Research Interest Upon leaving PRIO in 2008, Beate Thoresen started working for Norwegian People's Aid.

Project financed by the Research Council of Norway (POVPEACE).

This project focuses on the causes of peace. It seeks to investigate which contexts facilitate the existence of domestic capabilities for peaceful conflict management and why. Earlier research by Wenche Hauge has revealed that particular characteristics of civil-military relations, dialogue traditions and adherence to cultural concepts of nonviolence have constituted such capabilities in Madagascar. This project includes a comparative study of peaceful conflict management in Madagascar, Tunisia, Venezuela and Ecuador, and - in addition - a study of what kind of challenges frequent use of violence in Haiti represents to the development of a tradition for peaceful conflict management.

Thoresen is responsible for the case studies of Venezuela and Ecuador. The field research in Venezuela was completed in November 2007 and in Ecuador in April 2008.