Our work on Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Centre for Policy, Conflict and Co-operation

Most research in international relations remains focused on security issues, mainly in the context of military questions and national intelligence. In line with more recent discussions about broader concepts of security, our Centre for Policy, Conflict and Co-operation seeks to broaden the debate to consider conflict and co-operation more broadly, in both international and domestic society and in relation to environmental and climate change.

The Centre seeks to bring together international and domestic politics and history, environmental management and climate science, policy making and theory, as well as the advancement of professional practice and theoretical developments. It regularly engages with professionals in diplomacy, military, international development, environmental protection and biodiversity conservation and other related areas, both in our teaching and in our research.

Human rights reform

Scotland is responsible for observing and implementing international human rights obligations in devolved areas such as health, social security, education, housing and social care. There is a vibrant and dynamic conversation in Scotland about human rights reform. Civil and political momentum has committed Scotland to a path where civil, political, economic, social, cultural, environmental rights are better protected. 

Research undertaken by Professor Katie Boyle, with the Scottish Human Rights Commission, has been informing Scotland’s approach to the legal incorporation of the rights into domestic law. Ultimately, this means giving people the opportunity to enjoy their rights and to have routes to effective remedies available if or when their rights are not adequately protected.

Human rights research in Law and Philosophy

Our research enhances peace, justice and strong institutions through close engagement with the following:

• UN human rights monitoring processes;
• NGO governance;
• the rights of the child in Scotland and globally;
• the philosophical foundations of human rights and their relative importance;
• the democratic role of robust news media institutions in the era of social media.

The University’s human rights research aims to combine scholarly legal and empirical research with normative analysis to inform lawmaking and policy.

Scottish political archive

The Scottish Political Archive sits within the division of History, Heritage and Politics and was created by University of Stirling researchers in 2010 to explore the referenda of 1979 and 1997. Because of its fundamental aim to support a research question, SPA practises contemporary collecting, actively filling in gaps in the historical record and collecting around specific topics to avoid future gaps.

The archive is home to oral history interviews, the personal papers of prominent Scottish politicians and associated material relating to contemporary Scottish politics. SPA also aims to collect material and archives from Scottish political organisations, grassroots activism and standalone campaigns in order to chronicle the political history of Scotland in the twentieth and twenty first centuries.

Modern slavery

The University acknowledges that it has a duty to take a robust approach towards eradicating slavery and human trafficking in its business and throughout its supply chains and recognise that modern slavery is a significant global human rights issue. The University is a signatory to the SDG Accord, the University and College sector’s response to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The University welcomes the opportunity to examine all operations and practices where the University community can help to ensure that all people are free from lives of all forms of slavery. The University’s annual statement reports the actions the University has taken in the last financial year and explains what will be done in the future.