Strategic Communication and Conflict Resolution: Firsthand Observations From States in Crisis -- Bosnia to Darfur

The lecture will take place on Tuesday, November 27, 2007, at 12:00PM in the PPEC Conference Room, Suite #305 St Leonard's Court, 3819-Chestnut Street.

Simon Haselock, an international communications expert, will discuss the apparent gap between how policymakers win popular support for their programs in their own countries and the failure to follow the same logic overseas. As recent experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan illustrate, successful stabilization, peacebuilding and power-sharing efforts hinge on the support and ownership of the local population, and of the perception, as well as the reality, of inclusiveness. Such questions are at the heart of a broad notion of strategic communications in these environments, yet the methods used by governments and others for such "strategic communications" campaigns are often far from strategic.

Simon Haselock, co-founder and Director of Albany Associates, has a long track record of working with media in transitional and post-conflict countries.  He served as Deputy High Representative for Media Affairs in the Office of The High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, creating the organization for broadcast frequency spectrum management and licensing and providing everyday guidance on the public presentation of policy. As Temporary Media Commissioner in Kosovo he was responsible for the regulation of print and broadcast media in accordance with international best practice, and began the process of building the enabling environment for independent media in Kosovo. He then served as the Director of Public Information for the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).  

From 2003 until April 2006, Simon was the Head of the Media Development and Regulatory Advisory Team in Iraq. In this capacity, he was responsible for establishing an Iraqi National Communications and Media Commission and the development of other media infrastructure programs. He is currently managing the Albany Associates project in Darfur funded by the UK Department for International Development (DfID) and the Governments of Canada and the Netherlands. The project was established to assist the African Union and the UN communicate the Darfur peace process to ordinary Darfurians and to help ensure local ownership of the issues, the negotiations and settlement that may emerge. Simon served for 23 years with Royal Marines.