Local Diplomacy LabWomen, Peace and Security

How cities and civil society put the Women, Peace and Security agenda into practice.

Mosaic artwork of women's faces and raised hands in blue, ochre and terracotta tiles.
Mosaic artwork by [artist name], Local Diplomacy Lab

Global Policy Tracker

The Benson-Bertsch Center for International Trade and Security’s Local Diplomacy Lab conducts research into the ways in which local actors, including subnational entities such as cities and civil society organizations, engage in international diplomacy.

Current projects in the lab are focused on global localization efforts towards achieving the goals of the United Nations’ landmark resolution on Women, Peace and Security (WPS).

In the 25 years since the UN Security Council’s unanimous passage of UNSCR 1325 on WPS (and subsequent related resolutions), over 100 countries have adopted National Action Plans and nearly a dozen regional organizations have adopted plans to implement WPS.

More recent efforts have focused on the development and adoption of implementation plans for subnational entities, however there is no comprehensive dataset on these local movements.

Students in the lab are collecting data on these global local efforts and conducting a variety of research projects analyzing their impact.

Explore the map

Join the lab

Students collect data for the Global Policy Tracker and develop their own research projects each semester. Researchers are welcome to use and build on the data.

How to get involved