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Peace Studies

College of Social Sciences
Saunders Hall 723
2424 Maile Way
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 956-4237
MIP/PCR Fax: (808) 956-0950
E-mail: uhip@hawaii.edu
Web: www.peaceinstitute.hawaii.edu

Faculty

*Graduate Faculty

B. Barnes, JD, LLM—conflict resolution
B. Hallett, PhD—peace studies

Cooperating Faculty

I. Aoude, PhD—ethnic studies
D. Bangert, PhD—management
J. Barkai, JD—law
T. Brislin, PhD—media
R. Chadwick, PhD—political science
D. Chandler, PhD—sociology
S. Chandler, PhD—public policy/social work
D. Foley, PhD—urban research and planning
G. Fontaine, PhD—communication
A. Hubbard, PhD—speech
M. Jones, PhD—physics
G. Kent, PhD—political science
N. Kent, PhD—ethnic studies
R. Lamb, PhD—religion
K. Lowry, PhD—urban research and planning
J. Lum, PhD—educational foundations
N. Milner, PhD—political science
P. Pedersen, PhD—psychology
R. Robinson, PhD—management
I. Rohter, PhD—political science
L. Ruby, PhD—art
W. Sharkey, PhD—speech
L. Sponsel, PhD—anthropology
C. Stephenson, PhD—political science
J. Van Dyke, JD—law

Degree and Certificates Offered: Certificate in Peace Studies, BA in interdisciplinary studies (peace and conflict studies), Graduate Certificate in Conflict Resolution

The Academic Program

The Spark Matsunaga Institute for Peace program was established at UH in 1984 to carry out the vision of U.S. Senator Spark M. Matsunaga that “every student enrolled in Hawai‘i’s public university will be exposed to peace studies.” In honoring his legacy, the institute is a center for innovation in peacemaking leadership and conflict resolution building on Hawai‘i’s cultural heritage and island values to promote cross-cultural communication and peacemaking leadership. As a multi-disciplinary academic community of scholars, researchers, and students in partnership with members of government, business, education, and the local public, we seek to educate and train professionals and future leaders in peacemaking and conflict resolution for addressing contemporary problems within Hawai‘i, the Asia-Pacific region, the U.S. and the world; and use our strategic Pacific location to bring people together in fulfilling the university’s responsibility to provide a safe sanctuary for civil and respectful exchange of perspectives and ideas.

The institute offers three education programs:

• The Peace and Conflict Resolution major for undergraduates, in cooperation with the Interdisciplinary Studies BA Program, is interdisciplinary in nature and is concerned with the academic study of war and other forms of violence (both direct and structural). The major focuses on nonviolent ways to prevent and resolve destructive conflict, peacemaking and creating conditions necessary for positive peace. With the exception of four required courses, students are free to design their own program with the guidance of an Interdisciplinary Studies and Institute for Peace faculty advisor;
• The Certificate in Peace Studies is designed to expose students to the central ideas and work in the field, and to supplement study in other academic and professional fields. It is flexibly structured, interdisciplinary, and meant to broaden and strengthen any major in any school. The certificate may be taken by undergraduate and Master of Arts graduate students in degree granting programs. Some students may want to focus primarily on peace studies as a personal, intellectual endeavor. Others may be seeking a career in some area relevant to peace studies and will use the peace certificate as a way of enhancing their credentials and expertise;
• The Graduate Certificate in Conflict Resolution for graduate students develops personal skills not only necessary in everyday, inter-personal conflicts with people, but professional skills that enhance a multitude of career choices that makes students more competitive in the world today. Employers consider it an asset if you have the expertise to recognize conflict in all its forms and can deal with workplace situations effectively.
  Students learn:
• Critical and reflective thinking skills related to issues of social justice, diversity, human rights, environmental sustainability, conflict resolution, security, and peace education;
• Strategies and skills in effective goal setting and managing desired outcomes for peace-building at all levels, local to global;
• Creation, evaluation, and implementation of policies relevant for sustaining conditions of peace;
• Knowledge and practice of the major theoretical foundations of the fields of conflict resolution and peace studies.

Students taking these courses go on to careers in diplomacy (including the UN and its affiliates), Third World aid and development (research, administration, and fieldwork), mediation services, public relations, defense planning, management operations, industrial relations, education (teaching and administration), welfare and public interest work, journalism, service industries, and, of course, the fields of peace and conflict research, peace education, and peace advocacy. The development of perspectives and skills in peace, justice, and conflict resolution are relevant in the general areas of private business, the arts, national and international nongovernmental organizations, and national, regional and international government bodies.

Undergraduate Study

Bachelor’s Degree

The equivalent of an undergraduate major in peace and conflict resolution is available through the BA program of Interdisciplinary Studies. For information, contact the Matsunaga Institute for Peace or the Interdisciplinary Studies Program. Interested students should refer to the “Interdisciplinary Studies” section within the Colleges of Arts and Sciences.

Major Requirements

• POLS 201 Problems of War and Peace
• PACE 310 Survey Peace and Conflict Studies
• PACE 345/ANTH 345 Aggression, War and Peace
• PACE 495 Practicum and Internship
• The remaining 24 credit hours, or eight courses, to meet the major’s minimum requirement of 36 credit hours must be selected from either the peace studies or conflict resolution stream as long as at least one course is done from the other stream. For example, a student may elect to do seven conflict resolution courses but be required to do one of the peace studies courses. Or the student may elect to concentrate in the peace studies stream and take one conflict resolution course.

Peace Studies Stream

• WS 304 Women, War and the Military
• BIOL 310 Environmental Issues
• PACE 315 Personal Peace: Stories of Hope
• GEOG 336 Geography of Peace and War
• POLS 394/WS 353 Democracy in Organizations
• PACE 373/POLS 396 Nonviolent Political Alternatives
• PACE 399 Directed Reading
• PACE 410 History of Peace Movements
• PACE 412 Gandhi, King, and Nonviolence
• ANTH 423 Social and Cultural Change
• ECON 466 Growth and Crisis in the Global Economy
• COM 459 Special Topics
• PACE 485 Topics in Peace and Conflict Resolution
• PACE 495 Practicum and Internship

Conflict Resolution Stream

• PACE 247 Survey of Conflict Management
• POLS 319 International Organization
• COM 340 Intercultural Communication
• PACE 340 Negotiation
• POLS 375 Public Law and Judicial Behavior
• PACE 399 Directed Reading
• PACE 447 Mediation Skills: UH Basic
• SP 455 Conflict Management
• PACE 477 Culture and Conflict Resolution
• PACE 478 International Law and Disputes
• PACE 485 Topics in Peace and Conflict Resolution
• PACE 495 Practicum and Internship*
• A student may not apply towards the major more than 9 credit hours from any combination of PACE 399 and PACE 495.
• A 2.5 GPA must be maintained in the major course work and no grade below a C.

Certificate in Peace Studies

To receive a Certificate in Peace Studies, students must take PACE 310 and 495, and 9 credit hours from any of the approved course list. Courses must be distributed between those emphasizing conflict resolution and those emphasizing social justice or conflict prevention. At least one course should come from a discipline other than PACE. Maintenance of an overall GPA of 2.5 is required in prerequisite and certificate courses.

Graduate Study

Certificate in Conflict Resolution

The Certificate in Conflict Resolution allows students pursuing a master’s or doctoral degree in another area to become acquainted with conflict resolution theory, practice, and activities. It is also available to students seeking the certificate only and considers unclassified students, as well as degree students, for admission. Students enrolled in public administration, education, law, urban and regional planning, political science, sociology, anthropology, geography, health, social work, environmental science, zoology, and psychology are part of the program, along with professionals in the community. Students are encouraged to use the certificate program to increase their competence in conflict resolution as it relates to their major area of study. The Certificate in Conflict Resolution introduces students to the fundamentals of conflict resolution; mediation systems; dynamics for group conflict; skills for organizing and leading group deliberations; and culturally appropriate dispute resolution.

Certificate students are required to complete at least 15 credits from the approved course list, which includes two (2) three-credit “core” courses at the 600 level or above, two (2) electives and one (1) three-credit practicum (to be taught by program faculty on a rotating basis) or substitution of an additional three-credit core or elective course.

The core courses consist of PLAN 627, POLS 633, PACE 655, MGT 660, PLAN/PUBA 661, PACE 695, and SOC 730. The elective courses are multi-disciplinary in nature. The areas include Industrial Relations, Law, Negotiation, Mediation, Culture and Conflict Resolution, International Disputing/International Law, ADR Systems Design, Conflict Resolution for Educators, International Relations and War, Political Science and Speech. Specific information about the core and elective courses, including access to the graduate certificate brochure, can be found at www.peaceinstitute.hawaii.edu/pcr/index.html.

A capstone paper is also required. The paper will be based on one or more seminar papers and evaluated by two or more PCR faculty. For most students, the certificate program will require at least one (1) additional semester of coursework as the practicum requires a 100-hour commitment. This can take place in a variety of settings. Upon completion of the required courses, each student is expected to demonstrate competence in one of the following skills: facilitation, mediation, or conflict analysis/process design.

Successful completion of the program leads to a Graduate Certificate in Conflict Resolution and is available to students seeking the certificate only or concurrently with a masters or PhD program. Consideration for admission to the certificate program requires filing of an application form available from the department.

PACE Courses