Center of Excellence

A symposium organized by EDDA – Center of Excellence in cooperation with the Department of Social and Human Sciences, University of Iceland

Venue: National Museum of Iceland Auditorium
Time: Friday May 2nd 2014, 14:00–17:00

Growing inequality in Europe has raised concerns among policymakers and scholars alike. From the postwar period until the 1970s, it appeared that equality was rising in most, if not all, advanced industrialized nations. But this period was followed by the so called great u-turn in inequality, which was rooted in the adoption of neo-liberal policies in the United States and the United Kingdom. Despite different welfare state organization and ideology, many European countries, including Iceland, have also been affected by this trend. This symposium will highlight what has been described as one of the great current challenges facing developed societies: rising inequality. Bringing together, American and Icelandic scholars, it will focus on the European context for the past few decades, with a special emphasis on how current sociological research can help us understand the Icelandic situation. Read more »

EDDA – Center of Excellence at the University of Iceland, in collaboration with the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs, will host an international conference entitled Addressing the Persistence of Gender Inequalities in Conflict Prevention and Peace Processes. The Conference will take place on 4-5 April 2014 at the University of Iceland, Askja building, room 132, and is open to all and free of charge. See Conference Programme.

The UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security was passed 14 years ago. While one of its pillars is the participation of women in conflict prevention and peace building, they have continued to be largely absent from such processes due to a lack of gender sensitive transitional justice mechanisms. The aim of this conference is to stimulate critical thinking in advance of the 2015 high-level review of progress on resolution 1325. The Conference will seek answers to the following questions: Why is it so difficult to get women to the peace table – and is that even the right question to ask? What are the lessons learnt from implementing UNSCR 1325 in the context of peacekeeping? What are the key challenges to implementing UNSCR 1325 in the defence and security sectors? How do we move beyond the current paradigm of war and peace negotiations? Read more »

On Friday October 4 the Centre for Arctic Policy Studies at the University of Iceland, Denmark and the New North Atlantic and EDDA – Center of Excellence will host a symposium titled “Claiming the North: (Re-)territorializing the “Westnordic Arctic”“. The symposium will take place at the University of Iceland, Askja building, room 132, at 13:00-18:00.

This international and cross-disciplinary symposium will facilitate a discussion on current and potential restructuring in the circumpolar North with a focus on the West-Nordic Arctic and Subarctic regions. Particular attention is paid to identity politics, with a focus on the processes that construct majorities and minorities, core and peripheries. Discussions will focus on the multiple transnational effects of colonial ties, climate change, industrial activity and increased mobility on sovereign and indigenous rights, economic interests and cultural issues. Read more »