In this research stream, Lisa Glybchenko is investigating the ways in which virtual reality technologies can be used in peacebuilding and specifically designed as peace technologies. Read the full open-access briefing by Lisa “Virtual Reality Technologies as PeaceTech: Supporting Ukraine in Practice and Research” in the Journal of Peacebuilding and Development (quoted below):
“Peacebuilding practices are becoming increasingly technology-infused and tech-supported, not least because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the dangers/obstacles that Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine poses to the movement of Ukrainians and Ukraine’s allies. This has resulted in the ongoing formation and development of communities of practitioners and researchers working to develop “PeaceTech,” broadly understood as ways of employing digital technologies to support peace processes (Harlander, 2020). Peace efforts in Ukraine have been tech-savvy and PeaceTech-equipped, also highlighting theoretical innovations within peacebuilding—“sustaining quality peace.” This briefing focuses on virtual reality (VR) technologies in/as PeaceTech by analyzing the innovative usage of VR in Ukraine’s defense against Russian invasion and by providing recommendations for further research/implementation of VR in/as PeaceTech.”
Lisa built on this stream and the stream of digital visuality in her work as a 2022 Thinking of Europe Fellow with Alfred Herrhausen Gesellschaft and Schwarzkopf-Stiftung Junges Europa. She developed the workshop “Peace in Europe: Digital and Virtual Reality Peacebuilding”, which is now freely available to download and implement here. In the video below, Lisa summarises her motivation to develop the workshop and its contents.