Gender, Masculinities and Peacebuilding: Joint Book Launch

On 19 June 2025, we gathered at Ulster University for the joint book launch of two groundbreaking volumes: The Routledge Handbook of Masculinities, Conflict, and Peacebuilding and Masculinities and Queer Perspectives in Transitional Justice.

This event celebrated the culmination of years of research exploring how gender, particularly masculinities and queer identities, influences contexts of violence and peacebuilding. The launch highlighted the relevance of these themes in today’s political landscape.

Belfast, with its rich history and vibrant academic community, provided the perfect backdrop for this celebration. Attendees joined several authors for an engaging interactive discussion about the books' implications for current debates and the path forward.

The Routledge Handbook of Masculinities, Conflict, and Peacebuilding (Edited By Henri Myrttinen, Chloé Lewis, Heleen Touquet, Philipp Schulz, Farooq Yousaf, Elizabeth Laruni). This comprehensive handbook challenges conventional views on men and masculinities in conflict and peacebuilding. It offers a multi-dimensional exploration of gender dynamics, combining feminist, intersectional, and queer perspectives to illuminate the complexities of men’s roles in these processes.

Masculinities and Queer Perspectives in Transitional Justice (Edited By Philipp Schulz, Brandon Hamber and Heleen Touquet). This volume investigates the intersections of masculinities and queer theories, enhancing our understanding of violence, justice, and post-conflict transitions. It aims to foster more inclusive approaches to gender in addressing violent pasts.

Editors Philipp Schulz, Brandon Hamber and Heleen Touquet

The event was co-hosted by the Transitional Justice Institute and INCORE at Ulster University, marking a significant moment in advancing conversations around gender and peacebuilding. Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to the enriching discussions!

Masculinites, Violence & Post Conflict

Prof Brandon Hamber gives the closing remarks at the postgraduate conference on Masculinities, Violence and Post Conflict, 14 January 2016, Ulster University. The conference was organised by PhD students in TJI, INCORE and IRISS, and supported by International Alert, Conciliation Resources, Saferworld, and the Political Settlements Research Programme.

Seminar - Sexual Assault Among University Students

Glad to be involved in this important seminar. INCORE, the Transitional Justice Institute (TJI) and UUSU cordially invite you to a seminar entitled "Sexual Assault Among University Students: Parallels Between USA and UK/Ireland?"by William F. ("Bill") Flack, Jr.

Survey research in the USA and UK/Ireland indicates significant rates of sexual victimization among university students. This talk will summarize the available research, focusing on the import roles of student activism and faculty/staff advocacy in recent developments in the USA, with implications for the same in the UK/Ireland.

Date: 2 December 2015
Time: 12:30 to 14:30
Venue: Ulster University, Belfast campus, Conor Lecture Theatre

Refreshments will be served from 12.30pm with the talk commencing at 1.15pm.

William F. ("Bill") Flack, Jr. is a US-UK Fulbright Scholar (Northern Ireland Governance and Public Policy) at INCORE at Magee campus and Psychology at Coleraine campus from September through December 2015.

RSVP here.

Conference: Masculinities, Violence and Post-Conflict

Call for Papers

Postgraduate Conference: Masculinities, Violence and (Post-)Conflict

Date: Thursday, 14 January 2016, 09:00 – 17:00

Venue: Ulster University, York St. Campus (Belfast, Northern Ireland)

The Transitional Justice Institute (TJI) and the International Conflict Research Institute (INCORE) at Ulster University invite proposals for a one-day postgraduate conference on “Masculinities, Violence and (Post-)Conflict” on Thursday, 14 January 2016. This student-led event will offer academic presentations, peer discussion, networking opportunities and expert feedback in a supportive environment. The conference will be followed by an international high-level workshop on Masculinities and Violence on Friday, 15 January 2016, organized by International Alert, Saferworld and Conciliation Resources (CR), providing a forum for both practitioners and international academics to engage on the topic.

The conference will bring together postgraduate students working on the interface between social constructions of masculinities as well as violence and (post-)conflict. Specifically, the conference will focus on the relationship between these areas, assessing how socially constructed notions of masculinities - in their varying forms, including hegemonic and subordinate conceptions - theoretically and conceptually can, and empirically do (or do not), fuel violence or impact the advancement of women's rights. At the same time, we aim to explore how situations of violence and victimisation influence and (re-)shape notions and dynamics of masculinities (both combatant and civilian identities), in itself and in relation to femininities and gender-hierarchies. The conference will therefore move beyond simplified conceptualisations of gender identities and critically explore the largely ambivalent role of masculinities. We thus aim to approach masculinities as both potentially contributing to violence and at the same time as potentially (and factually) vulnerable. Questions to be explored thus include, but are not limited to:

How, conceptually and empirically, can masculinities be linked to violence, including sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and violence against women (VAW)?

Conceptually and empirically, what are the relationships between masculinities and femininities, gender equality as well as women's rights within (post-) conflict contexts?

How do situations of violence and (post-)conflict shape masculinities, and how are masculinities (re-)shaped and influenced during conflict and post-conflict lived realities?

How and to what extent do post-conflict peace-building and transitional justice processes consider and address masculinities?

We invite paper proposals from postgraduate students across various disciplines that utilize a gendered lens while exploring the dynamics of, and/or relationships between masculinities, violence and (post-)conflict either conceptually or empirically in different geographical contexts and across time. In-depth case study analyses alongside theoretical explorations and empirically-grounded papers, including feminist theoretical and methodological approaches, are welcome. Speakers and discussants at the conference include, inter alia, Prof. Fionnuala Ni Aolain, Prof. Brandon Hamber (both Ulster University) and Dr. Henri Myrttinen (International Alert).

If you would like to propose a paper, please submit an abstract of max. 250 words and a short one-paragraph academic bio by 15 November 2015 to Philipp Schulz (Schulz-P@email.ulster.ac.uk) and Seamus Campbell (Campbell-S25@email.ulster.ac.uk).

Papers will be grouped thematically and distributed among three main panels. Each panel will have a designated commentator, an established academic or other expert in the field. Commentators will offer expert feedback as well as complement and stimulate peer-discussion. We are seeking the possibility of a publication of contributions (from conference and workshop), for which selected postgraduate papers might also be considered.

Participation and attendance at the conference are free of charge and participants are invited to attend the workshop on the following day. We regret that we are unable to offer travel bursaries or other assistance with costs. 

Dealing with the Past in Northern Ireland

Today I attended a Transitional Justice Institute workshop looking at dealing with the past in Northern Ireland. Main question asked: where to now. In short, the key point emerging was that the dealing with the past question has not gone away, and there is a need to have some organised way of addressing it. However, a lack of leadership and commitment locally and by the two governments stymies things moving forward. While this goes on victims continue to be frustrated by the plethora of mechanisms out there, none of which are meeting their needs in entirety, in fact making many feel they have to repeat themselves in multiple forums. There is also a growing resentment by some victims of their cases being called "historical" or "legacy issue" implying the concerns about truth and justice are not contemporary. Denis Bradley spoke at the event, and although does not see much progress, said he felt that the Consultative Group on the Past report has not been entirely binned and may return, as it is the only viable option on the table.

Also see my collection of resources and website on dealing with the past in Northern Ireland.