The expression “positive peace” was popularized by sociologist Johan Galtung, though others including Martin Luther King Jr. and late 19th and early 20th century pacifists like Jane Addams and Alfred Fried used it in their writings prior to him. The term describes the presence of conditions that sustain peaceful societies and extends beyond the negative definition of peace as the absence of hostilities.
First, a broad way to classify stages of conflict. Some stages may overlap and are not necessarily linear in their progression:
- Before outbreak of hostilities
- During conflict (usually interstate wars or civil wars, but not always)
- After conflict (stabilization, transition)
- Maintenance & prevention of new conflict
- Sustaining and cultivation of positive peace
Most modern research related to peace is heavily concentrated on explaining conditions that lead to conflict and stages 1-3. The more upstream you go, the less attention is generally devoted to it.
The aims of this little blog are to:
- Explore causes of conflict and to devote attention to the upstream contributors
- Articulate conditions for sustainable peace and well-being
- Present multidisciplinary perspectives on conflict and peace, including but not limited to insights from social science.
About me: My background is in social science. I do research in a different field. The writing presented here represents topics that pique my interest. Writing is also a way to find out what I know.
Thanks for dropping by!
Contact
You can get in touch with me at PositivePeaceEdits [at] proton [dot] me
I’m also here: @positivepeaceedits.bsky.social