Research at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research

The primary goal of research at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research is to understand the causes and dynamics of peace and conflict. The Department has established itself as a key producer of cutting-edge research and a provider of high-quality data on conflict.

The research conducted is mainly theory-based empirical enquiries, while some projects are policy-driven. A range of quantitative and qualitative methods is used, and several projects are multi-method. The Department also houses the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP) which provides unique, free and globally accessible data on armed conflict used worldwide for frontline research in the field. An international panel has evaluated the program as world leading and a “flagship” for Uppsala University.

Most research is externally funded and conducted within projects or programs. To learn more about the research conducted at the Department, browse the research themes section. The larger research programmes, as well as the Research School for International Water Cooperation, are presented further below.

Research programs

Uppsala Conflict Data Program

The UCDP is the world’s main provider of data on organized violence and the oldest ongoing data collection project for civil war, with a history of almost 40 years. Explore and download data.

ViEWS: a Violence Early-Warning System

ViEWS develops, tests, and iteratively improves a Violence Early-Warning System that is rigorous, data-based, transparent, and publicly available to the international community.

Societies at Risk

Societies at risk is a multi-disciplinary research program that brings together scholars from public health research, economics, political science, peace and conflict research, and natural disaster science.

Research School for International Water Cooperation

Since 2014, the Department houses the Research School for International Water Cooperation, which aims to address water cooperation in its broadest sense with a primary focus on water for peace and development. The Research School is part of the International Centre for Water Cooperation (ICWC), the first UNESCO Category II Centre in Sweden.

Diagram över data från forskningsprojektet.

The Sanctions Program: SPITS

Sanctions research has long been associated with the Department. SPITS (the Stockholm Process on the Implementation of Targeted Sanctions) was initiated as the "Stockholm Process" by the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs together with the Department in November 2001. The report "Making Targeted Sanctions Effective" was delivered to the UN Security Council on February 25, 2003. The work has since then continued by deepening academic research on targeted sanctions, contributing to policy making in the sanctions field, and keeping a website continuously updated on development on sanctions issues in the UN.