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The paper argues that a critical but overlooked link exists between the integration of migrants in settlement countries and their ability to contribute to development in their countries of origin. It identifies eight mechanisms of diaspora contribution—including remittances, entrepreneurship, and political activism—and demonstrates that these are not a zero-sum game with integration; rather, strong integration often supports stronger transnational engagement. The authors call for greater policy coherence and dialogue between the fields of integration, development, and migration management to avoid fragmented or contradictory policies that may hinder these contributions.

The Handbook on Governance Statistics, developed by the Praia Group, establishes a framework for measuring governance through eight dimensions: non-discrimination and equality, participation, openness, access to and quality of justice, responsiveness, absence of corruption, trust, and safety and security. It emphasizes a Human Rights-Based Approach to Data (HRBAD) and advocates for the use of triangulated data sources, including administrative records, household surveys, and expert assessments. The document provides specific recommended indicators, many aligned with SDG 16, and offers technical guidance on mitigating biases in subjective measurements of trust, responsiveness, and corruption.

The document analyzes Norway's involvement in Afghanistan, noting that while the initial 2001 justification was based on the NATO Article 5 security guarantee, the official rationale shifted over a decade toward preventing terrorism and promoting international solidarity. Norway's approach was characterized by a strict separation of military and civilian efforts, exemplified by the 'Norwegian Model' in the Faryab Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT), where military commanders had no authority over aid allocation. Despite this, the engagement strained military resources and faced domestic skepticism, with some of the public believing participation increased the risk of terror attacks. The paper concludes that alliance dependence remained the primary driver of the engagement, even as the government rhetorically emphasized peacebuilding and state-building.

The report identifies ten common areas for comparing the mediation strategies of Qatar and Norway, highlighting differences in their identities, the role of civil society, and regional engagement, while noting shared dependencies on the United States and the use of financial resources to cultivate soft power.

The document analyzes the role of the Assembly of Civil Society (ASC) in the Guatemalan peace process (1990–1996). While the ASC successfully influenced agreements on indigenous rights, it was marginalized during sensitive negotiations on the Truth Commission to avoid derailing the peace process. The author argues that this illustrates a conflict between process-related norms (inclusivity) and the paramount goal of stopping violence, suggesting that international support should shift toward empowering civil society during the implementation phase of peace agreements.

The research examines the transition of 'duty of care' from an internal NGO management norm to a legally enforceable liability, using the case of Steven Patrick Dennis v. the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) as a primary example. The Oslo District Court found the NRC grossly negligent following the 2012 kidnapping of staff in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya, ruling that the organization must adhere to the same due care standards as any other employer, regardless of the humanitarian context.

The report argues that countering disinformation requires a shift from merely correcting false claims to building holistic societal resilience. It analyzes the 'psychological defence' model, specifically the Swedish Psychological Defence Agency (MPF), and evaluates Norwegian and European approaches. Key findings suggest that while Norway has high institutional trust, it lacks the centralized coordination seen in Sweden. The authors recommend that Norway strengthen national coordination, clarify conceptual terminology to avoid 'militarizing' social issues, and prioritize strategic, transparent communication to maintain public trust outside of crisis periods.

The document details the collaboration between IDSA and PRIO, focusing on India's perspectives on food security, nuclear governance, and climate change. It highlights India's pursuit of nuclear energy capacity, its adherence to the CBDR-RC principle in climate negotiations, and the internal challenges of food insecurity and insurgencies.

The document is a reflective account of Lynn P. Nygaard's journey through a Doctor of Education (EdD) programme. The author describes the tension between being a 'seasoned professional' in academic writing and a novice researcher, detailing challenges such as impostor syndrome, the difficulty of developing an original academic voice, and the struggle to process critical feedback. The author argues that their decision to extend their doctoral studies to focus on publishing was an act of agency to build a legitimate academic identity. Additionally, the text discusses how a combination of financial security, supervisor support, and intrinsic motivation enabled the author to complete the degree following a severe personal crisis involving their husband's critical injury.

The study examines the relationship between contributing and belonging in Norway, finding that the act of contributing functions as an 'admission ticket' for those experiencing ontological insecurity. Through interviews in a rural municipality, the author identifies that while non-migrants possess a taken-for-granted sense of belonging, internal and international migrants use public contributions—such as employment, language learning, and volunteering—to gain recognition. The paper argues that belonging is practiced across multiple geographical scales, with internal migrants focusing on local acceptance and international migrants seeking both local and national recognition.

The authors examine the causal links between climate change and armed conflict, finding a significant gap between dramatic political claims of 'climate wars' and actual empirical data. They note a paradox where global warming has accelerated while the number of ongoing conflicts has declined. The paper outlines five potential mechanisms—political instability, social fragmentation, economic instability, migration, and unintended policy consequences—through which environmental stress might indirectly influence conflict, but concludes that these effects are heavily mediated by existing state capacity and socio-political conditions.

The research explores how young members of the Somali diaspora, specifically those born or raised in Norway and the United States, navigate their identities and civic participation. It challenges binary views of citizenship and integration, proposing 'multi-sited embeddedness' to describe how these individuals belong to and act within multiple communities simultaneously. The study finds that civic engagement is both a result of belonging and a tool used to claim inclusion in various national and local contexts.

The paper maps the disparate research and practice of 'business-peace' interactions into five core assertions: economic engagement creating a peace dividend, local development building peace capacities, importing international norms for accountability, constraining conflict drivers, and direct corporate diplomacy. While proponents argue these activities foster stability and development, critics warn of neo-colonial exploitation, 'peacewashing', and the risk of exacerbating local inequalities. The author concludes that business contributions are often limited by the willingness of local regimes and the priority of profit over courageous ethical choices in fragile contexts.

The report examines SFA in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Somalia since 2010, finding that billions in spending have often been ineffective or counter-productive. It identifies a 'piecemeal approach' where multiple providers with diverging interests create fragmented security forces, undermining professional standards and civilian oversight. Case studies of Mali and Somalia highlight issues such as high personnel turnover, a focus on technical skills over ethics, and the diversion of equipment to illicit markets. The authors recommend long-term, coordinated partnerships based on detailed local capacity assessments to foster cohesion rather than fragmentation.

The document examines migrant transnationalism—the ties and practices migrants maintain across borders—across economic, sociocultural, and political dimensions. It advocates for a 'transnational lens' to move beyond 'methodological nationalism,' which assumes the nation-state is the only relevant unit of analysis. Key areas of focus include the role of remittances, the impact of digital technologies on 'co-presence,' the dynamics of transnational families, and the interaction between transnational engagement and integration into host societies. The authors argue that transnationalism is not a zero-sum game with integration and can provide significant 'mobility capital' and resources for migrants.

The authors examine the methodological debate surrounding the use of mosques as recruiting grounds for research on Muslims in Europe. While acknowledging critiques regarding sampling bias and the 'lived religion' perspective, they argue that terms like 'organized' or 'member' are too imprecise to invalidate mosque-based sampling. Using the FINEX project in the Nordic countries as a case study, they suggest that the 'technologization' of mosques (via social media and email) and their institutional role in European societies actually increase their utility as research entry points. They recommend a stratified approach to sampling and the separation of recruitment from the actual data collection environment to ensure ecological validity.

The study examines the implementation of rights-based approaches (RBA) in Pakistan, focusing on Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and its partners. It finds that global RBA norms are rarely applied directly via international law but are instead translated into three frameworks: humanitarian standards, citizen rights, and Islamic principles. The author identifies two modes of engaging with religion: 'instrumental engagement,' where religious leaders are used as gatekeepers to achieve project goals, and 'substantial engagement,' where the substance of religion is used to find overlapping values with human rights, particularly regarding women's rights. The paper argues that religion is an integral part of the lifeworld of aid recipients and essential for gaining legitimacy in the Pakistani humanitarian arena.

The document details the academic career of Nils Petter Gleditsch, highlighting his empirical approach to conflict research, his role as editor of the Journal of Peace Research, and his commitment to transparency and data replication. It examines his specific research on the 'democratic peace', environmental conflict, and the security aspects of climate change, while providing a quantitative analysis of his high citation rates compared to peers. The text also emphasizes his mentorship of graduate students and his institutional contributions to the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO).

The document analyzes how Norway responded to the July 22 terror attacks through a lens of 'negotiating values.' It explores the tension between a temporary 'consensus sphere' of national unity and the underlying complexities of a diverse, pluralistic society. Key analyses include the role of media in shaping narratives, the psychological mechanisms of resilience, the philosophical foundations of human dignity and free speech, and the impact of digital algorithms on crisis discourse.

The research examines the intersection of Norway's national identity as a gender-equal and peace-promoting nation with its diplomatic practices. Through interviews with ten diplomats, the authors analyze how 'state feminism' has transitioned from domestic policy to foreign policy, specifically within the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda. The findings highlight a strategic tension: while Norway promotes gender equality to enhance its international branding and credibility as a neutral facilitator, it avoids the explicit label of 'feminist foreign policy' to prevent being perceived as too value-driven or Western, which could jeopardize its role as a benign peace facilitator. The document notes a shift from early, male-dominated peace efforts to more professionalized, gender-balanced teams in recent processes like those in Colombia and the Philippines.