In the Caucasus We Count

WiP: Stress-testing Territorial Conflict: Understanding Incentives and Barriers in the Georgian Resolution Process

2014-06-18

 

American Councils, CRRC and ARISC present the 18th talk in the Spring 2014 Works-in-Progress Series!

"Stress-testing territorial conflict: understanding incentives and barriers in the Georgian resolution process"

Emily Knowles, University of Edinburgh

Wednesday, June 18, 2014 at 6:15pm
EPF/CRRC-Georgia, Kavsadze St. 3, Tbilisi

This presentation will showcase some of the insights that have come out of the research so far and will explain preliminary attempts to distil primary research into a series of best and worst case scenarios against which the current resolution process will be measured, providing a comprehensive evaluation of the key sticking points and areas of constructive engagement to inform peace academics and policymakers alike. Advances such as the discursive rejection of a military resolution to the disputes made by the Georgian government will be contrasted with a continued impasse surrounding the signature of a non-aggression pact, providing detailed analysis of the complexities surrounding a region where not only local but also international actors often have a role to play in the evolving security environment.

Emily Knowles is a recent graduate from the University of Edinburgh’s Master in European and International Politics programme, and has spent the last couple of months travelling around Georgia to collect interview material into perceptions of the ongoing territorial disputes from Georgian government and de facto authorities, members of international organisations active in and around the disputed regions, and local NGOs and academics on all sides of the contested borders. This research has been conducted under the auspices of the International Fellowship programme at the Caucasus Research Resources Centre Georgia and the associate researcher programme at the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies. Previously, Emily has worked for the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies, Edinburgh City Council’s International Affairs Department, Nexos Voluntarios and EDF’s Strategy and International Relations Department, conducting research into international strategy and writing reports on the changing geopolitics of international diplomacy, civil conflict and energy security.


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W-i-P is an ongoing academic discussion series based in Tbilisi, Georgia, that takes place at the Eurasian Partnership Foundation at Kavsadze St. 3. It is co-organized by the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC), the American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS, and the American Research Institute of the South Caucasus (ARISC). All of the talks are free and open to the public.

The purpose of the W-i-P series is to provide support and productive criticism to those researching and developing academic projects pertaining the Caucasus region.

Would you like to present at one of the W-i-P sessions? Send an e-mail to natia@crrccenters.org.

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