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ICFRC: COVID-19 and Atrocity Prevention: Factors for Risk and Resilience

Listen to an audio podcast of this program.

Kelsey Paul Shantz is program officer for mass violence and atrocities at the Stanley Center for Peace and Security, where she supports the center's work to build resilience to the worst kinds of violence by building global networks and providing policy leaders, government representatives, and members of civil society with the most recent research and ideas related to violence prevention strategies. Prior to joining the Stanley Center, Paul Shantz was a researcher for think tanks and research institutions in Canada, the United States, and the Netherlands, including the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies (HCSS), the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), and the Boulder Institute of Microfinance. Paul Shantz has an MA in international relations from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University and an MPP from the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin, Germany. She also has a BA in international studies from the University of Evansville.

Jessica Kline is program associate for the mass violence and atrocities prevention team at the Stanley Center for Peace and Security. As program associate, she assists in the design and implementation of programming that engages a diverse network of stakeholders to help societies prevent, respond to, and recover from mass atrocities. Before coming to the center, Kline completed internships with the US Department of State's Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, the Carter Center's Democracy Program, and the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials. She also studied in Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Ecuador, allowing her to gain a greater understanding of regional human rights issues and response mechanisms. Kline focused her graduate studies on human rights law and gender analysis in international affairs, and wrote her thesis on the evolution of the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar. She holds an MA in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University and a BS in international affairs and modern languages from Georgia Tech.

For more than 60 years, the Stanley Center for Peace and Security has brought together members of the global community to exchange ideas, foster innovation, and take collective action. Currently, the center works to address three global challenges: mitigating climate change, avoiding the use of nuclear weapons, and preventing mass violence and atrocities. To inform policy and action that fosters societal resilience to the worst forms of violence, the center builds collaborative networks of representatives from governments, civil society, and the private sector, and promotes evidence-based strategies for prevention and resilience.

In their program, Kelsey and Jessica will discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic and government responses have deepened structural vulnerabilities and compounded existing risks for mass violence and atrocities in many societies. At the same time, the pandemic provides an opportunity for leaders to implement prevention-based policies that build resilience at the local, national, regional, and international levels. This virtual discussion will provide an insight into societal resilience to mass violence and atrocities, the impact of COVID-19 on early prevention of mass violence, and the ways civil society and policymakers are working to respond to risk and build resilience around the globe.

For more information on the Foreign Relations Council visit their website at www.icfrc.org.

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