Nawalage S. Cooray Associate Professor

According to the latest Human Security Report, the number of global armed conflicts has decreased since 1992 and the average battle-deaths per conflict per year too has gone down to 200 in 2002 from 38000 in 1950. However, despite these positive developments in the scope and deadliness of armed conflict, there are increasing trend on child soldiers, use of paramilitary forces, and privatisation of war related activities. Many conflicts nowadays are intrastate (or internal) rather than interstates (or international) causing unprecedented insecurity to the people including civilians. Hundreds of millions of people are threaten and continue to live in inhumane condition associated with, violent conflict, genocides, displacement and poverty. They may be already battered by environmental hazardous, social and political exclusion.

International Peace Studies Program (IPSP) of IUJ offers an exciting academic environment in which students can study the conditions how we can build the world free of fear and want systematically. Students will explore alternative policies and institutions that will resolve the war and conflicts and remove the conditions that lead to violence.

We strongly believe that peace and development should go side by side, i.e. development helps build freedom from wants while peace helps develop freedom from fear. Most Peace Studies Programs in the world are built on the assumption that the solutions to the violence could be found outside the market mechanism, in governments or NGOs or NPOs. The IPSP takes a different position. It is built on a solid economic analysis of the market mechanism and business management. It believes that the market mechanism does and can evolve into a humane mechanism by responding to social concerns over the problems of poverty, environment and social and political exclusion. We live and will continue to live in the world of imperfect political, social and economic institutions. The solution to the global problems should be found in improving the institutions of the humankind, including markets, business management, governments and civil societies. The IPSP also explores UN related solutions to the some of the problems mentioned above, the study of UN peace keeping, peace building, and conflict resolution are important to build a better and safer world.

The students who will join the IPSP will have a golden opportunity to comprehend peace associated issues in particularly and other related topics in general. Uniquely diverse community at IUJ comprising of students from more than 50 countries from around the world and the different other programs of the university will provide you cross-cultural atmosphere, comprehensive education, and conducive-natural environment for learning.

We invite all ambitious goal-oriented individuals to join IUJ and our Peace Studies Program and study with us to make your life better and to create a better world for everyone.