Peace Leadership & Research Institute (PLRI) is an institution of higher learning affiliated with the Thabyay Education Foundation. Established in 2018 with the aim to cultivate a culture of responsible leadership and evidence-based decision making in the search for peace and national reconciliation in Myanmar, PLRI offers high quality training in conducting social science research to students and fellows from all over the country, and equips them for the leadership roles they are expected to play in the peace process.
Graduate Research Diploma in Peace Leadership
In collaboration with national and international experts, including practitioners, leadership coaches, and leading academics in the peacebuilding sector, the PLRI provides this year-long, highly intensive and academically rigorous training to equip emerging leaders in Myanmar to make significant advances for peace.
The overall objective of the peace leadership program is to equip third-level civic leaders to contribute to ending violent conflict and work towards building a more peaceful federal democracy in Myanmar. It is based on a theory of change whereby preparing key leaders with skills, knowledge, relationships, support and resources in the context of a learning community, ensures they will be more effective in achieving tangible results toward sustainable peace and democratic governance.
This program seeks to go beyond run-of-the-mill capacity building workshops and trainings, and aims to build a dynamic research and learning community. After completing the program, participants will be empowered to provide essential research and analytical inputs to peace negotiation. We aim to offer graduate level research training over the course of a 12-month fellowship program, and creates lasting relationships that will be sustained beyond the duration of the fellowship. APPROACH: PLRI utilizes an experimental, project-based and blended learning approach. The first quadrimester is designed to focus primarily on research methodologies, and in particular, on developing a foundational knowledge of peace leadership studies by exposing fellows to a range of relevant fields.
The second quadrimester seeks to equip fellows with key leadership, technical, and professional skills to enable them to play a critical role in building sustainable peace in Myanmar. From the start of the second quadrimester, fellows will engage in situation reporting and research on a relevant peacebuilding case study within Myanmar. The emphasis of the third quadrimester is on the application of fellows’ newly acquired technical skills and knowledge of critical issues central to peacebuilding and conflict resolution. During this time, fellows will continue to revise and complete their research paper with the editorial assistance from instructors at PLRI. INTERNATIONAL EXPERTISE: Another key component of the program is the bi-monthly, day-long seminars led by international experts starting from the second term until the end of the 9-month fellowship. These seminars introduce fellows to lead practitioners and academics working within related disciplines and provide first-hand opportunities for program participants to learn about critical issues and recent trends in the field from these distinguished experts. Each seminar will be organized around a relevant theme in the curriculum to expand fellows’ breadth and depth of knowledge in a variety of subject areas. |
MEET OUR FELLOWS, 2018-2019
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