Human security at 20: Past experiences and future prospects

Since the concept of Human Security was introduced in 1994, it has informed many researches and practices and its meaning and methods of implementation have extensively been discussed across disciplines and policy areas: social sciences, business and management, law, logistics, development and environmental studies, and health. However, the idea that we should be free from want and free from fear still stands in sharp contrast with everyday insecurities experienced by ordinary people and constituencies at risk.

Human security is originally understood to be the aggregate of the absence of economic, environmental, political, communal, personal, nutritious, and health threats. This complexity inherent in the human security concept and practice presents both a challenge and a danger. The challenge for academics, policy makers and practitioners is to transcend disciplines and narrow world-views, in order to deliver a more profound understanding of these complexities. The danger lies in the continued reliance on usual science and disparate approaches to knowledge generation.

This 3-day, international conference aspires to take stock of two decades of conceptualizing and practicing human security. It seeks to promote new approaches to understand and address the interdependent threats to human dignity. The conference emphasizes the idea of human security as an instrument of change, adverting its holistic character and its use as a methodological tool.

For more information, please visit the event's website.