Bookmark and Share
Overview:

Peace building is a global imperative and the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) works with the international community to prevent, manage, and resolve conflicts in conflict-affected states (CAS). The USIP is an independent, nonpartisan, national institution established and funded by Congress. Its goals are to help prevent and resolve violent international conflicts, promote post-conflict stability and development, and increase conflict management capacity and intellectual capital worldwide. By law, the USIP is governed by a bipartisan Board of Directors. The Board is composed of 12 members from outside federal services who are appointed by the President of the U.S. and confirmed by the Senate, and four ex-officio members: the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the President of the National Defense University, and the President of the Institute (nonvoting). The board is prohibited from having more than eight voting members of the same political party.

more
History:

The first cornerstone in the creation of United States Institute of Peace (USIP) was in 1976 when Senator Vance Hartke of Indiana and Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon introduced a bill to create the George Washington Peace Academy. After a hearing in the Senate it was decided that further research was needed in order to effectively address the needs of the world. President Jimmy Carter established a commission that was chaired by Senator Spark Matsunaga (1916–90) and was referred to as the Matsunaga Commission. The commission researched for over a year and a half and conducted a wide variety of surveys and studied different theories, techniques, and institutions involved in the resolution of international conflicts. The commission met with military and government officials, leading educators, conflict resolution professionals, and representatives from various religious, ethnic, and scientific communities. In addition, the commission met with thousands of citizens through a series of public meetings held across the nation. In 1981, the Matsunaga Commission issued a final report recommending the creation of a national peace academy. After considerable debate regarding the formation of a new institution, the U.S. Institute of Peace Act (pdf) was finally signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1984.

more
What it Does:
  • Works toward its initiatives through several different activities. Operation on the ground in zones of conflict, most recently in Afghanistan, Colombia, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, the Korean Peninsula, Lebanon, Pakistan, the Palestinian Territories, Nigeria, Sudan, and Israel. Projects include: mediating and facilitating dialogue among parties in conflict, promoting the rule of law, reforming and strengthening education systems, strengthening civil society, and state-building. The institute also educates the public through events, films, radio programs, and an array of outreach activates.
  • Performs research that has resulted in more than 400 publications that are beneficial for negotiators, policymakers, and academia. The books cover a wide variety of topics, such as, negotiating across cultures, conflict management, and sustainable reconciliation in divided societies. Through this research, the institute also develops innovative peace-building tools.
  • Organizes training on conflict management and educates government and military personnel, civil society leaders and staff of non-governmental and international organizations on topics like mediation and negotiation skills. 
  • Educates high school and college students about international conflicts with the goal of increasing the peace building capabilities of future leaders. The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) holds a National Peace Essay Contest that encourages high school students to learn about international issues and about how countries can best preserve security and world peace. There are a total of 53 winners and the person awarded 1st place receives $10,000.
  • Supports policymakers by providing analysis, policy options, advice, as well as providing a wide range of country-oriented working groups. 
  • Establishes various resources and strategic centers organized around preventing armed conflict, working toward resolutions when they occur and promoting strategic plans for post-conflict stabilization. These include:

Winning Essays

Publications

USIP Library

Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention

Center for Meditation and Conflict Resolution

Center for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations

Centers of Innovation

The Grant Program

The USIP supports peace-building projects managed by non-profit organizations, including educational institutions, research institutions, civil society organizations, and NGOs. The institute has awarded funding to grantees in 46 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and in 81 foreign countries. Most USIP grants are one to two years in duration. Most awards fall in the range of $50,000 to $120,000.

Apply to the Annual Grant Competition

Progress in Peacebuilding: Achievements in Conflict Management

Online Training: Certificate Course in Conflict Analysis

Kosovo/Serbia (by Daniel P. Serwer, USIP)

Afghanistan/Pakistan (J. Alexander Thier, USIP)

Syria and Political Change (by Scott Lasensky and Mona Yacoubian, USIPeace Briefing)

 

From the Web Site of the United States Institute of Peace

Academy

Activities: USIP in the Field

Audio Files

Board of Directors

Bookstore

Conferences

Congressional Briefings and Testimonies

Contact Information

Contest: National Peace Essay

Countries and Continents

Digital Collections

Directory of USIP Experts

Global Peacebuilding Center

Grants and Fellowships

Grant Competition

Issue Areas

Library

News Appearances

News Releases

Newsletter Sign-up

Newsroom

Online Courses and Simulations

Past Events

Programs

Publications and Tools

Testimonials

Timeline: USIP

Upcoming Events

Video Gallery

Visiting USIP

Webcasts

Workshops and Training

more
Where Does the Money Go:

Stakeholders include the countries United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is involved with, and the United States government, such as the U.S. Department of State, the Department of Defense, and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Almost 90% of USIP’s projects (including grants projects) are in partnership with the U.S. government, non-governmental organizations, academia, and in collaboration with local partners on the ground in conflict areas. 

Funded Grant Search

more
Controversies:

House Votes to Revoke USIP Charter

Lawmakers in the U.S. House tried in 2011 to eliminate the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), claiming the agency was a waste of federal funding.

 

Created during the Reagan administration, the USIP is the only government body devoted exclusively to international peace building. Its annual budget is about $40 million, which is quite small compared to most federal offices.

 

Supporters pointed out that officials from the USIP have worked in war zones, including Iraq and Afghanistan, to help mitigate deadly conflicts.

 

A former U.S. general, Anthony Zinni, credited the USIP with helping in Mahmudiya, Iraq, which was situated in the so-called “triangle of death.”

 

Nevertheless, Republicans and Democrats tried to deauthorize the USIP, voting 226-194 to kill it. The Senate did not agree and the institute was spared for 2011, though its funding came under scrutiny again in 2012.

Why Did Congress Cut Funds For Peace In A Time Of War? (by Wesley Kanne Clark, Christian Science Monitor)

Prevent War: Save the U.S. Institute of Peace (Friends Committee on National Legislation)

U.S. Institute of Peace Is Target in Spending War (by Norman Ornstein, Roll Call)

 

 

The Daniel Pipes Appointment

Daniel Pipes, a conservative Middle East analyst and columnist who had angered many Muslims, was nominated by President George W. Bush to be on the board of the U.S. Institute of Peace on April 1, 2003. After a vote on the nomination was stalled in Congress, President Bush installed Pipes with a recess appointment on August 23. In response to his appointment, a number of Islamic and Arab organizations, Democrats and civil rights activists protested. Pipes’ brief, controversial tenure ended in December, and he was not re-nominated to the board.

Daniel Pipes and the U.S. Institute of Peace (Daniel Pipes Website)

Pipes-Schemes (by Michael Scherer, Mother Jones)

Sourcewatch: Daniel Pipes

Bush Appointee is a Bigot Disguised as a Scholar (by Fedwa Wazwaz, St. Paul Pioneer Press)

more
Former Directors:

Chester A. Crocker (1992-2004)

Elspeth Davies Rostow (1991-1992)

John Norton Moore (1986-1991)

more

Comments

N Kyle 11 years ago
Amita--Tell me more. What have they accomplished? Or are they just monitoring Monaco and Switzerland?
Amita 13 years ago
Actually, "N Kyle", this agency has done a lot in the past and their mission is very admirable.
N Kyle 13 years ago
Your Agency is not getting anything done. SO, save the money and close it.

Leave a comment

Founded: 1984
Annual Budget: $37.4 million (FY2013 Request)
Employees: About 320
Official Website: http://www.usip.org/
United States Institute of Peace
Lindborg, Nancy
President

Nancy Lindborg, who has worked to improve conditions in distressed parts of the world for most of her career, has been president of the U.S. Institute of Peace since February 2015. Founded in 1984 and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, the Institute of Peace is funded by Congress and works to prevent and resolve violent international conflicts, promote post-conflict stability and development, and increase conflict management capacity. On January 9 and 10, 2017, the Institute held its third “Passing the Baton” conference, bringing together foreign policy and national security figures from the outgoing Obama administration and incoming Trump administrations. However, President Donald Trump has called for the Institute’s funding to be eliminated.

 

Lindborg is from Minnesota and graduated from Edina East High School in 1976. She went west to Stanford where, through a coterminal degree program, she earned both a B.A. and an M.A. in English literature in 1981. She also earned a master’s in public administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government in 1992.

 

Lindborg got her first taste of international relations when she went to Nepal after graduating college. She was offered a job teaching English and stayed there more than two years. She also worked early in her career as a public policy consultant in Chicago and San Francisco.

 

In 1996, Lindborg joined Mercy Corps, a non-governmental organization that works in regions that have suffered some kind of crisis. After working to solve the immediate needs of the area, Mercy Corps promotes community-based improvements. The organization has even provided relief in North Korea. Lindborg served as president of Mercy Corps for six years, helping to build it into a $300 million organization.

 

After leaving Mercy Corps, Lindborg, in November 2010, was sworn in as assistant administrator of the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). She led efforts to mitigate suffering during the Syria crisis, the droughts in Sahel and Horn of Africa, the Arab Spring, the Ebola response and other crises. She remained there until joining the Institute of Peace.

 

On March 22, 2017, Lindborg testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee decrying cuts in the foreign aid budget proposed by President Trump.

 

Lindborg is married to Steven Kull, who is president of Voice of the People, an organization that polls a panel of 120,000 Americans on issues of the day as kind of a giant advisory board for the federal government.

-Steve Straehley

 

To Learn More:

First Things First: A Career Born Out of a Life-Changing Post-Grad Trip to Nepal (by Melissa Wylie, Atlanta Business Chronicle)

Official Biography

more
West, J. Robinson
Previous Director
J. Robinson West received his B.A at the University of North Carolina in 1968 and his J.D from Temple University in 1973. West was on the White House staff from 1974-76 and from1976-77 he worked with the Ford Administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Economic Affairs. From 1977 to 1980 West was Vice President of Blyth, Eastman, Dillon & Co., Inc., an investment banking firm. In 1981-83 he served in the Reagan Administration as Assistant Secretary of Interior for Policy, Budget and Administration, with responsibility for US offshore oil policy. His duties included preparation of the Department's $6 billion budget and general administrative oversight of its 75,000 employees. Since 1984 West has been the Chairman of PRC Energy, which he founded. He has served as a trustee of the $3 billion Trans-Alaska Pipeline Liability Fund, as a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel, the Industry Policy Advisory Committee on Multilateral Trade Negotiations of the US Trade Representative, and on the National Advisory Committee on Handicapped Children. Robinson was nominated by the President in 2003 as a director of the United States Institute of Peace and the nomination was approved by the Senate.
 
more
Bookmark and Share
Overview:

Peace building is a global imperative and the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) works with the international community to prevent, manage, and resolve conflicts in conflict-affected states (CAS). The USIP is an independent, nonpartisan, national institution established and funded by Congress. Its goals are to help prevent and resolve violent international conflicts, promote post-conflict stability and development, and increase conflict management capacity and intellectual capital worldwide. By law, the USIP is governed by a bipartisan Board of Directors. The Board is composed of 12 members from outside federal services who are appointed by the President of the U.S. and confirmed by the Senate, and four ex-officio members: the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the President of the National Defense University, and the President of the Institute (nonvoting). The board is prohibited from having more than eight voting members of the same political party.

more
History:

The first cornerstone in the creation of United States Institute of Peace (USIP) was in 1976 when Senator Vance Hartke of Indiana and Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon introduced a bill to create the George Washington Peace Academy. After a hearing in the Senate it was decided that further research was needed in order to effectively address the needs of the world. President Jimmy Carter established a commission that was chaired by Senator Spark Matsunaga (1916–90) and was referred to as the Matsunaga Commission. The commission researched for over a year and a half and conducted a wide variety of surveys and studied different theories, techniques, and institutions involved in the resolution of international conflicts. The commission met with military and government officials, leading educators, conflict resolution professionals, and representatives from various religious, ethnic, and scientific communities. In addition, the commission met with thousands of citizens through a series of public meetings held across the nation. In 1981, the Matsunaga Commission issued a final report recommending the creation of a national peace academy. After considerable debate regarding the formation of a new institution, the U.S. Institute of Peace Act (pdf) was finally signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1984.

more
What it Does:
  • Works toward its initiatives through several different activities. Operation on the ground in zones of conflict, most recently in Afghanistan, Colombia, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, the Korean Peninsula, Lebanon, Pakistan, the Palestinian Territories, Nigeria, Sudan, and Israel. Projects include: mediating and facilitating dialogue among parties in conflict, promoting the rule of law, reforming and strengthening education systems, strengthening civil society, and state-building. The institute also educates the public through events, films, radio programs, and an array of outreach activates.
  • Performs research that has resulted in more than 400 publications that are beneficial for negotiators, policymakers, and academia. The books cover a wide variety of topics, such as, negotiating across cultures, conflict management, and sustainable reconciliation in divided societies. Through this research, the institute also develops innovative peace-building tools.
  • Organizes training on conflict management and educates government and military personnel, civil society leaders and staff of non-governmental and international organizations on topics like mediation and negotiation skills. 
  • Educates high school and college students about international conflicts with the goal of increasing the peace building capabilities of future leaders. The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) holds a National Peace Essay Contest that encourages high school students to learn about international issues and about how countries can best preserve security and world peace. There are a total of 53 winners and the person awarded 1st place receives $10,000.
  • Supports policymakers by providing analysis, policy options, advice, as well as providing a wide range of country-oriented working groups. 
  • Establishes various resources and strategic centers organized around preventing armed conflict, working toward resolutions when they occur and promoting strategic plans for post-conflict stabilization. These include:

Winning Essays

Publications

USIP Library

Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention

Center for Meditation and Conflict Resolution

Center for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations

Centers of Innovation

The Grant Program

The USIP supports peace-building projects managed by non-profit organizations, including educational institutions, research institutions, civil society organizations, and NGOs. The institute has awarded funding to grantees in 46 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and in 81 foreign countries. Most USIP grants are one to two years in duration. Most awards fall in the range of $50,000 to $120,000.

Apply to the Annual Grant Competition

Progress in Peacebuilding: Achievements in Conflict Management

Online Training: Certificate Course in Conflict Analysis

Kosovo/Serbia (by Daniel P. Serwer, USIP)

Afghanistan/Pakistan (J. Alexander Thier, USIP)

Syria and Political Change (by Scott Lasensky and Mona Yacoubian, USIPeace Briefing)

 

From the Web Site of the United States Institute of Peace

Academy

Activities: USIP in the Field

Audio Files

Board of Directors

Bookstore

Conferences

Congressional Briefings and Testimonies

Contact Information

Contest: National Peace Essay

Countries and Continents

Digital Collections

Directory of USIP Experts

Global Peacebuilding Center

Grants and Fellowships

Grant Competition

Issue Areas

Library

News Appearances

News Releases

Newsletter Sign-up

Newsroom

Online Courses and Simulations

Past Events

Programs

Publications and Tools

Testimonials

Timeline: USIP

Upcoming Events

Video Gallery

Visiting USIP

Webcasts

Workshops and Training

more
Where Does the Money Go:

Stakeholders include the countries United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is involved with, and the United States government, such as the U.S. Department of State, the Department of Defense, and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Almost 90% of USIP’s projects (including grants projects) are in partnership with the U.S. government, non-governmental organizations, academia, and in collaboration with local partners on the ground in conflict areas. 

Funded Grant Search

more
Controversies:

House Votes to Revoke USIP Charter

Lawmakers in the U.S. House tried in 2011 to eliminate the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), claiming the agency was a waste of federal funding.

 

Created during the Reagan administration, the USIP is the only government body devoted exclusively to international peace building. Its annual budget is about $40 million, which is quite small compared to most federal offices.

 

Supporters pointed out that officials from the USIP have worked in war zones, including Iraq and Afghanistan, to help mitigate deadly conflicts.

 

A former U.S. general, Anthony Zinni, credited the USIP with helping in Mahmudiya, Iraq, which was situated in the so-called “triangle of death.”

 

Nevertheless, Republicans and Democrats tried to deauthorize the USIP, voting 226-194 to kill it. The Senate did not agree and the institute was spared for 2011, though its funding came under scrutiny again in 2012.

Why Did Congress Cut Funds For Peace In A Time Of War? (by Wesley Kanne Clark, Christian Science Monitor)

Prevent War: Save the U.S. Institute of Peace (Friends Committee on National Legislation)

U.S. Institute of Peace Is Target in Spending War (by Norman Ornstein, Roll Call)

 

 

The Daniel Pipes Appointment

Daniel Pipes, a conservative Middle East analyst and columnist who had angered many Muslims, was nominated by President George W. Bush to be on the board of the U.S. Institute of Peace on April 1, 2003. After a vote on the nomination was stalled in Congress, President Bush installed Pipes with a recess appointment on August 23. In response to his appointment, a number of Islamic and Arab organizations, Democrats and civil rights activists protested. Pipes’ brief, controversial tenure ended in December, and he was not re-nominated to the board.

Daniel Pipes and the U.S. Institute of Peace (Daniel Pipes Website)

Pipes-Schemes (by Michael Scherer, Mother Jones)

Sourcewatch: Daniel Pipes

Bush Appointee is a Bigot Disguised as a Scholar (by Fedwa Wazwaz, St. Paul Pioneer Press)

more
Former Directors:

Chester A. Crocker (1992-2004)

Elspeth Davies Rostow (1991-1992)

John Norton Moore (1986-1991)

more

Comments

N Kyle 11 years ago
Amita--Tell me more. What have they accomplished? Or are they just monitoring Monaco and Switzerland?
Amita 13 years ago
Actually, "N Kyle", this agency has done a lot in the past and their mission is very admirable.
N Kyle 13 years ago
Your Agency is not getting anything done. SO, save the money and close it.

Leave a comment

Founded: 1984
Annual Budget: $37.4 million (FY2013 Request)
Employees: About 320
Official Website: http://www.usip.org/
United States Institute of Peace
Lindborg, Nancy
President

Nancy Lindborg, who has worked to improve conditions in distressed parts of the world for most of her career, has been president of the U.S. Institute of Peace since February 2015. Founded in 1984 and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, the Institute of Peace is funded by Congress and works to prevent and resolve violent international conflicts, promote post-conflict stability and development, and increase conflict management capacity. On January 9 and 10, 2017, the Institute held its third “Passing the Baton” conference, bringing together foreign policy and national security figures from the outgoing Obama administration and incoming Trump administrations. However, President Donald Trump has called for the Institute’s funding to be eliminated.

 

Lindborg is from Minnesota and graduated from Edina East High School in 1976. She went west to Stanford where, through a coterminal degree program, she earned both a B.A. and an M.A. in English literature in 1981. She also earned a master’s in public administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government in 1992.

 

Lindborg got her first taste of international relations when she went to Nepal after graduating college. She was offered a job teaching English and stayed there more than two years. She also worked early in her career as a public policy consultant in Chicago and San Francisco.

 

In 1996, Lindborg joined Mercy Corps, a non-governmental organization that works in regions that have suffered some kind of crisis. After working to solve the immediate needs of the area, Mercy Corps promotes community-based improvements. The organization has even provided relief in North Korea. Lindborg served as president of Mercy Corps for six years, helping to build it into a $300 million organization.

 

After leaving Mercy Corps, Lindborg, in November 2010, was sworn in as assistant administrator of the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). She led efforts to mitigate suffering during the Syria crisis, the droughts in Sahel and Horn of Africa, the Arab Spring, the Ebola response and other crises. She remained there until joining the Institute of Peace.

 

On March 22, 2017, Lindborg testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee decrying cuts in the foreign aid budget proposed by President Trump.

 

Lindborg is married to Steven Kull, who is president of Voice of the People, an organization that polls a panel of 120,000 Americans on issues of the day as kind of a giant advisory board for the federal government.

-Steve Straehley

 

To Learn More:

First Things First: A Career Born Out of a Life-Changing Post-Grad Trip to Nepal (by Melissa Wylie, Atlanta Business Chronicle)

Official Biography

more
West, J. Robinson
Previous Director
J. Robinson West received his B.A at the University of North Carolina in 1968 and his J.D from Temple University in 1973. West was on the White House staff from 1974-76 and from1976-77 he worked with the Ford Administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Economic Affairs. From 1977 to 1980 West was Vice President of Blyth, Eastman, Dillon & Co., Inc., an investment banking firm. In 1981-83 he served in the Reagan Administration as Assistant Secretary of Interior for Policy, Budget and Administration, with responsibility for US offshore oil policy. His duties included preparation of the Department's $6 billion budget and general administrative oversight of its 75,000 employees. Since 1984 West has been the Chairman of PRC Energy, which he founded. He has served as a trustee of the $3 billion Trans-Alaska Pipeline Liability Fund, as a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel, the Industry Policy Advisory Committee on Multilateral Trade Negotiations of the US Trade Representative, and on the National Advisory Committee on Handicapped Children. Robinson was nominated by the President in 2003 as a director of the United States Institute of Peace and the nomination was approved by the Senate.
 
more