Children, Youth, Peace and the Arts

Peacebuilding scholars have long argued for the need to understand the varied and unique ways created and deployed in peacebuilding efforts for and with children and youth. This includes giving due consideration to the role of creative and arts-based approaches in peacebuilding efforts involving children and youth as important stakeholders in the peacebuilding process.

Children, Youth, Peace and the Arts (CYPA) brings together academics, PhD students, early career researchers, and practitioners from across King’s with a shared vision of the importance of the arts when involving children and youth in peacebuilding. We also collaborate with experts on children, youth, peace, and the arts from a wider network of researchers and practitioners in the UK and internationally. In doing so, CYPA enables transdisciplinary dialogues between academics, practitioners, and policy-makers – locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally – on issues related to:

children/youth and peacebuilding
arts and peacebuilding
the nexus of children/youth, arts, and peacebuilding

We also provide a platform for members to showcase their excellent and innovative research and impact in dealing with critical societal issues in the sphere of children, youth, peace, and the arts.

The CYPA therefore provides a unique forum for collaborations in research, policy and practice, both for and with children, and provides a stimulating, welcoming and creative space for interdisciplinary collaboration within a mutually supporting environment.