JCU Contributes to Universities Network on Children in Armed Conflicts Autumn School

"IDPs Still Residing in UNAMID Compound Following Attack" by United Nations Photo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 - Children in Armed Conflicts

“IDPs Still Residing in UNAMID Compound Following Attack” by United Nations Photo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 – Children in Armed Conflicts

John Cabot University is happy to announce that the Autumn School on “Building competencies and awareness on the international protection of girl children affected by armed conflict” organized by the Universities Network on Children in Armed Conflicts, in cooperation with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will be delivered online from October 4 to 19, 2021. JCU Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Silvia Scarpa is part of the Autumn School’s Scientific Organizing Committee and will give a lecture entitled “Contemporary Slavery” on October 13.”

The Autumn School is an intensive course focusing on international human rights law and international humanitarian law, with an emphasis on the protection of children in armed conflict and on gender issues. The Course responds to the increase in grave violations against children committed during armed conflicts in the last decades. According to the United Nations, 26,425 grave violations against children were committed in 2020, including killing and maiming, recruitment and use of children as child soldiers, sexual violence, abduction, attacks against schools, and denial of humanitarian access for children. In this context, girls are particularly affected by rape and other forms of sexual violence. The countries with the highest numbers of children affected are Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Afghanistan, and Syria.

The Autumn School offers participants first-hand knowledge and expertise in the field and promotes the creation of a space for networking, in order to create like-minded Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) and United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 “champion groups” coordinated by relevant Course professors. The faculty is composed of leading scholars and academics from the universities that are part of the Universities Network on Children in Armed Conflict, representatives of the United Nations system, and of other international humanitarian organizations.

The Autumn School is designed for participants with a background in Law, Political Science, International Relations, or Sociology. Participants should hold a university degree (at least a BA or equivalent with 3 years of studies in these disciplines) or have equivalent professional experience in a relevant field. Applications from JCU alumni and students who expect to graduate at the end of the 2020/2021 academic year and in the 2021/2022 academic year will also be considered.

The courses will be offered in English and French and there is no registration fee. The deadline for course registration is 20 September 2021. A certificate will be issued at the end of the course.

For further information on the application process, please, see the Autumn School Program and send a message to Professor Silvia Scarpa at [email protected]