur l'influence des leaders religieux sur les acteurs armés dans la cadre du respect de normes humanitaires au Mali: Rapport finale. 14. Furlan M (2022) Mapping of Armed Conflict and Religious Leaders' Involvement in Syria 15. Furlan M (2022) Mapping of the Armed Conflict in Yemen and the Involvement of Religious and Tribal Leaders 16. Support with fieldwork mission to Thailand/border with Myanmar in 2022 17. Furlan M, El Jamali H, Cismas I. (2022). Geneva Call Strategy for Engaging Religious Leaders in Yemen, Syria, and Libya. 18. Co-organisation of Expert Workshop on "The Role of Religious Leaders in Generating Respect for Humanitarian Norms", Amman, 23 May 2022 |
| Start Year | 2020 |
| Description | "A Leap of Faith: Effective Engagement between Religious Actors, Humanitarians, and Peacebuilders", Joint Digital Series Contribution to Geneva Peace Week 2021 ( International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, Inclusive Peace, the United States Institute of Peace, Geneva Call, University of York, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Geneva Peace Week is a leading annual forum in the international peacebuilding calendar, and the flagship event of the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform. The Geneva Peace Week 2021 aims to galvanise leadership, build trust and contribute to transforming international cooperation. The 2021 thematic focus is From seeds to systems of peace: Weathering today's challenges. In addition to Online Workshops, which take place between 1-5 November 2021, Digital Series feature contributions in which organizers develop their peacebuilding expertise, research, stories, and panel discussions into digital formats (videos, podcasts, and other media) that can be continuously engaged with beyond Geneva Peace Week. The Generating Respect Project at the University of York's Centre for Applied Human Rights is delighted to have collaborated with the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, Inclusive Peace, the United States Institute of Peace, and Geneva Call in the production of the following digital series: "A Leap of Faith: Effective Engagement between Religious Actors, Humanitarians, and Peacebuilders - Joint Digital Series Contribution to Geneva Peace Week 2021." |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/gpw |
| Description | "Regional Garance Talks: Protecting civilian infrastructure and safeguarding humanitarian access in armed conflict" (Geneva Call, Istanbul, 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Dr Cismas attended the "Regional Garance Talks: Protecting civilian infrastructure and safeguarding humanitarian access in armed conflict" organised by Geneva Call in October 2022. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Consultations and dialogue with humanitarian practitioners and religious leaders (2020-2023) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Throughout the life-span of the project the PI and CoI, and all country researchers engaged in extensive dialogue with humanitarian organisations, religious leaders, state authorities to share findings, take account of their perspectives and understand specific needs/priorities. In 2022, Emilie Max engaged in informal consultation with humanitarians and donors, specifically in relation to the development of the Considerations and Guidance on the Humanitarian Engagement with Religious Leaders. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020,2021,2022,2023 |
| Description | Contribution to Senior Experts Roundtable on "Community Agency, Protection and Peacebuilding" (HPG ODI, Online, 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | The Senior Experts Roundtable focused on Community Agency, Protection and Peacebuilding and was held on 20 October. The event sought to bring together key researchers and practitioners across humanitarian, protection and peace expertise to inform the design of research planned by the Humanitarian Policy Group ODI. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Contribution to the Expert Meeting on "The roles and responsibilities of non-state actors in transitional justice processes" (UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, Online, 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dr Ioana Cismas participated in the Expert Meeting on "The roles and responsibilities of non-state actors in transitional justice processes" organized by the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, in collaboration with the International Institute for Social Responsibility and Human Rights (IIRESODH) on 10 March 2022. Her contribution concerned the role of religious leaders in armed conflict and transitional justice. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Expert Workshop on "The Role of Religious Leaders in Generating Respect for Humanitarian Norms" (Geneva Call & University of York, Amman, 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Geneva Call and the Generating Respect Project (University of York) co-organised an Expert Workshop on "The Role of Religious Leaders in Generating Respect for Humanitarian Norms" in Amman in May 2022. Ioana Cismas, Marta Furlan & Omar Ahmed, Hasnaa El Jamali and Emilie Max presented findings of the Generating Respect Project to an audience formed of humanitarian practitioners and donor states. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Invited presentation at "Religion, Hateful Expression, and Violence Conference" (CILRAP, Florence, 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dr Cismas gave a paper presentation on the "Relevance of International Law Standards to Religious Leaders" at the Religion, Hateful Expression, and Violence Conference, organised by the Centre for International Law Research and Policy in Florence in April 2022. This high-level conference included the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, judges from various national jurisdictions, academics and representatives of civil society organisations. The conference proceedings will be published in book formal in May 2023. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.cilrap.org/cilrap-film/220409-cismas/ |
| Description | Invited presentation at Theology & Culture group (Georgetown University, Washington D.C., 2023) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | In February 2023, Dr Cismas presented the findings of the Generating Respect Project to the Theology & Culture group formed of students and staff at Georgetown University. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Invited presentation at the Global Access Working Group (OCHA, Online, 2023) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dr Cismas and Dr Heffes were invited by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to present the findings of the Generating Respect Project at the Global Access Working Group, a forum comprising various humanitarian organisations working in armed conflict and crisis situations. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Invited talk at the "Religious Leaders and Transitional Justice" (International Coalition of Sites of Conscience's GIJTR, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The International Coalition of Sites of Conscience's Global Initiative for Justice, Truth & Reconciliation (GIJTR) organised the webinar "Religious Leaders and Transitional Justice" on 23 September 2021. Dr Ioana Cismas, joined the Coalition's Sarah Case, Deputy Program Director, GIJTR, and Diana Naoum, Program Manager, GIJTR, Felix Dara of Destiny Farm International in South Sudan, and Reverend Mbaraza Emmanuel of Faith Aid Initiative for Humanity in South Sudan to speak about the involvement of religious leaders in transitional justice processes and creative ways to engage them in support of truth-telling, justice, and healing. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://us06web.zoom.us/rec/play/toYsxSMUIKCbYyNle_zDM6DtO8uOv8a8XKcTh5QmlISwD2zEARTipTwKxkdeUZXDaDH... |
| Description | Keynote presentation "Not the usual suspects: religious leaders as influencers of humanitarian norms compliance" at YorkTalks "Research in the Spotlight" (University of York, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | As part of the #YorkTalks 2021 "Research in the Spotlight" series, Dr Ioana Cismas gave a presentation titled "Not the usual suspects: religious leaders as influencers of humanitarian norms compliance". The talk discusses the rationale of the Generating Respect Project, early findings of the research team, and the potential impact for the humanitarian field. The talk was intended for the general public to become familiarised with impact-generating research conducted at the University of York. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vpo0jh8w1yw |
| Description | Organisation and chairing of panel "There and Back Again: How to Ensure Compliance with IHL by Relying on Non-Traditional Voices and Live to Tell the Tale" (ASIL, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dr Ioana Cismas organised and moderated the panel 'There and Back Again: How to Ensure Compliance with IHL by Relying on Non-Traditional Voices and Live to Tell the Tale', during the American Society of International Law Annual Meeting, 24 March 2021. Dr Tanisha Fazal, Dr Nontando Hadebe and Pascal Bongard, members of the Advisory Board of the Generating Respect Project, were among the panellists. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92XSlWA7JQM |
| Description | Organisation and participation in "Atelier de réflexion sur l'influence des leaders religieux sur les acteurs armés dans la cadre du respect de normes humanitaires au Mali" (University of York, Geneva Call, Diakonia International Humanitarian Law Centre, Bamako, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Generating Respect Project, Geneva Call and the Diakonia International Humanitarian Law Centre co-organised the reflexive workshop << L'influence des leaders religieux sur les acteurs armés dans le cadre du respect des normes humanitaires au Mali >>, 28-29 juillet 2021, in Bamako, Mali. This workshop brought together religious leaders of different faith and regions in Mali, researchers and humanitarian actors to discuss the role of religious leaders in generating compliance with humanitarian norms in Mali. The workshop consisted of five sessions, entailing presentations, input and feedback sessions and open discussions. The proceedings and conclusions of the workshop have been summarised in a report co-written by M. Mohamed Assaleh and Dr Piergiuseppe Parisi with input by Dr Ioana Cismas, M. Ezequiel Heffes and M. Moussa Touré. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e624fe7ac1bea36a064929c/t/622ab312f991c2720eb964af/164696557... |
| Description | Presentation of research findings at the Generating Respect Project final conference "Engaging Religious Leaders to Generate Respect for Humanitarian Norms in Armed Conflict" (University of York, Delegation of the European Union to the UN and other international organisations in Geneva, the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the UN and other international organisations in Geneva, Geneva, 2023) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This conference was co-organised by the Delegation of the European Union to the UN and other international organisations in Geneva, the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the UN and other international organisations in Geneva, and the University of York. Its aim was to engage academic, humanitarian, diplomatic and religious circles in a conversation about why and when engagement with religious leaders can be beneficial to humanitarian norm-compliance and how it can be pursued effectively. The Generating Respect Project research team presented the findings of the project and launched the Considerations and Guidance for the Humanitarian Engagement with Religious Leaders. An interactive panel discussion was moderated by Ms Reka Dobri, Team Leader for Sectoral Polices and Mainstreaming, Humanitarian Aid Thematic Policies Unit, Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO), and included as discussants: - Sheikh Maytham Al Salman, Muslim Cleric & Researcher, University of York - Ms Nathalie Weizmann, Senior Legal Advisor, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) - Dr Kathrine Fortin, Associate Professor, University of Utrecht The conference recording is available on at https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/final-conference |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/final-conference |
| Description | Presentation on "The role of religious leaders in generating respect for humanitarian law and human rights in armed conflict" at "Meet and Greet with Dr Ioana Cismas" (Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs, Washington D.C., 2023) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Dr Cismas gave a presentation on "The role of religious leaders in generating respect for humanitarian law and human rights in armed conflict" at the meeting organised by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs in February 2023. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/events/meet-and-greet-with-dr-ioana-cismas |
| Description | Presentation on the Generating Respect Project findings at the Safeguarding Humanitarian Space CoP Meeting (CARE, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dr Ioana Cismas gave a presentation at the Safeguarding Humanitarian Space CoP Meeting organised by the humanitarian organisation CARE on the work and findings of the Generating Respect Project in 2021. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Presentation to post-graduate students "Novel approaches to humanitarian norms compliance: What role for religious actors?" (KCL, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Dr Ioana Cismas gave an invited presentation on the work and findings of the Generating Respect Project to postgraduate students of the Department of War Studies at King's College London. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Rabat +10 Expert Workshop (OHCHR, Collonges-sous-Salève, 2022) and the Beirut + 5 Expert Workshop (OHCHR, Geneva, 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | Dr Cismas provided expert contributions at the Rabat +10 Expert Workshop and the Beirut + 5 Expert Workshop on the rights to freedom of expression and religion, organised by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Collonges-sous-Salève and Geneva in October 2022. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.ohchr.org/en/faith-for-rights |
| Description | Roundtables & conference "Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms Compliance in Armed Conflict: Roles, Influence, Engagement" (University of York, Online, 2021) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The Generating Respect Project organised the "Religious Actors & Humanitarian Norms Compliance in Armed Conflict: Roles, Influence, Engagement" on 8-10 December 2021. This online conference took stock of developments relating to the engagement between humanitarians and religious actors aimed at generating greater compliance with humanitarian norms in times of armed conflict. It served as a platform for exchange and reflection among scholars from across various disciplines, humanitarian practitioners, and religious actors. Through its opening and closing roundtables, co-organised with Geneva Call and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, respectively, the conference connects the topic of religious actors as potential norm-compliance generators with other innovative strategies of generating respect for international humanitarian law and international human rights law, specifically civilian engagement and peer pressure. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/grp-conference |
| Description | The Generating Respect Project website & social media accounts |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The Generating Respect Project website (www.generatingrespectproject.org), @GenerateRespect Facebook account, @GenerateRespect Twitter account and @generatingrespectproject YouTube channel been set up (1) to publicise the research, findings and outputs among the project's stakeholders: the humanitarian sector, including inter-, non- and governmental organisations, donors, religious leaders, and scholars across various concerned disciplines (public international law, international humanitarian law, international human rights law, law and religion, religious studies, political science, international relations, anthropology); (2) to provide a platform to partners, collaborators and members of the Advisory Board that conduct work in the broader area of compliance with humanitarian norms to showcase their research and practice; (3) to provide updates on new research and practice in the area of humanitarian engagement with religious leaders beyond the lifespan of the project. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020,2021 |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/ |
| Description | The Generating Respect Research Team & Advisory Board Workshop (2020) and ongoing dialogue (Online/various in person events) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The Advisory Board of the Generating Respect Project is formed of senior academics and practitioners from different disciplinary and methodological backgrounds (see https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/advisory-board). The role of the Board is to assist with the refinement of the research methodology, the assessment of research data, dissemination of research findings and outputs, as well as identifying specific opportunities for enhancing impact. An in-person meeting with the Advisory Board scheduled to take place in Geneva in April 2020 had to be cancelled due the Covid-19 pandemic. An online workshop with Advisory Board was organised in November 2020. During the meeting the Board was informed about the progress on the project and they provided input on the project outcomes. During the lifespan of the project (2020-2023), the research team and the Advisory Board had an ongoing dialogue. Members have been provided with updates, consulted on various aspects of the research, and many were involved in project events and publications. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://www.generatingrespectproject.org/advisory-board |