United States Institute of Peace

An op-ed in the Wall Street Journal on February 16, 2011, by Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz of Utah and former Democratic congressman Anthony Weiner of New York, attacked funding for USIP as part of the broader debate about federal spending. "The USIP is a case study in how government waste thrives," they wrote. "The idea began during the Cold War as a modest proposal with $4 million in seed money. But the organization received government funding year after year essentially because it had been funded the year before—and because it had important allies."[13]

Former U.S. Central Command commander Anthony Zinni wrote an op-ed, published in the New York Times on March 7, 2011, in support of USIP. "Congress would be hard-pressed to find an agency that does more with less. The institute's entire budget would not pay for the Afghan war for three hours, is less than the cost of a fighter plane, and wouldn't sustain even forty American troops in Afghanistan for a year. Within the budget, peace-building is financed as part of national security programs and is recognized as an important adjunct to conventional defense spending and diplomacy. The institute's share of the proposed international affairs budget, $43 million, is minuscule: less than one-tenth of one percent of the State Department's budget, and one-hundredth of one percent of the Pentagon's."[14]

On February 17, 2011, the House of Representatives for the 112th U.S. Congress voted to eliminate all funding for the U.S. Institute of Peace in FY 2011 continuing resolution.[15][16] Funding for the institute was eventually restored by both the House and Senate on April 14, 2011, through the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act of 2011.[17]

USIP building

USIP coordinates its work through seven main centers:

• Africa Center
• Applied Conflict Transformation Center
• Asia Center
• Middle East North Africa Center
• Policy, Learning and Strategy Center
• Russia and Europe Center
• The Gandhi-King Global Academy

The institute is governed by a board of directors, with an equal number of Republican and Democratic directors appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate.[21] Lise Grande is the current president of the institute, having served in that role since 2020. She was preceded by Nancy Lindborg, who was preceded by Kristin Lord (acting president 2013–2014), former congressman Jim Marshall (president 2012–2013), former senior State Department official and U.S. ambassador to the Philippines Richard H. Solomon (president 1992–2012), former U.S. ambassador to Israel Samuel W. Lewis (president 1987–1988), and Robert F Turner (president 1986–1987).

[22]

• George E. Moose, Chair – The George Washington University, Adjunct Professor of Practice
• Judy Ansley, Vice Chair – Former assistant to the president and deputy national security advisor at the National Security Council (NSC)
• Kerry Kennedy – human rights activist and former executive director of the Robert Kennedy Memorial
• Jeremy A. Rabkin – Antonin Scalia Law School, Professor
• Stephen Hadley, Former Chair – Principal, Rice Hadley Gates, LLC
• J. Robinson West, Chair Emeritus – PFC Energy, Chairman
• Nancy Zirkin – Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, Executive Vice President
• Kathryn L. Wheelbarger – Former Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, U.S. Department of Defense
• Edward M. Gabriel – Former U.S. Ambassador to Morocco
• Nathalie Rayes, Latino Victory Project, President and CEO
• Mary Swig – Mary Green Enterprises, President and CEO
• Jonathan Burks – Walmart, Vice President for Global Public Policy
• Michael Singh – Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Managing Director

Members ex officio

• Colin Kahl – Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
• Uzra Zeya – Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights
• Lieutenant General Michael T. Plehn – President, National Defense University

The PeaceTech Lab is a 501(c)(3) spun out of the United States Institute of Peace in 2014. It created the lab as a separate entity to further advance its core mission to prevent, mitigate, and reduce violent conflict around the world. The lab continues USIP's work developing technology and media tools for peacebuilding. In real terms, the lab brings together engineers, technologists, and data scientists from industry and academia, along with experts in peacebuilding from USIP, other government agencies, NGOs, and the conflict zones. These experts collaborate to design, develop, and deploy new and existing technology tools for conflict management and peacebuilding.[23]

PeaceTech Lab CEO and founder Sheldon Himelfarb has proposed that an Intergovernmental Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE) be established along the lines of the IPCC to report on, among other things, how best to address the fake news crisis.[24]

In Iraq in 2007, USIP helped broker the initial peace agreement that is seen as the turning point in the war there. USIP experts were asked to assist the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division in the reconciliation effort in Mahmoudiya, located in what was known as "the Triangle of Death" in Iraq's western Al Anbar Governorate. USIP was seen as a neutral player that was able to convene Sunni tribal leaders, Iraq's Shiite government leaders, and senior members of the U.S. military. Soon after the meeting, attacks and casualties declined significantly. The agreement led to a reduction of the U.S. military presence there from a brigade-level unit of about 3,500 soldiers to a battalion-level unit of about 650. General David Petraeus, the senior commander in Iraq, noted that the turnabout was "striking". Petraeus also said that USIP "is a great asset in developing stronger unity of effort between civilian and military elements of government".[25]

The U.S. government used USIP to help convene the bipartisan Iraq Study Group in 2006 that studied the conflict in Iraq and recommended ways forward. USIP facilitated the group's trip to Iraq and hosted several meetings of the group. According to USIP, the group's political neutrality made it an appropriate entity to host the group's sensitive deliberations. The effort was undertaken at the urging of several members of Congress with agreement of the White House. A final report was released to Congress, the White House, and the public on December 6, 2006.[26]

In Fall 2008, U.S. Institute of Peace, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the American Academy of Diplomacy jointly convened the Genocide Prevention Task Force to "spotlight genocide prevention as a national priority and to develop practical policy recommendations to enhance the capacity of the U.S. government to respond to emerging threats of genocide and mass atrocities".[27]

The 14-member task force,[28] co-chaired by former secretary of state Madeleine Albright and former defense secretary William Cohen, outlined "a national blueprint to prevent genocide and mass atrocities".[29] In December 2008, the task force released its report "Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers"[30] detailing its recommendations and guidelines. The Economist praised it as a "report steeped in good sense".[31]

On August 4, 2011, U.S. president Barack Obama announced a proclamation suspending U.S. entry to individuals active in "serious human rights and humanitarian law violations"[32] and called for the creation of an Atrocities Prevention Board to review, coordinate and develop an atrocity prevention and response policy, and incorporate recommendations provided by the Genocide Prevention Task Force.[33]

Ahead of Sudan's April 2010 national elections (the first since 1986) and January 2011 South Sudanese independence referendum, USIP staff traveled to some of the more unstable regions to help prepare people for the elections. Amid heightened tensions, USIP experts focused on improving cultural awareness, citizenship skills, and training Sudanese on electoral violence triggers—all critical steps to ensure that the polls did not turn violent. The elections and referendum were held with relatively no bloodshed and were widely deemed a success. Building upon USIP's successful electoral violence prevention training, USIP is implementing a series of violence prevention workshops throughout the country post-election and post-referendum.

The Iran Primer: Power, Politics, and U.S. Policy "offers a comprehensive but concise overview of Iran's politics, economy, military, foreign policy, and nuclear program". It convenes 50 experts to discuss Iran's evolving relationship with the West and "chronicles U.S.-Iran relations under six American presidents and probes five options for dealing with Iran". The Iran Primer is edited by USIP staff member Robin Wright.[34]

• Worked with community leaders to build peace neighborhood-by-neighborhood in Iraq
• Working with tribal chiefs, educator, and civil society leaders in support of peacemaking in Sudan
• Training hundreds of young Nigerian religious leaders, women, and youth from all over the country to be peacemakers; and helping bring peace to large parts of Plateau State
• Strengthening the peacemaking capacity of religious leaders and faith-based organizations through research, technical assistance, facilitated dialogues, and operational support
• Helping establish the rule of law, a fundamental building block to peace in Afghanistan, Iraq, Liberia, Palestine, and Nepal in addition to other security sector reform initiatives.
• Producing educational resources such as a book series on cultural negotiation, textbooks on conflict management, and online training[35]
  • General reference
    • The Diplomat's Dictionary
    • Negotiating across Cultures: International Communication in an Interdependent World
    • Arts of Power: Statecraft and Diplomacy
    • Culture and Conflict Resolution
  • Country-specific
    • How Pakistan Negotiates with the United States: Riding the Roller Coaster
    • American Negotiating Behavior: Wheeler-Dealers, Legal Eagles, Bullies, and Preachers
    • Negotiating with Iran: Wrestling the Ghosts of History
    • How Israelis and Palestinians Negotiate: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of the Oslo Peace Process
    • French Negotiating Behavior: Dealing with La Grande Nation
    • How Germans Negotiate: Logical Goals, Practical Solutions
    • Case Studies in Japanese Negotiating Behavior
    • Negotiating on the Edge: North Korean Negotiating Behavior
    • Chinese Negotiating Behavior: Pursuing Interests Through 'Old Friends'
    • Russian Negotiating Behavior: Continuity and Transition

The institute has also served U.S. government officials and policymakers.

• Facilitating the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States, Genocide Prevention Task Force, and the bipartisan Iraq Study Group
• Leading a Congress-mandated, bipartisan task force on United Nations reform
• Developing a proposal for a comprehensive settlement of the Korean War, which was drawn upon by U.S. government officials in preparation for the Six-party talks
• Conducting a study of the U.S. government's state-building capacity that contributed to the creation of the Office of Reconstruction and Stabilization (ORS) in the State Department