Human Security Report Project
Encyclopedia
The Human Security Report Project (HSRP) is a Peace and Conflict Studies
research group. Based at Canada
's Simon Fraser University
's School for International Studies at Harbour Centre
in Vancouver
, British Columbia
It was formerly based at the University of British Columbia
's Liu Institute for Global Issues
in the Human Security Centre.
that provided evidence that according to the Project's data and definitions, there had been a large decline in the number of wars, genocides and international crises since the end of the Cold War.
Subsequently, the Project published the Human Security Brief 2006 that updated the core global trend data from the 2005 Report and the Human Security Brief 2007. The 2007 Brief demonstrated that there had been a sharp decline in the incidence of terrorist violence (measured in terms of numbers of fatalities) around the world. If fatalities from political violence against civilians perpetrated by non-state groups in Iraq are counted as deaths from terrorism the decline dated mid-2007. This claim was disputed in a press release from the University of Maryland's, START consortium . However, START at that time only had incident data to 2004. Subsequent START reports confirmed the large decline in fatalities from terrorism in 2007. One problem with the START project's dataset is that it counts politically motivated killings of civilians in civil war by non-state actors as terrorism in some contexts, but not in others. In Iraq, for example, such killings are counted as acts of terrorism, but the very large number of comparable killings in sub-Saharan Africa's civil wars in the 1990s are not. Subsequent to the publication of the 2007 Brief the incidence of global terrorism has again increased with most of the increase being in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Further the 2007 Brief suggested positive change in sub-Saharan Africa
's security landscape; the number of conflicts
being waged in the region more than halved between 1999 and 2006.
In late October 2008, the Project published-in conjunction with the World Bank
, the miniAtlas of Human Security. This publication was produced in three languages and is an "at-a-glance guide to global security issues" using a selection of maps and graphics to illustrate security trends, and is part of the World Bank's miniAtlas series. There have been subsequent translations of the miniAtlas into Russia, Japanese and Arabic.
In 2010 the Human Security Report Project launched the Human Security Report 2009/2010 at the United Nations. Part I of the Report examines "The Causes of Peace" since the end of World War II. Part II examines "The Shrinking Costs of War," paying particular attention to "indirect deaths" from war-exacerbated disease and malnutrition. Part III reviews recent trends in organized violence around the world.
The hard copy version of the Report will be published by Oxford University Press early in 2011. The text of the Report is freely available online at www.hsrgroup.org.
In addition to its publications, the Project runs several free e-services available in a number of delivery formats:
It has received funding from a number of governments including:
The HSRP is a Principal Partner of the International Relations and Security Network
.
Peace and conflict studies
Peace and conflict studies is a social science field that identifies and analyses violent and nonviolent behaviours as well as the structural mechanisms attending social conflicts with a view towards understanding those processes which lead to a more desirable human condition...
research group. Based at Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
's Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University is a Canadian public research university in British Columbia with its main campus on Burnaby Mountain in Burnaby, and satellite campuses in Vancouver and Surrey. The main campus in Burnaby, located from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and has more than 34,000...
's School for International Studies at Harbour Centre
Harbour Centre
Harbour Centre is a notable skyscraper in the central business district of Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The "Lookout" tower atop the office building makes it one of the tallest structures in Vancouver and a prominent landmark on the city's skyline...
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
It was formerly based at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
's Liu Institute for Global Issues
Liu Institute for Global Issues
The Liu Institute for Global Issues is an organization devoted to research at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. Named after Dr. Jieh Jow Liou, the Liu Institute conducts and facilitates research on global issues, mobilizing knowledge into solutions and policy...
in the Human Security Centre.
Publications and Services
The Project is known primarily for the Human Security Report 2005Human Security Report 2005
The Human Security Report 2005 is a report outlining declining world trends of global violence from the early 1990s to 2003. The study reported major worldwide declines in the number of armed conflicts, genocides, military coups and international crises, as well as in the number of battle-related...
that provided evidence that according to the Project's data and definitions, there had been a large decline in the number of wars, genocides and international crises since the end of the Cold War.
Subsequently, the Project published the Human Security Brief 2006 that updated the core global trend data from the 2005 Report and the Human Security Brief 2007. The 2007 Brief demonstrated that there had been a sharp decline in the incidence of terrorist violence (measured in terms of numbers of fatalities) around the world. If fatalities from political violence against civilians perpetrated by non-state groups in Iraq are counted as deaths from terrorism the decline dated mid-2007. This claim was disputed in a press release from the University of Maryland's, START consortium . However, START at that time only had incident data to 2004. Subsequent START reports confirmed the large decline in fatalities from terrorism in 2007. One problem with the START project's dataset is that it counts politically motivated killings of civilians in civil war by non-state actors as terrorism in some contexts, but not in others. In Iraq, for example, such killings are counted as acts of terrorism, but the very large number of comparable killings in sub-Saharan Africa's civil wars in the 1990s are not. Subsequent to the publication of the 2007 Brief the incidence of global terrorism has again increased with most of the increase being in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Further the 2007 Brief suggested positive change in sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa as a geographical term refers to the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara. A political definition of Sub-Saharan Africa, instead, covers all African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...
's security landscape; the number of conflicts
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
being waged in the region more than halved between 1999 and 2006.
In late October 2008, the Project published-in conjunction with the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
, the miniAtlas of Human Security. This publication was produced in three languages and is an "at-a-glance guide to global security issues" using a selection of maps and graphics to illustrate security trends, and is part of the World Bank's miniAtlas series. There have been subsequent translations of the miniAtlas into Russia, Japanese and Arabic.
In 2010 the Human Security Report Project launched the Human Security Report 2009/2010 at the United Nations. Part I of the Report examines "The Causes of Peace" since the end of World War II. Part II examines "The Shrinking Costs of War," paying particular attention to "indirect deaths" from war-exacerbated disease and malnutrition. Part III reviews recent trends in organized violence around the world.
The hard copy version of the Report will be published by Oxford University Press early in 2011. The text of the Report is freely available online at www.hsrgroup.org.
In addition to its publications, the Project runs several free e-services available in a number of delivery formats:
- Human Security GatewayHuman Security GatewayThe Human Security Gateway is a database of research and information related to Human Security. Additions to the database are made daily - it contains over 27,000 English and French-language resources related to conflict and human security...
. - Human Security Research.
Funding and Collaboration
The Project works closely with a number of the world's leading research groups in Peace and Conflict Studies including:- International Peace Research Institute, OsloInternational Peace Research Institute, OsloThe Peace Research Institute Oslo is an independent peace studies institution, based in Oslo, Norway.- History and governance:PRIO was founded in 1959 by a group of Norwegian researchers, among these Johan Galtung. The institute was an affiliate of the Norwegian Institute for Social Research in...
based in NorwayNorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. - the Uppsala Conflict Data Program based in SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
It has received funding from a number of governments including:
- Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.
- United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's Department for International DevelopmentDepartment for International DevelopmentThe Department For International Development is a United Kingdom government department with a Cabinet Minister in charge. It was separated from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1997. The goal of the department is "to promote sustainable development and eliminate world poverty". The current...
. - Norwegian Ministry of Foreign AffairsNorwegian Ministry of Foreign AffairsThe Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the foreign ministry of the Kingdom of Norway...
- Swedish International Development Cooperation AgencySwedish International Development Cooperation AgencyThe Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency is a government agency of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Sida is responsible for organization of the bulk of Sweden's official development assistance to developing countries....
- Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.
The HSRP is a Principal Partner of the International Relations and Security Network
International Relations and Security Network
The International Relations and Security Network is part of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology's Center for Security Studies, which is located in Zurich, Switzerland...
.
Criticism
Lack of robust conflict data remains a major problem with all attempts to track conflict numbers and fatality trends. The Uppsala Conflict Data Program's has an acknowledged tendency to under-count fatalities. But the tendency to undercount does not obscure trends and both researchers and policymakers who focus on the causes of war and peace are more concerned with trends––are the number of wars/battle deaths increasing or decreasing?––than in absolute numbers. For Truth and Reconciliation Commissions the reverse is true. There are various methodologies that can be used to estimate war deaths––incident-based reporting like that undertaken by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, nationwide retrospective mortality surveys like those undertaken in Iraq and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and censuses. Each has strengths and weaknesses. Uppsala's methodology is, however, the only one that permits timely annual updates for all conflict-affected countries. There are ongoing debates on the validity of data compiling and counting methodology. Part III of the 2009/2010 Human Security Report contains a discussion of these debates.See also
- Human SecurityHuman securityHuman security is an emerging paradigm for understanding global vulnerabilities whose proponents challenge the traditional notion of national security by arguing that the proper referent for security should be the individual rather than the state...
- Human Security Report 2005Human Security Report 2005The Human Security Report 2005 is a report outlining declining world trends of global violence from the early 1990s to 2003. The study reported major worldwide declines in the number of armed conflicts, genocides, military coups and international crises, as well as in the number of battle-related...
- Human Security GatewayHuman Security GatewayThe Human Security Gateway is a database of research and information related to Human Security. Additions to the database are made daily - it contains over 27,000 English and French-language resources related to conflict and human security...
- Liu Institute for Global IssuesLiu Institute for Global IssuesThe Liu Institute for Global Issues is an organization devoted to research at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. Named after Dr. Jieh Jow Liou, the Liu Institute conducts and facilitates research on global issues, mobilizing knowledge into solutions and policy...
(hosts the Human Security Centre which was previously the home of the Project)