Partnerships with the Department of Peace Studies and International Development
Working with us
In Peace Studies and International Development, we don’t sit in an Ivory Tower – we make knowledge work by collaborating with governments and organisations around the world such as:
Professional and industry partners
Since 2002 the department has been proud to offer one of only seven Rotary International-sponsored academic centres for international studies in peace and conflict resolution. Every year we offer 10 fully funded Masters places in a highly competitive selection process. Those students take a 15- month course that includes applied field experience, field trips, and a host family in a local Rotary Club. We also host an annual Rotary Peace Fellows conference showcasing their applied research. We also partner with local Rotarians in the PeaceJam programme.
Quaker Peace Studies Trust
The Quaker Peace Studies Trust was set up in 1972 to advance the learning and knowledge of the nature of peace and how peace can be developed and extended. Its efforts led to the establishment of the Peace Studies department at the University of Bradford, as it funded the first Chair of Peace Studies. Since then, the Department has had a close relationship with the Trust. QPST supported the Adam Curle Centenary Symposium in 2016, has provided student bursaries and grants and funds a Student Liaison Officer to support student co-curricular and extra-curricular activities such as the Peace Society, field trips to The Hague and Northern Ireland, trainings and simulations. Donations and bequests to the Department can be made via QPST.
Find out more about the Quaker Peace Studies Trust.
Our Future Changemakers programmes is a series of weekly webinars hosted by our academic experts. The webinars feature topics of current global interest such as the Middle East and climate change, Russian’s challenge to the West, the rise of far-right nationalism, the Israeli-Palestinian crisis, and Brazil’s disastrous response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
We can offer highly engaging, interactive workshops and online sessions on issues around global politics, international development, social conflict and the ethics of peace and justice. Our subject area is interdisciplinary and appeals to students taking Geography, Sociology, Philosophy, Religious Studies A-levels, and Politics or the Global Politics option in the International Baccalaureate.
Your school may also want to get involved in PeaceJam, a global citizenship and peace education programme for young people led by 14 Nobel Peace Prize winners.
If you would like to discuss how we can support your school or college, please get in touch by emailing Dr Fiona Macaulay.
Working with our students
Our students are being prepared with the practical and analytical skills to work in the fields of peacebuilding, community cohesion, and international relations, security and development. Many of them also seek internships to help them build these skills, either during the summer vacation or for a three-month Applied Field Experience as part of a 15-month Masters programme. We would love to collaborate with alumni and practitioners working in these areas who could offer:
- Professional mentoring
- Internships and placements
- Guest talks or workshops on their field of work and career path
- Training sessions on key skills
- Sponsorship for student prizes.
Our students are involved in the local community in lots of ways through their Peace Society. For example, they support refugee groups, carry out litter-picks and sustainability projects around the university. Our students also set up their own NGOs, raise money for social causes, and carry out awareness raising campaigns, for example around problems of sanitation and access to clean water in developing countries, as part of our support for the Sustainable Development Goals. They raised enough money to ‘twin’ a number of toilets on campus with ones built by Toilet Twinning in poor countries, and to support innovative latrine design by Wish for Wash.
PeaceJam UK was started at the University of Bradford in the Peace Studies department in 2006. The programme encourages young people to become active citizens and changemakers in their communities. We support this by training our students as ‘near-peers’ to support young people in schools and youth settings in fun events and dialogue sessions. We are currently running a Generation Change programme, consisting of interactive sessions with school students to explore their responses to the pandemic, help them build their self-esteem and plan for their future, and support them as community leaders and changemakers.
If you would like to discuss how our students can work with your community group, please get in touch by emailing Dr Fiona Macaulay.