A project of the International Development Research Center (IDRC), the Peace, Conflict, and Development Program Initiative (PCDPI) was founded in 1996. This Initiative partners with think tanks, universities, policymakers, non-governmental organizations, and global research networks to support “action-oriented research that can positively influence peacebuilding policy” and “addres[s] the root causes of conflict.” It focuses most heavily on sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, and South Asia. PCDPI’s grantees generally work in developing-country conflict zones to create “conditions for increased personal security”; promote “participation in peace processes”; address “the personal trauma and injustices caused by conflict”; find “ways for citizens to participate in decision-making”; and “hold governments accountable.”

In addition to supporting individual research projects, PCDPI also aims to build “a community of researchers on peace and conflict issues,” so that such people may more easily exchange ideas and collaborate on key issues.

PCDPI’s programming currently covers four thematic areas:

• Democratic Processes in Governance and Peacebuilding: the study of “political relations, political power, and how they are exercised and managed”
• Political Economy of Peace and Conflict: “the economics of peace and conflict, political relations and power”
• Security and Insecurity: an analysis of “approaches to creating and managing security”
• Violence, Trauma, Justice, and Reconciliation: “studies into individual and collective experiences relating to harm and healing”

One particularly noteworthy PCDPI project, launched in 2008, was titled “Arab Political Participation and the Future of Democracy in Israel: Increasing Political Efficacy and Influencing Democratic Change.” Under the auspices of this project, PCDPI awarded a grant to the Arab Center for Applied Social Research, to fund a 36-month investigation into “the reasons why Palestinians in Israel seem unable to wield effective political influence, particularly on issues that affect their communities.” The ultimate objective was to address the “increasing tension between Israel’s Arab and Jewish communities” and the “decrease in Palestinian participation in Israeli democratic institutions.”

PCDPI is a member of the Peace and Security Funders Group, an association of foundations, charitable trusts, and individual philanthropists who “make grants or expenditures that contribute to peace and global security.”

PCDPI’s staff is based mostly at IDRC headquarters in Ottawa, Canada. Some staffers are also situated in the organization’s Nairobi and New Delhi regional offices.

(Information on grantees and monetary amounts courtesy of The Foundation Center, GuideStar, ActivistCash, the Capital Research Center and Undue Influence)