As tensions continue to rise in the Middle East, two women's organizations are pushing for a return to negotiation and a permanent resolution to the conflict.

“Women Wage Peace” is the largest grassroots peace movement in Israel, while its Palestinian counterpart, “Women of the Sun,” is a Palestinian women's organization based in Bethlehem.

They are part of a global movement to ensure women are not just represented, but also at the leadership table in peace negotiations.

Their work is supported by research showing that involving women significantly increases the chances of achieving enduring peace agreements.

In this episode, Xanthe Scharff, a gender expert, writer, and co-founder of The Fuller Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to groundbreaking reporting on women, tells us about her reporting on these two women’s organizations.

She is followed by Torunn L. Tryggestad, PRIO’s Deputy Director who heads its Centre on Gender, Peace, and Security, and Professor Azza Karam, a specialist in religion and development, and the keynote speaker at this year’s UN High-Level Seminar on Gender and Inclusive Mediation Processes, held in Oslo.

PRIO’s "Peace in a Pod" is hosted by award-winning journalist Arnaud Siad.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Russians headed to the polls this month, the reelection of Russian President Vladimir Putin was not in doubt.

On March 17th, with over 87% of the votes in his favor, Putin secured a fifth term, becoming the longest-serving leader of the Federation since Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. With most opposition candidates either dead, jailed, exiled, or barred from running, the path was clear, with no credible challenger to his rule.

Echoing this landslide victory, polls in Russia seem to indicate Putin enjoys real domestic support, with 86% approving of the President, according to the Levada Centre, a respected Russian pollster.

So beyond these official figures, what do Russians really make of their leader? And is support for the war in Ukraine as strong as the Kremlin claims?

In this episode, we talk to Aleksei Miniailo, a political activist in Moscow, who started a project with social scientists and analysts to find out how the war with Ukraine is really being perceived in Russia. Pavel Baev, a Research professor at PRIO and an expert on Russian foreign policy, also joins the conversation.

PRIO's Peace in a Pod is hosted by award-winning journalist Arnaud Siad.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

UNRWA is in trouble. The UN agency for Palestine Refugees is accused by Israel of being infiltrated by Hamas and having had some of its staff involved in the attacks on October 7th.

Nearly 2 million people in Gaza depend on UNRWA for survival as war and displacement continue after nearly four months of war.

The allegations by Israel concern a fraction of the workforce in Gaza, but are having devastating consequences for the organization, threatening its very existence.

While an investigation into Israel’s claims is ongoing, the United States, Germany and Sweden – the largest individual donors to UNRWA - have all paused their funding, and the European Union is wavering over what to do. However, Norway, one of the largest donors to UNRWA, says it will continue its funding.

In this episode, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, Norwegian State Secretary Andreas Motzfeldt Kravik, and Jørgen Jensehaugen, a PRIO expert on the Arab-Israeli conflict, discuss why the organization matters more now than ever.

The episode is hosted by Arnaud Siad.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.