Published on The Guardian Labs website on 24 January 2025, Professor Richard English, Institute Director, Professor Louise Mallinder Institute Deputy Director and Professor Kieran McEvoy, Senator George J. Mitchell Chair in Peace, Security and Justice draw on lived experience in their global peacebuilding work as they foster dialogue between opposing groups and look to give victims a voice.

Queen’s University Belfast is a Russell Group university at the forefront of global peacebuilding and reconciliation research.  It’s a research institution that influences academic thought, shapes policy, and transforms lives in conflict communities worldwide. 

The Mitchell Institute serves as a hub for interdisciplinary research into the complexities of peacebuilding, and fostering dialogue between people with opposing views is a hallmark of its work.  Professor English commented:

“One of the things Senator Mitchell did so powerfully in Northern Ireland was to gather people together to listen to those they most disagreed with,” says English. “There’s no point, in conflict settings, listening only to the people you agree with.”

Read the full article here.