About the Opportunity

The United Nations Association of Germany, in conjunction with the Institute for International Peace and Security Law at the University of Cologne, invites abstracts for the forthcoming 14th United Nations (UN) Research Colloquium.

Theme

One of the main objectives of the United Nations is to maintain global peace as well as the “prevention and removal of threats to the peace”.

Although the first steps towards a prohibition of the use of armed force as a means to settle inter-state conflicts were taken as early as 1928 in the Briand-Kellogg Pact, this norm, which is fundamental to peace, owes its current scope to the UN Charter.

Since then, the prohibition of the use of force in Article 2(4) UN Charter has established itself at the heart of the international legal system.

It is complemented by the recognized exceptions to the prohibition to use force, international humanitarian law and international criminal law.

More information is in the brochure given below this post.

• Changing understandings and processes of peace
  • Theoretical foundations of the concept of peace: Which different concepts of peace exist; are there fundamental conditions for a successful peace process; what are the philosophical foundations of peace research?
  • Historical perspectives on peace (processes): What meant interstate-peace before the outlawing of war; how have peace processes changed or been shaped over time? (contributions can focus on the 19th and 20th century, but other periods are welcome as well)
• Legal and institutional foundations of peacekeeping
  • Law and peacekeeping: What legal instruments contribute to effective peacekeeping; how do peace agreements develop; what role does international humanitarian law or (international) criminal law play; what alternative approaches, such as transitional justice, could be important?
  • Peacekeeping in the system of the United Nations: What are political conditions and challenges of collective peacekeeping; how do the Security Council, states and other (especially regional) organizations work together in peacekeeping and how can their work be effectively coordinated?
• Peace in practice: missions, sustainability and global challenges
  • UN peacekeeping missions from an interdisciplinary perspective: What are UN peace missions and what should they achieve; how can they be successful from a sociological or political science perspective; what legal basis do UN peace missions have; what legal questions arise?
  • Sustainability and peace processes: How can peace processes become sustainable; how can conflicts over natural resources be resolved; what role do the UN Sustainable Development Goals and climate change play?

Organisation Matter

We welcome abstracts in German or English of approx. 300 – 500 words. The abstract should contain the research question, the objective, if applicable, the theoretical or methodological approach, as well as a first outlook on the planned argumentation or central theses.

Please submit abstracts and personal details via the link below. In particular, we would like to encourage contributions from people from groups that are still underrepresented in the scientific community.

We are therefore especially pleased to receive submissions from women, members of the LGBTQI+ community, BIPoC, people with disabilities or people with a migration background.

At this stage, we cannot promise to cover the costs. However, we will aim to provide financial support for travel and accommodation costs for all participants who submit an abstract.

Important Dates

• Deadline abstracts: 24 August 2025 (approx. 300 – 500 words)
• Deadline papers: 26 October 2025 (max. 5000 words)
• Deadline registration: 1 November 2025

Contact Information

For any queries, please contact at [email protected].

Click here to Submit.

Click here to Register.