Resources List

This annotated list highlights some 70 recent publications and organisations that focus primarily on what happens after rather than before or during armed conflict. Issues covered include the political, economic, and social aspects of post-war reconstruction, and questions related to transitional justice and post-conflict reconciliation, and we have sought to offer a sample of the growing theoretical and empirical literature analysing the contemporary challenges involved in peace building and post-war reconstruction.

As Tony Vaux points out in his Guest Editorial in this issue, the concept of humanitarianism applies to both war and general disaster, and is based on the principle that ‘in extreme cases of human suffering external agents may offer assistance to people in need, and in doing so should be accorded respect and even “rights” in carrying out their functions’. However, policy makers in humanitarian agencies, and aid workers on the ground, face a bewilderingly complex set of challenges in determining such ‘rights’.

So much work has been done on participatory research and gender analysis - their implementation, evaluation, and institutionalisation - that it is difficult to recommend a limited set of resources. The context here is 'challenges to operationalising participatory research and gender analysis', so we have sought out resources which shed light on some new practical issues and are based on empirical evidence. Some of the classics in the field have also been included. Readers will find additional resources in and through the bibliographical references of articles included in this issue.