Brandt School students publish on recent policy challenges

Three Brandt students recently demonstrated that a Brandt School education has its benefits even before graduating.

Second year student Majlinda Behrami, co-authored the second edition of the Kosovo Women’s Network book 1325 Facts & Fables: A collection of stories about the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security in Kosovo. The book reflects on the UN Resolution’s implementation in Kosovo from 2000 to 2020. It includes “facts”, that is, statistics, data and names, and “fables”, namely stories of how people perceive the implementation of the Resolution.

The second edition of the book was published on October 22, 2022, during the WPS Forum “Building Alliances for Sustainable Peace”, an initiative of the President of Kosovo, Dr Vjosa Osmani Sadriu. Behrami was among the speakers at the launching event for the book. For more on the stories and data, check-out the full book here.

Soumita Chakraborty, a second year Brandt School student, during her internship with YOURS – Youth for Road Safety, authored a policy advocacy brief on the correlation between SDG 13 on climate action and road safety, with young people at the heart of it. It is an evidence-based advocacy brief which stresses on the strong interdependence of actions to tackle the climate crisis and the transport sector. The policy brief calls for infrastructure that prioritises sustainable mobility, investments and resource dedication that have climate protection activities at its heart, and legislation that enforces safe, clean, and green transport systems. It also highlights good policy practices which already exist in different countries and how young people are making efforts to mitigate climate change through local action projects which promote safe and low-emission transit options.

The advocacy brief was presented at the COP27 side events by youth delegates of the Global Youth Coalition and was officially launched on 30th November. To read more about the key arguments, existing good practices and recommendations, check out the policy advocacy brief here.

Lastly, Molly Hall, also a second year student at the Brandt School, co-authored a white paper for the FIC Agora that places the citizen at the heart of cybersecurity policy recommendations: "United we stand, divided we fall - Citizens and 21st century cybersecurity". By focusing on the question of how citizens can be better protected in a changing online landscape, the report offers policymakers, industry leaders, and citizens actionable recommendations for being more secure online. For the white paper, the FIC Agora also surveyed over 1,000 European citizens to understand their awareness of cybersecurity issues and their experience of cybersecurity attacks. Ultimately it was clear: while plenty of online security initiatives are available to industry, citizens are often left behind. Serious effort is needed in Europe to improve cybersecurity awareness to empower citizens and to ensure their online safety. The full report and recommendations can be read here.

Authors of the article: Majlinda Behrami, Soumita Chakraborty & Molly Hall, second-year students at the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy.