International Institute for Peace

The International Institute for Peace is an international non-governmental organization that gained consultative status with UNESCO in 2011. IIP and UNESCO work together to address any violence that takes place in the world, mainly in areas of high population. Cases are analyzed and members of IIP and UNESCO attempt to find peaceful resolution to the situation. IIP's work helps UNESCO meet its constitutional goal to build peace in the minds of people.[1]

The IIP efforts include:

• incorporating peace-building practices into various aspects such as art, climate change and the environment
• provide mediation efforts for those who are in very stressful/violent situations (such as war)
• building a global platform that people can access in order to help create peaceful societies[2]

The art, climate change and environmental aspects are different ways for people to see and understand the importance of peace in a creative way and or emphasize peace in a way that is understandable. Mediation efforts are a way for the institute to suggest and or provide ways for people to practice peace.

The people who work at the IIP come from various countries and backgrounds. These people are experts in areas such as politics, peace research, and conflict resolution. This international organization focuses on promoting peaceful solutions to people in a wide variety of places. Typically, these things are taught in schools and the military, but this is an exception. Research is something that the IIP focuses on all around the world, including Austria, which is where the IIP is founded and based out of. They do a lot of research on topics such as international organization, peace, etc. The institute also looks at some findings which are based on how the economy, society and effectiveness of conflict resolutions.[3] Their findings look at all of these things combined, because they all play a significant role when it comes to peace.

The International Institute for Peace was founded in Vienna in 1956.[4] In 1989, Erwin Lanc re-founded the institute as a non-governmental organization and introduced new statutes. Since 1989 the IIP is an Austrian association according to Austrian Law and is independent from any state. It has consultative status at the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC) and the United Nations Organization for Education, Science, Culture and Communication (UNESCO). The current president is Dr. Hannes Swoboda.[4]

According to Dr Julian Lewis, a campaigner against the peace movement, The IIP was "set up by the Kremlin after the World Peace Council was thrown out of Austria for subversion."[5] and according to J. G. Barlow of the Heritage Foundation, the WPC operated under cover of the IIP after the WPC was expelled from Vienna.[6] This was confirmed by Oleg Gordievsky in the book "Sokea peili" written by him and Inna Rogatchi in 1997.[7]

• International Institute for Peace