Common Security Conference 2025: Redefining Security for the 21st Century
Common Security – the concept that nations and populations can only feel safe when their counterparts feel safe – emerged during a period of high tension and uncertainty in 1982, as a result of Olof Palme’s Independent Commission on Disarmament and Security Issues. Forty years later, Olof Palmes Internationella Center, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), and the International Peace Bureau (IPB) released Common Security 2022: For Our Shared Future, modernizing the concept for the 21st century and the modern challenges we are confronted with.
IPB, ITUC and Olof Palmes Internationella Center and partners* hereby introduce the Common Security Conference 2025: Redefining Security for the 21st Century with the goal of revitalizing the vision, philosophy and concept of common security and redefining the paradigm through which we view ‘security’. Moreover, the Conference aims to serve as a forum in which to discuss and expand the concepts from the 2022 report, including viewing common security through regional lenses and developing strategic priorities and goals.
Why Attend?
The global order and balance of power is in the midst of rapid and unpredictable changes, leading to new violent conflicts, realms of contestation, and increasing global tensions. As the post-Cold War era comes to an end and reveals its shortcomings, the new international order has not yet emerged and remains to be defined.
Today, global decision-makers have broken down nuclear arms regulation and once again resorting to power politics and strategic competition with heavy investments in the military industry at enormous social and environmental cost. We strongly believe that civil society, the working class, and marginalized groups must have a say in what the new order looks like. The concept of Common Security, developed during the 1980s Cold War confrontation and revitalized in the 21st century, can serve as an important tool to define from civil society what a new order should look like.
The online Common Security Conference 2025: Redefining Security for the 21st Century brings together politicians, international officials, trade union leaders, non-governmental organizations, peace activists, and more for critical discussions on concrete steps and strategies for global, regional, national, and local level movements for a more just and peaceful future for us all.
We invite you to be part of the movement for a common security policy for the new age – one that prioritizes human life over war and imperialism, that emphasizes our common humanity over division, and that pushes for global cooperation to resolve disagreements and conflicts.
Conference’s Program
We’ll continue to add more speakers in the coming days—stay tuned for updates!
Thursday, 10 April
15.00-17.00 CEST – Pre-Conference Session: What is Common Security?
15.00-15.10: Welcoming Remarks from Olof Palme Internationella Center, ITUC, IPB
15.10-15.30: The History of Common Security 1982-Present
15.35-15.55: Common Security in Practice: Practical Examples
15.50-16.00: Collective Security and Int’l Solidarity in UN’s New Agenda for Peace
Cecilia M. Bailliet, UN Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity’
16.00-16.15: Presentation of Common Security in the Indo-Pacific Report
16:15-17:00: Open Discussion on Common Security and Q&A
Friday, 11 April
10:00-12:00 CEST – Regional Discussions: Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia, South Asia, West Asia
10.00-11.30 Division into breakout rooms
Southeast Asia;
South Asia (with Anuradha Chenoy, Adjunct Professor at the Jindal School of International Affairs and TNI Associate);
Northeast Asia;
West Asia (with Ahmad Bakdad, IPB Assistant Coordinator)
11.30-12.00 Sharing of Outcomes of Sessions
12:30-15:50 CEST – The Urgency of Common Security
12.30-13.00 Welcoming Remarks
Oscar Ernerot, Secretary General of Olof Palmes Int. Center
Moderated by: Danielle Barsoum Malki, Policy & Methods Adviser, Peace and Dialogue & Gender Equality at Olof Palmes Int. Center
13.00-14.40 The Urgency of Common Security
Moderated by Reiner Braun (IPB) and Alex Praça (ITUC)
13.00-13.20 The Shifting Geopolitical Landscape
Joseph Gerson, Executive Director of the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security (CPDCS)
13.20-13.40 The Global Nature of Common Security: The Polycrisis and Interconnections
13.40-14.00 A Just and Peaceful International Order
Jan Eliasson, Swedish and international diplomat, former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations (2012-2016) and Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs (2006)
14.00-14.20 Building Trust and Solidarity, Deescalating Conflicts
14.20-14.40 Global Efforts to Resolve Regional Crises and Wars
10 minutes break
14.50-15.50 Forum for Discussion Between Civil Society, Academics, and Policymakers
Moderated by: Danielle Barsoum Malki, Policy & Methods Adviser, Peace and Dialogue & Gender Equality at Olof Palmes Int. Center and Emily Molinari, Deputy Executive Director of IPB
16:00-18:00 CEST – Regional Discussions: North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, Africa
16.00-17.30 Division into breakout rooms
Latin America (with Angelo Cardona, IPB Board, and Theo Valois)
North America (with Joseph Gerson, CPDCS)
Africa (with Cyrille Roland Bechon, Director of New Human Rights Cameroon)
Europe (with Reiner Braun, IPB)
17.30-18.00 Sharing of Outcomes of Sessions
Moderated by Sean Conner, Executive Director of IPB
The conclusion session will be recorded and sent around to all participants via email.
