The European Centre of Peace Science, Integration and Cooperation is intended to develop and support Peace Science. Peace science is now developing as interdisciplinary social science in different Excellence universities, centres and think-thank drawing heavily from different disciplines: economics, international relations, political science, in the first place, but also sociology, anthropology, religious anthropology, psychology. Peace science is both a positive and normative science. That is, Peace science focuses first on the roots and causes of conflicts and on the design of policies to establish a lasting peace.
In particular, CESPIC approach to Peace is based on conceptual three pillars: (I) Peace ‘from within’; (II) Peace among states, polities and communities; (III) Peace as Global public good.
(I) First, CESPIC favors activities centered on micro-foundations of Peace within societies. Consider among others: local development, fight against poverty, inequality, conflict and conflict resolution between ethnic and religious minorities, social justice, empowerment of civil society and economic policies for the construction of peace.
(II) The second pillar focuses on the issues and the dynamics that subtend the achievement of a lasting peace between states and polities within the global system. In particular, CESPIC focus on models of interaction between states which go beyond deterrence and arms race but emphasizes cooperation and integration between states.
(III) The third pillar considers Peace as a global public good and therefore it emphasizes the role and the attitude of the global institutions capable of (a) maintaining the peace in post-conflict scenes; (b) develop global economic policies; (c) tackle global issues as climate change, terrorism, forced migrations and transnational crime.
