News & Announcements

A new book from Toda Peace Institute, The Nuclear Ban Treaty: A Transformational Reframing of the Global Nuclear Order, has recently been published by Routledge. Edited by Toda’s Senior Research Fellow, Ramesh Thakur, the essays in this book describe, discuss and evaluate the transformational normative reframing of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, or Ban Treaty. The book takes readers on a journey through the genesis and negotiation history of the treaty and the humanitarian initiative behind it, to the possible trajectories and shape of the emerging normative architecture of the global nuclear order. The thirty-three chapters are drawn from previously published Policy Briefs and Global Outlook articles from leading academics, policy makers, think tanks and diplomats from around the globe, drawn together with an Introduction and Conclusion by Ramesh Thakur. Toda Peace Institute Director, Professor Kevin Clements, is delighted to announce this timely publication. “With the first meeting of States Parties to the Treaty due to be held in 2022 and the continuing existential threat of nuclear weapons in the world, the publication of this book could not be more important in the current geopolitical environment.” This volume is a vital guide to the Ban Treaty for students of nuclear disarmament, arms control and diplomacy as well as for policymakers in those fields. The book can be ordered now from Routledge in hardback, paperback and ebook formats.  

Lisa Schirch. Toda's senior research fellow for Social Media, Technology and Peace Building, and a prominent peace studies scholar and practitioner, has joined the University of Notre Dame’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies as the Richard G. Starmann, Sr. Professor of the Practice in Peace Studies. The full article with details of Professor Schirch's appointment can be found here: https://kroc.nd.edu/news-events/news/lisa-schirch-joins-kroc-institute-as-starmann-chair-in-peace-studies/  

Image: Protestors in New York show their support for Ukraine, Jan 2022 / Ron Adar: Shutterstock.com Toda Peace Institute Director, Professor Kevin Clements, gave an interview to Radio New Zealand on the crisis at the Ukrainian border. In the interview, Professor Clements observed that any war in the region "will have very negative consequences for Ukraine and for Russia and it will further polarise the East-West divide." The full article by Radio New Zealand news can be found here:  https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/460203/ukrainians-in-new-zealand-call-for-government-to-put-political-pressure-on-russia    

Image: Te Apiti wind farm, New Zealand - ChameleonsEye / Shutterstock.com In the 1970s, “New Zealand got a huge amount of recognition for being a bit of a David against the Goliath of nuclear weapons,” says Kevin Clements, Director of the Toda Peace Institute. Dr Kennedy Graham, a former diplomat, MP, and United Nations official, says that New Zealand “got an A in terms of nuclear disarmament.” Now, despite Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declaring climate change as “my generation’s nuclear-free moment”, New Zealand seems to have averted its gaze from the 2030 target. When it comes to climate policy, says Dr Graham, “at best we get a C”. Read more in this Newsroom article from David Williams.      

Image: Grant Robertson and Kevin Clements at the Baxter Memorial opening After ten years of planning, fundraising, design and installation, a dedicated group led by Toda Peace Institute Director, Professor Kevin Clements, has succeeded in establishing New Zealand’s only memorial to conscientious objectors. The memorial located in Dunedin and named after Archibald Baxter, a World War One conscientious objector, was officially opened on Friday 31 October by New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson. For more information, read the report on the opening in the Otago Daily Times.