tangible courses of action. A lesson well-articulated can enable
people to imagine potential solutions to complex and intracta-
ble problems common in war-to-peace transitions.
One of the best ways to inspire people to imagine possible
actions that could lead to peace is to illustrate broader principles
with short stories or vignettes from personal experience. Stories
connect to people on a human level. Statistics are important –
but repeating them in mind-numbing lists does not necessarily
influence cultural change. So, incorporating a personal story
or anecdote to illustrate a broader, research-verified theme is an
important component of writing an effective lesson.
This is especially evident in the case of WPS. Efforts to inte-
grate women more fully into the U.S. military and to incor-
porate gender considerations throughout all endeavors have
increased with the passage of the WPS Act of 2017, signed into
law by the President in October. However, there is still a great
deal of cultural resistance in much of the U.S. military. A key
method of breaking through this resistance is to communicate
stories which illustrate the necessity for WPS. Such vignettes
can be found in PKSOI’s Operationalizing WPS publication,
which was developed in collaboration with the WPS Commu-
nity, including input from PSOTEW’s WPS WG.
For example, studies have indicated that peace processes which
meaningfully include women are 35% more likely to last at least
15 years without returning to armed conflict. In a lesson, this
broader research-verified principle can be illustrated by describ-
ing a specific situation, such as the women’s nonviolent move-
ment in 2003 which brought an end to Liberia’s brutal civil war.
One consistent lesson learned in the peace and stability arena is
that inclusivity is a prerequisite for sustainable peace. As such,
it is important for lessons learned organizations/systems to in-
corporate lessons from diverse stakeholders (U.S. military, USG
civilian agencies, civil society, academia, partner nations, etc.)
with diverse identities (gender, age, race, culture, socioeconomic
background, abilities, etc.).
In recent issues, PKSOI’s quarterly SOLLIMS Samplers have
included lessons from a variety of guest contributors, and we
would like to continue to do so.
And that’s where YOU come in!
You have a unique perspective from your own identity, back-
ground, and experiences.
You have ideas that can lead us towards peace and stability.
Have you had experiences pertaining to any of these topics
listed below? If so, consider contributing to the SOLLIMS
database (pksoi.org) for potential inclusion in an upcoming
issue of PKSOI’s quarterly lessons learned publication. Use this
opportunity to share your story, crafting a lesson to influence
change.
About the Author: Katrina Gehman is a Lessons Learned
Analyst (Contractor) at PKSOI. She has served as an Editor for
PKSOI’s quarterly lessons learned publication, producing issues
on UN Peacekeeping, refugees, Civil Affairs, WPS, monitor-
ing & evaluation, and peacebuilding, and has written over 50
strategic analyses of peace and stability for the SOLLIMS da-
tabase, as well as producing the Female Engagement Team and
Afghanistan Pakistan Hands Blueprints per Joint Requirements
Oversight Council Memorandum ( JROCM) Task 12. She has
also drafted Inclusivity and WPS Integration strategies for use
in PKSOI Lessons Learned.
Notes:
This cultural theme was expounded in more detail by Dr. Sar-
ah Sewall in her Keynote Address for PSOTEW 2018.
2
This has also historically been an issue with the U.S. military,
as shown through the report from the U.S. General Accounting
Office (GAO), “Potential to Use Lessons Learned to Avoid
Past Mistakes is Largely Untapped,” Report to the Chairman,
Subcommittee on Military Personnel, Committee on National
Security, House of Representatives, (August 1995).
3
For example, see the letter written in February 2017 by over
120 Retired Generals and Admirals encouraging Congress to
continue to provide resources for USAID and DOS.
4
For more information about the role of imagination, also see:
“The Moral Imagination: The Art and Soul of Building Peace,”
John Paul Lederach, NY, NY: Oxford University, (2005).
5
For more information on these statistics, see UN women:
http://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/peace-and-security/
facts-and-figures#notes
6
See UN Secretary-General António Guterres’s remarks on
“Conflict Prevention and Sustaining Peace” at the UN Security
Council (10 Jan 2017), as well as the remarks of Oscar Fernan-
dez-Taranco, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding
Support, at “Peace Now, More Than Ever,” Day One of the Al-
liance for Peacebuilding 2017 Conference at the U.S. Institute
of Peace (USIP), emphasizing the need for inclusivity, starting
at 40:30. A 2018 UN-World Bank report, “Pathways for Peace,
Inclusive Approaches to Preventing Violent Conflict,” affirms
that exclusion is a major driver of violent conflict and must be
addressed in order to build peace.
1
Upcoming SOLLIMS Lessons Learned Samplers
Proposed Topics
Submission Deadline
Transitional Public Security
1 November 2018
Stabilization/Reconstruction (SSR/DDR)
1 December 2018
Conflict Prevention
1 May 2019
Strategic Planning for Peace & Stability
1 August 2019
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