Two persons juxtaposed besides each other. On the left is Mariia Levchenko, sitting on a podium. On the right is Pascal da Rocha speaking in a workshop.© Pascal da Rocha

EUPeace Crisis Conversations – From Positive Peace to Cold Peace: Cases from the Frontlines of Mediation

How do today’s mediation efforts navigate the gap between ending violence and building lasting peace?
The second session of the EUPeace Crisis Conversations brings together leading experts Pascal da Rocha and Mariia Levchenko to discuss the realities of international mediation between positive and cold peace.

Important information

Registration is required.

For further information, please click here.

The EUPeace Crisis Conversations continue with their second session, focusing on one of today’s central challenges of international mediation: the widening gap between ending violence and building societies capable of sustained cooperation.

Contemporary peace processes increasingly unfold in a context shaped by great power competition, fragmented international engagement, and an unprecedented number of active conflicts. These dynamics often limit the scope of mediation efforts and shape where negotiated settlements ultimately land on the continuum between positive and cold peace.

Date: 13 January 2026 | 18:30–19:30 (hybrid)

Location (hybrid): Pilgrimstein 12, room 101, Marburg & online

Guest speakers

Pascal da Rocha (International Mediator, United Nations & African Union)
Mariia Levchenko (Berghof Foundation; Luxembourg Peace Prize 2023; McCain Global Leader 2022)

Drawing on decades of combined experience, Pascal da Rocha and Mariia Levchenko will examine how great power competition, fragmented international responses, and the sheer volume of active conflicts shape mediation processes and outcomes. They will reflect on where contemporary settlements fall on the spectrum between positive and cold peace and on whether transformative peacebuilding remains a realistic aspiration or an artifact of a more permissive era.

The event is part of the EUPeace Crisis Conversations, a series dedicated to examining contemporary global crises and their implications for peace, security, and international cooperation.

To participate online, please register in advance. You will receive the login details via an automatic confirmation email. Participants based in Marburg & Gießen are warmly invited to join the event in person.

Contact

© Jannis Kohlt
Prof. Dr. Thorsten Bonacker
Marburg University & WP6 Lead

Area

About EUPeaceEducationOutreachResearch

Group

AcademicsAdministrative StaffSocietyStudents

Initiative

EUPeace as AllianceEUPeace project (2023-2027)Initiative from a Member

University

Comillas Pontifical UniversityÇukurova UniversityJustus Liebig University GiessenMarburg UniversityUniversity of CalabriaUniversity of LimogesUniversity of MostarUniversity of SarajevoUniversity of West Bohemia in Pilsen

Activity

WP6 (2023-2027)WP7 (2023-2027)