More than 20 years ago, UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) underlined the fact that women play a key role in promoting peace, security, development, and human rights. States were invited to ensure that women are better represented at all levels of decision-making processes in national, regional, and international institutions and mechanisms for the prevention, management, and resolution of conflicts. The aim of the congress is the analyze of women’s contributions to the areas of international relations and international law in the context of war and peace processes, both from a general approach and illustrated in specific political and legal areas.

4 and 5 December 2023 | European University of Valencia

Presentation

The European University of Valencia is organizing its 3rd Global Congress on International Relations and International Law on 4 and 5 December 2023. The chosen theme is "Women's Contribution to International Law and International Relations: between War and Peace".

Women have always been a stakeholder in the search for solutions to the various conflicts in the world. As the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - in particular SDGs 5, 16 and 17 - remind us, the development of nations cannot be achieved without the effective participation of women, in particular in conflict prevention and management, peace decision-making processes.

However, in some cultures, war is still largely perceived as a male affair. And when theoretical thinking about conflict turns to women, it sees them as victims. Cultural systems that do not allow women to play a significant role in conflict are a serious problem in that they also exclude women from conflict resolution processes. The role they actually play and could be called upon to play in peacemaking and security-building is rarely recognised.

War causes a breakdown of social norms that favours a redistribution of roles between men and women. However, the experience gained by women in conflict situations benefits communities after the conflict is over. In most of the world's bloody conflicts, and whatever their personal situation, women are in action.

With the support of international law, women are active in education, economic production, and security, and are involved in political activism. They are also acquiring new skills and taking on additional responsibilities: negotiating for their security in conflict zones, mediating between warring parties, engaging in transitional justice, and actively participating in reconciliation processes.

More than 20 years ago, UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) underlined the fact that women play a key role in promoting peace, security, development, and human rights. States were invited to ensure that women are better represented at all levels of decision-making processes in national, regional, and international institutions and mechanisms for the prevention, management, and resolution of conflicts. It also called for the gender dimension to be integrated into all policies and programs, including disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration.

In the decade since the adoption of this resolution, numerous actions have been undertaken. International organizations active in the field of defence and security developed strategies for its implementation, some of which focused on the composition and training of their personnel, while others also provided for the integration of a gender perspective in the conduct of operations.

This gender perspective requires the systematic inclusion of women in conflict prevention and resolution, mediation, negotiation, and post-conflict reconstruction, as well as their inclusion in security sector reform. Furthermore, it is important to consider the adoption and implementation of policies, laws, and measures in favor of women's empowerment and gender equality, in accordance with existing international and regional legal instruments.

For this reason, the III Congress is organized around the following thematic axes:

1. Women and international organizations

• The extent of their presence and participation.
• Gender equality in international organisations.
• Relevant female figures in international organisations.
• Women and the international agenda.
• Their representativeness/influence in international affairs.
• Their influence on the integration of issues on the international agenda.
• Feminism and international relations/law
• Others

2. Women as actors in conflict and peace

• From combatants to mediators.
• Women peacemakers, women peacemakers
• Integration of women into reconciliation processes
• Other

3. Women's contribution to the development of international law

• International treaties
• Legal mechanisms
• Other

In each theme, the aim is to analyze women's contributions to the areas of International Relations and International Law in the context of war and peace processes, both from a general approach and illustrated in specific political and legal areas.

The Global Congress committee is pleased to invite you to submit your original contributions to this forum. Each attendee may submit one contribution.

Format and venue

The Congress will be held in an online format. Registration for online attendance is free and will be provided. Oral presentations of papers will be in English, French, or Spanish. Simultaneous translation will be arranged.

Submission guidelines

1. Formal requirements

Persons intending to submit a paper should send, in Word format, in English or Spanish, the following three documents:

1. document containing only the following data: title of the proposal; full name of the proposer; University or entity of origin; academic or professional position.
2. Document with the summary of the communication proposal (not the name of the proposer, but only the title of the proposal, its content and 3-5 key words), with a length between 800 and 1000 words.
3. Short CV of the proposer (max. 1 page).
4. Material content and evaluation

In order to select the papers to be defended orally at the Congress, the Scientific Committee will evaluate them according to the following criteria:

• Relevance of the chosen topic.
• Quality of the approach developed in the proposal.
• Originality of the proposal.

2. Deadline, address for submission and confirmation of acceptance

Proposals may be submitted until 15 October 2023.

They should be sent to:

• frederic.mertensdewilmars@universidadeuropea.es
• carla.deparedes@universidadeuropea.es

Receipt of submissions will be confirmed by e-mail promptly.

Subsequently, and before 30 October 2023, each of the proposers will receive an e-mail to inform them of their selection for their defence at the conference and subsequent presentation of the full text for possible publication; to inform them if they have been rejected.

Publication

Acceptance of the proposal for oral presentation does not imply acceptance for publication. It will be re-evaluated on the basis of the full text of the paper.

The collective work will be published by a high-profile publisher. The full text should be sent to frederic.mertensdewilmars@universidadeuropea.es before 1 February 2024. The final decision on the acceptance or rejection of the communication for inclusion in the resulting work of the congress will be made before 15 February 2024.

Scientific committee

The Scientific Committee will carry out the selection process of communication proposals and the subsequent evaluation of the quality of the studies to be published.

It is made up of the following members:

• Prof. Dra. Rosa Sanchidrián, Rector (Univ. Europea de Valencia).
• Prof. Dra. Fátima Gómez, Coordinator of Social Research & STEAM (Univ. Europea de Valencia).
• Prof. Dra. Pilar Pozo, Professor of International Public Law and International Relations (University of Valencia).
• Ms. Rosa Brignone, Founder and President of Time For Equality (Luxembourg)
• Prof. Dr. José María Peredo Pombo, Professor of International Relations (Univ. Europea de Madrid)
• Prof. Dr. Guillermo Palao, Professor of International Law (Univ. of Valencia)

Academic direction

The academic direction of the Global Congress on International Relations and International Law of the European University is the responsibility of Prof. Dr. Carla de Paredes Gallen, Professor of International Law (Univ. of Valencia). Dr. Carla de Paredes Gallardo, Director of the Faculty of Social Sciences (Univ. of Valencia) and Prof. Dr. Fr. Dr. Frédéric Mertens de Wilmars, Professor, Coordinator of the Degree in International Relations at the European University of Valencia.

Summary table of relevant dates

• 15 October 2023: Deadline for submission of paper proposals
• 30 October 2023: Confirmation of paper selection
• 4 - 5 December 2023: Holding of the conference
• 1 February 2024: Deadline for submission of final texts of papers
• 15 February 2024: Confirmation of the selection of papers to be published.