SIPA: School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University

Current and Ongoing Research

The United Nations Studies Program (UNSP), under the academic leadership of its Director, Elisabeth Lindenmayer is currently working on the following research projects:

1. Haiti – UN Peacekeeping: A View from the Ground
   
   

   The United Nations Studies Program (UNSP) is bringing a United Nations Peacekeeping Operation into the academic arena for the first time.
   
   The aim of the research project is to analyze and evaluate the impact of the various crises Haiti is currently dealing with (price of food, 4 hurricanes, the food shortage, and now the impact of the global financial crisis) on the mandate of the UN peacekeeping mission (MINUSTAH). The other important aspect of the research is to show students how a peacekeeping operation functions on the ground.
   
   MINUSTAH presents some of the truly complex issues of international peacekeeping, affording students the opportunity to explore issues not only of peacekeeping, but also of state-building, peace building, post-conflict reconstruction and economic and political development. Last semester (fall 2008) the six SIPA students selected for the project embarked on preparatory research in New York conducting interviews with Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), Mr. Hédi Annabi, as well as many productive meetings with the UN and UN agencies. This was followed by a visit to Haiti in January 2009, hosted by MINUSTAH, where students conducted interviews with the Haitian Prime Minister, Her Excellency Ms. Michèle Pierre-Louis, as well as representatives from government ministries, civil society, and the private sector. Upon their return from Haiti, the research team was also invited to brief the Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the United Nations, Ambassador Jorge Urbina, who will be leading a Security Council mission to Haiti in March 2009.
   
   Download UNSP Haiti Report (pdf)
   
   The research will be written up into a substantive UNSP report, hopefully for publication, during the spring 2009 semester and the project will culminate in a conference on Tuesday, April 7, 2009, which aims to raise the visibility of Haiti and share the results of the research. We will invite a wide range of people to whom the subject matter is relevant including donors, Ambassadors and representatives from the UN, professors and academics, the Haitian diaspora, and of course the SIPA student body.

2. Kenya – Restoring Peace and Security post December 2007 contested elections.
   
   The research on Kenya is an in-depth academic case-study, which consists of two distinct, yet complimentary analyses:
   
   Analysis of the 41 Days of Mediation in Kenya
   
   This research examines the diplomatic and humanitarian efforts to restore peace and security to Kenya in the wake of the December 2007 Presidential elections. The research draws on the first hand experience of members of the mediation team and interviews with the key actors who participated in the 41-day negotiations.

   
   The research involves a detailed analysis of the story of the successful 41-day mediation process in January and February 2008 (currently being submitted for publication)

   Analysis of the 2007 Post-Election Crisis
   
   This research analyzes the challenges that the Kenyan leadership faced in their attempts to restore sustainable peace to Kenya in the wake of the December 2007 post-election violence. The paper will evaluate to what extent the new coalition government, formed under the Power-Sharing agreement that was negotiated by the international mediation team led by Kofi Annan, is successfully implementing the mediated peace accord–a roadmap toward  future stability.

   The research involves a detailed analysis addressing some of the following key issues:

   • Is the political leadership in Kenya addressing the root causes of the conflict–namely land reform; inequitable development; unemployment, particularly among the youth; comprehensive constitutional reform; institutional reform; national cohesion; corruption?
   • Is the power sharing agreement being implemented according to the agreed upon plan?
   • Will the current peace be sustained?
   • What lessons can Kenya offer for other countries experiencing similar crises?
   The research will examine, inter alia, the findings from the various committees established to review the elections and the violence surrounding the elections, as well as possible constitutional and institutional reform in Kenya.
   • In May 2008, one student traveled with Professor Lindenmayer to Kenya in order to conduct on-the-ground, in-depth interviews with representatives of the Panel of Eminent African Personalities, members of the Kenyan coalition government, Kenyan civil society and members of the donor community.
   • In fall 2008, a team of five students was constituted in order to continue this research.
   • In March of 2009, two students will travel to Kenya with Professor Lindenmayer in order to conduct in-depth interviews with representatives of the Panel of Eminent African Personalities, members of the Kenyan coalition government, Kenyan civil society, members of the donor community, and leading members of the committees to review the elections and the violence surrounding the elections. This visit aims to follow up on findings from the May 2008 travel as well as to more closely engage with key, on-the ground political developments.
3. United Nations Management Reform Capstone Workshop
   
   Working on behalf of the Congressional Research Service (CRS), this research workshop is examining U.N. Management Reform Efforts from the 2005 World Summit to the present. The final report will include a thorough overview of the process and effects of management reform at the UN using case studies addressing Ethics, Governance, and Personnel reform.  Each case study will focus on a particular issue: the Ethics Office (Ethics); the Office of Internal Oversight (Governance); and staff mobility policy (Personnel).  A description of the geopolitical context in which the reforms took place, the roles of different stakeholders in the reform process and of the UN as a multilateral instrument will be thematic throughout the report.
   
   The primary audience for this report is the CRS senior leadership. Members of the U.S. Congress and their staff, as the consumers of CRS analysis, are also an important audience. The report will rely on a series of interviews at the United Nations Secretariat and an extensive review and analysis of primary source material on reform efforts. Students will present their findings to CRS in Washington, DC in May 2009.
4. Security Council Working Methods Reform
   
   

   Working in consultation with the Security Council Report this research group is examining the most recent initiatives regarding the reform of the working methods of the Security Council (SC). As the only UN organ with executive authority under the UN Charter, the SC's decisions are binding on all of the 192 sovereign member states.  Therefore its legitimacy, credibility, efficiency and effectiveness matter as it executes its primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.   

   The group is, inter alia, analyzing the many interventions made during the 2008 SC open debate (S/PV.5968) on the SC's working methods, identifying the proposals for change, which were put forward, comparing them with previous ideas for reforms, and determining the progress made, political support, legal implications and other outstanding issues related to their implementation.  The research will culminate in a final report providing an analysis of its findings in May 2009.

   The group is relying on interviews with SC member states, other member states in the General Assembly including the Group of Small Five (S5), officials of the UN Secretariat, academics and primary source material including official and non-official UN documentation. 
   
   Download UNSC Working Methods (pdf)