Richmond, Oliver P. Pau. Una molt breu introducció. Barcelona: International Catalan Institute for Peace; Líniazero, 2017.
It is often thought that war is the natural state of humanity and that peace is something fragile and fleeting. This book challenges this point of view. In its various forms, peace has been the most common experience for humanity, as indicated by archaeological, ethnographic and historical records.
This book presents the history of the evolution of peace, both in theory and in practice, from the perspective of the Global North. The West has led the development of what is known today as “liberal peace,” which has been the basis for the international architecture in existence following the 98Second World War and the Cold War. And, since the beginning of the 21st century, a liberal peace has gradually prevailed.
In the debate on peace, however, there is an increasing presence of critical or non-Western voices who strive to find better alternatives, perhaps hybrids, in a world that is increasingly post-colonial and post-liberal.
About the author
Oliver Richmond holds a Ph.D. in International Relations and is a Professor in the Department of Politics at the University of Manchester. He founded the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies and served as its director from 2005-2012. His area of expertise is peace and conflict theory and its links with the theory of international relations. He has developed research activities in both the academic world and in prominent institutions committed to peacebuilding.
Author of numerous publications, his latest books include Peace Formation and Political Order (2016), Failed Statebuilding and Peace Formation (2014) and A Post-Liberal Peace (2011).