ANCIP

Several members of the ANCIP network presented research findings at this year’s 66^th Annual Convention of the International Studies Association (ISA) in Chicago, USA. As the largest conference in the field of International Studies, the ISA took place from 2-5 March 2025 under the theme “Reconnecting International Studies”.

With a panel on “Studying Practices in African Non-military Conflict Interventions” the ANCIP network aimed at presenting key insights from the network’s projects and to connect them to wider conceptual debates in the field intervention research. The panel was chaired by ANCIP PI Antonia Witt while Lou Pingeot (University of Ottawa) provided very valuable comments as discussant. ANCIP researcher Jonas Schaaf presented a paper on “The micro-meso-macro practice framework” that conceptually advances the use of practice-based approaches to the study of African non-military interventions. The paper demonstrates the analytical value of the framework with empirical data on the inclusion of civil society actors in early warning and mediation, derived from field research conducted at the African Union and ECOWAS. ANCIP researcher Mona Saleh presented the paper “Unpacking ECOWAS-donor relationships through the lens of practice theory”. Beyond the ANCIP-organized panel, Mona Saleh also took part in the roundtable “Making Sense of African Regional Agency: Dis/Assembling ECOWAS” and presented the paper “Rebuilding bridges: Trust, diplomacy, and cooperation between the European Union and Arab League in the aftermath of the Gaza Crisis”, contributing to discussions on intergovernmental cooperation in times of crisis.

ANCIP researcher Jasmin Schmitz presented insights from her project Regional Infrastructures for Peace. Drawing on research findings about the role of local participation in multifaceted networks, she presented a paper titled “Between Ownership and Intervention: Lasting Peace through Local Peace Committees?”. The paper examines how non-local actors engage in local peacebuilding efforts and what their intervention practices mean for the sustainability of grassroots peace initiatives. Thanks to the insightful feedback from the discussant and audience, the paper will be further developed into a chapter of Jasmin’s PhD thesis.

ANCIP PI Antonia Witt presented a paper on “Anticipating Violent Extremism: Insights from Ghana” and contributed to a roundtable on “Coercion in International Peacebuilding”, also drawing on insights from AU and ECOWAS’ recent responses to coups d’état in West Africa.

Even before the official start of the Annual Convention, Antonia Witt and Mona Saleh participated in the special programming session “Global South Perspectives on International Organizations”, a workshop in preparation of a Special Issue, at which Antonia Witt presented a paper on “Imagining regional organization otherwise: Citizen knowledges and expectations towards the AU and ECOWAS” co-authored with Sophia Birchinger (PRIF). Mona Saleh presented a co-authored paper on “Reconceptualising Resilience: Explaining the Survival and Growth of the Arab League” and also contributed to the “Third GSCIS Author Symposium”, another special programming session where she presented her work on interactions between ECOWAS and its international partners in the field of non-military interventions.