International Student / Young Pugwash (the first half of 2006) - Report by Juan Pablo Pardo-Guerra

During the first half of 2006, International Student / Young Pugwash engaged in several activities that resulted in an increase of both the size and scope of our community and, in addition, to the fostering of a closer relation with senior Pugwash.

In late April 2006, Aleksandra Dzisiow, Benjamin Rusek and Juan Pablo Pardo-Guerra had the unique opportunity to attend the conference “Iran’s nuclear energy program: policies and prospects” in Tehran, Iran. Jointly organized by the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs and the Center for Strategic Research in Tehran, this event allowed the three international students to analyze in closer detail the elements that comprise the nuclear issue in the region. But, just as importantly, this event allowed existing members of the student Pugwash community to meet with some of their peers, in particular, graduate students in social and political studies in Iran. Hopefully, this encounter will become the first of many such interactions between students from the Middle East and the broader ISYP community.

Then, from the 14-16 June 2006, 23 students and young professionals from various countries participated in the ISYP workshop on “New Challenges to Human Security” in Wageningen, The Netherlands. Organized by the local senior and student/young Pugwash groups under the auspices of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the workshop allowed the participants to go beyond the traditional core topics of the Pugwash movement and view the multifarious threats confronted by humankind from a different, yet interesting, perspective. In particular, the workshop presented students the possibility to adopt a multidisciplinary perspective on the causes of conflict, thus going beyond the perceptions that prevail both in academia and the political sphere. A selection of the articles submitted by conference participants as well as by keynote speakers will be published in future issues of the ISYP Journal on Science and World Affairs at www.scienceandworldaffairs.org .

In parallel to these events, the Executive Board of ISYP, in close collaboration with Karim Kadry (Egypt) and other members of the local organizing committee, has continued the preparations for the 2006 ISYP Conference, which will take place on the 9th and 10th of November 2006 in Cairo, Egypt. As an event that will join new and existing members of the student Pugwash community with senior Pugwashites, the 2006 ISYP Conference will serve as an ideal venue to discuss the interconnected themes of conflict, politics, science, technology and development with a focus on the Middle East.

Finally, the Executive Board of ISYP has continued its search for an organizational arrangement better suited to deal with the fluid nature of the student community and with the renewed relationship of ISYP with senior Pugwash. Many challenges lay ahead in this respect, although creative solutions are being sought that will ensure the healthy development of ISYP as well as a constructive partnership with the senior Pugwash community.

Originally published in the Pugwash Newsletter, 2006, Vol. 43, no. 1, p. 76.