On 2 October 2018 the Chair hosted a public lecture on the Magee Campus by Dr Chris Dolan, Honorary Professor at Ulster University and Director of the Refugee Law Project. The lecture was entitled “Spheres of Harm: An Exploration of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence against Men”. The lecture focused on conflict-related sexual violence against men, and highlighted some of the major practical, conceptual and disciplinary challenges to dominant models for addressing sexual violence. Dr Dolan proposed an alternative approach to thinking about sexual violence in conflict which has a major impact on enhancing progressive models of gender justice.
Keynote Address WHO Belfast
The WHO International Healthy Cities Conference opened on 1 October 2018 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, bringing together more than 500 delegates from 60 countries and over 200 cities. The overarching theme of the conference was “Changing cities to change the world”, recognizing that urban centres have a vital role to play in sustainable development. The Chair gave a keynote address on 2 October at the conference in the Waterfront Hall in Belfast. The keynote was built around the quotation from American-Canadian author Jane Jacobs to illustrate the importance of participation and ownership: “Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody”. To find out more about the conference, click here.
Dealing with Historical Abuse
On 21 September 2018, the Chair and Professor Lundy from Ulster University hosted a workshop entitled “Mechanisms for Dealing with the Legacy of Historical Child Abuse: International lessons for new approaches”. The workshop explored lessons from different inquiries in political and social contexts, and included delegates from Canada, Australia, US, Sweden, Uganda, and more. A key focus of the workshop was also on what lessons could be learned from the field of transitional justice for inquiries into historical institutional abuse.
Governor O’Malley Event
As part of the Donegal Diaspora Awards, the Chair hosted a lunch and discussion with former Governor O’Malley, one of the 2018 recipients of the Donegal Diaspora Award. Governor O’Malley served as the 61st Governor of Maryland from 2007 to 2015, and was also previously the Mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007. The Governor addressed senior business officials and local politicians . The group was also addressed by Tom O’Neill. The event provided a fascinating insight into the current state of US politics.
Truth and Reconciliation Platform
On 13 September 2018 the Chair hosted the Truth and Reconciliation Platform in the Great Hall at Magee. The event took the form of survivors of the conflict sharing their stories and experiences with the public. Powerful testimony was given by Joe Campbell, Kathleen Gillespie, Stephen Travers and Alan McBride. The evening was deeply moving and inspirational, and shows why moving forward the peace process is so important.
Hidden Barriers in Belfast
Last week David Coyles, Dr Adrian Grant and Professor Brandon Hamber presented research findings to a Knowledge Exchange Seminar Series (KESS) at Stormont on “Hidden barriers and divisive architecture: the case of Belfast”. The research notes that “peace-walls” are particularly symbolic of the role that architecture plays in separating residential communities and a comprehensive scholarship continues to assess their effects, but the research focuses on other barriers in the city. The presentation outlines original findings from a three-year multi-disciplinary academic research project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), which extends this current understanding of physical and social division. It reveals new evidence of a distinct and important, yet largely unrecognised, body of divisive architecture; an extensive range of ‘hidden barriers’ embedded in various architectural forms across Belfast’s residential communities. You can download the Policy Brief, click here.
Visit from Boston College
Great to host students from the Irish Institute at Boston College this week on the Magee Campus. Interesting discussions on conflict and the peace process, and of course how this also relates to some of the issues people are struggling with in the US.