Conflict and insecurity are increasingly permeated by a range of ‘new’ actors, from digital technologies and violent infrastructures to climate change and environmental degradation. These emerging issues carry significant implications for peace and peacebuilding – as well as the human experiences of people and societies enduring conflict. Over the past decade, approaches to peace and security have likewise expanded to address a range of ‘non-traditional’ security issues, such as displacement, terrorism and justice, against the backdrop of ongoing environmental, technological, and geopolitical transformations.
This custom-designed, interdisciplinary MSc explores contemporary approaches to human security through the lenses of conflict prevention, social justice, and peacebuilding. You will gain up-to-date knowledge in areas such as conflict and displacement, climate-conflict, and community-driven peace formation, all within the context of contemporary security challenges and global interventions. During the programme, you will grapple with the political and ethical challenges posed by conflict and insecurity, critically analyse security policies and interventions, and assess their implications for peacebuilding within the contemporary geopolitical landscape.
The MSc is designed for graduates who aspire to a career in government, inter-governmental organisations, NGOs, humanitarian organisations, or academia, and to practitioners looking to enhance their practical skills while placing them within a broader theoretical perspective.
This course draws on the research and teaching strengths of the Durham Global Security Institute (DGSi).
Professor Olga Demetriou is a member of the teaching team for MSc Peace, Conflict, and Security.
Read interviews with DGSi academics to learn more about their research on peace, security and development.
The diversity of the staff and students in the MSc made the experience at SGIA extremely rich. Not only are you surrounded by people from around the world, but also by diverse academic and professional experiences.
During the course I have had the opportunity to meet very many interesting scholars, practitioners and very intelligent and diverse fellow students, from different cultural and academic backgrounds. The course gave me insight in things I had only read about in books before by confronting us with people who have actually been in the field, and by taking us there ourselves through the study trip and fieldwork opportunities for our dissertations.
During a conflict, would you know what urgent actions need to be tackled? This course gives students the opportunity to put their learning into action during their Capstone Simulation Exercise.