Data for Peace Conference

This week I was privileged to represent Somali Resilience Program (SomReP) and World Vision in Sweden at Data for Peace Conference where I delivered a lightning talk on SAADAAL Early Warning System and was part of an amazing panel discussion on how signals, early warning, systems, and response come together in complex risk environments. My reflections drew from first hand experience in designing and strengthening systems that help translate risk information into timely decisions and action. In Somalia, the challenge is not always the absence of warning. The bigger challenge is ensuring that warnings are trusted, locally interpreted, connected to clear decision protocols, and supported by resources that allow action before risks escalate into crisis. SAADAAL has shown that early warning is most useful when it goes beyond dashboards and technical alerts. It becomes powerful when it is embedded in community structures, local authority systems, partner coordination mechanisms, and resilience investments that already exist before a shock occurs. For me, the key message is clear: anticipatory action and crisis response both depend on systems. Signals matter, but systems determine whether those signals lead to action. When early warning is connected to trusted local interpretation, clear triggers, flexible financing, and accountable delivery mechanisms, it can help communities and institutions move from reacting to preparing. Grateful for the opportunity to share SomReP’s experience and to learn from great colleagues working across the humanitarian, peacebuilding, risk analysis, climate, and resilience space. Anna Lena Huhn John Jal Dak Morten Högnesen Marek Baron Antje L. #EarlyWarning #AnticipatoryAction #Resilience #Somalia #HumanitarianAction #CrisisResponse #DataForPeace

Hur kan AI stärka arbetet för fred och demokrati? FBA:s nya unika nya rapport utforskar AI:s potential inom konfliktförebyggande, fredsprocesser och demokratiskt stöd – när behovet av nya verktyg för hållbar fred är större än någonsin. Rapporten är resultatet av ett samarbete med University of Birmingham , University of Notre Dame, Build Up ^ , Hala Systems, Inc. , Osavul, Consejo para la Transparencia (Chile), University of Oxford, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies معهد الدوحة للدراسات العليا "AI and the New Shape of Democratic Power and Peace Processes" lanserades första gången den 16 juni i Stockholm, under Data for Peace Conference organiserat av Uppsala University. 🔗 Länk till rapporten i kommentar. ------ How can AI strengthen efforts for peace and democracy? FBA’s new and unique report explores the potential of AI in conflict prevention, peace processes, and democratic support, at a time when the need for new tools to build sustainable peace is greater than ever. The report is the result of a collaboration between the University of Birmingham, the University of Notre Dame, Build Up, Hala Systems, Osavul, Consejo para la Transparencia (Chile), the University of Oxford, and the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. "AI and the New Shape of Democratic Power and Peace Processes" was first launched on 16 June in Stockholm at the Data for Peace Conference, organised by Uppsala University. 🔗 Link to report in comment below #AI #peaceprocess #Democracy #conflictprevention

What a pleasure to be a part of an insightful panel on the "Blind Spots in #Early #Warning: #Data, models and #InterState #Conflict"! Thank you to Evgenija Kröker and Marco Binetti for the invite. Shout out to the organizers at Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, NYU Center on International Cooperation (CIC) and AI for PEACE and for support from Complex Risk Analytics Fund (CRAF'd), FBA (Folke Bernadotte Academy) Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland SIPRI continues to provide much needed data and insight into armament affairs, monitoring the flows of major conventional weapons since 1950. It continues to offer transparency, that is often missing, especially when data and information is a premium and used to propagate certain narratives. Which is why, more than ever, supporting SIPRI in its work is crucial. (Link in comments on how to support)

Forecasting where violence may move next means understanding how conflict takes shape on the ground. It means looking at the actors involved, the types of events taking place, how violence spreads, and how civilians are being targeted. At the Data for Peace Conference 2026, ACLED’s Head of Data Science Katayoun Kishi discussed how this kind of forecasting can offer clearer insight into risks facing operations, communities, and staff in conflict-affected areas.

How can data and technology help address the long-term risks of conflict and support safer recovery in Syria? Hari Prasad and Abby Guy represented the Center at this year’s Uppsala Data for Peace Conference in discussions on how data and technology can support violence prevention, crisis response, and safer recovery. In Syria, unexploded ordnance continues to pose a major barrier to recovery, affecting livelihoods, access to infrastructure, and the safe return of communities. The Center’s work brings together conflict data, AI, and mapping tools to better understand contamination risks and support effective mine action efforts.  This approach reflects a broader shift toward peace tech using data not only to analyze conflict, but to generate practical tools that inform recovery and reconstruction. Thank you to the conference organizers and partners for this important exchange. As the role of data in peacebuilding continues to grow, collaboration across disciplines is essential to ensuring these tools are responsive, responsible, and grounded in real-world needs. Data for Peace Conference

This week I was privileged to represent Somali Resilience Program (SomReP) and World Vision in Sweden at Data for Peace Conference where I delivered a lightning talk on SAADAAL Early Warning System and was part of an amazing panel discussion on how signals, early warning, systems, and response come together in complex risk environments. My reflections drew from first hand experience in designing and strengthening systems that help translate risk information into timely decisions and action. In Somalia, the challenge is not always the absence of warning. The bigger challenge is ensuring that warnings are trusted, locally interpreted, connected to clear decision protocols, and supported by resources that allow action before risks escalate into crisis. SAADAAL has shown that early warning is most useful when it goes beyond dashboards and technical alerts. It becomes powerful when it is embedded in community structures, local authority systems, partner coordination mechanisms, and resilience investments that already exist before a shock occurs. For me, the key message is clear: anticipatory action and crisis response both depend on systems. Signals matter, but systems determine whether those signals lead to action. When early warning is connected to trusted local interpretation, clear triggers, flexible financing, and accountable delivery mechanisms, it can help communities and institutions move from reacting to preparing. Grateful for the opportunity to share SomReP’s experience and to learn from great colleagues working across the humanitarian, peacebuilding, risk analysis, climate, and resilience space. Anna Lena Huhn John Jal Dak Morten Högnesen Marek Baron Antje L. #EarlyWarning #AnticipatoryAction #Resilience #Somalia #HumanitarianAction #CrisisResponse #DataForPeace

What an honor to speak on this panel in Stockholm at the Data for Peace Conference. Having a platform to share what women on the ground in Georgia actually experience, not as statistics but as living early warning, is something I truly value. In protracted conflict contexts like Georgia's, insecurity doesn't arrive as a single event. It builds quietly. And women notice it first. Since 2023, our women-led CSO partners - IDP Women Association "Conscent", Women's Information Center and Charity-Humnaitarian Fund "Sukhumi" have been piloting a Gender-Responsive Human Security Monitoring Tool across 17 municipalities, because grassroots women are not just data sources. They are primary knowledge producers. Huge thanks to my fellow panelists for a genuinely rich conversation, and to organizers - Uppsala University's Department of Peace and Conflict Research, the NYU Center on International Cooperation (NYU-CIC), and AI for PEACE for creating a space where these conversations can happen. And above all, to the incredible women across Georgia whose everyday alertness makes all of this meaningful. #PreventionData #Peacebuilding #AI4Peace #DataForPeace #EarlyWarning #EarlyAction

#CRAFdEventRecap | On Day 3 of the Data for Peace Conference, one message stood out: in a constrained humanitarian space, collaboration is essential for action. Across sessions, partners from the CRAF’d ecosystem showed how moving from siloed approaches to shared systems can strengthen earlier, faster, more targeted and dignified crisis assistance. Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), Danish Refugee Council / Dansk Flygtningehjælp, ACLED, and World Food Programme underscored a critical point: if the data fails, the model fails, but without connected systems, neither drives impact. Discussions from PRIO and Uppsala University demonstrated how conflict forecasting and predictive modelling can translate changes in conflict intensity into anticipated socio-economic impacts, supporting earlier warning and planning. Sessions with iMMAP Inc. and OpenStreetMap highlighted the shift toward common information services, pooling expertise to build more sustainable data infrastructure. UN Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) Innovation Cell and UNDP Crisis Action explored how AI and analytics are advancing early warning and prevention, while reinforcing the need for governance and human judgment. Regional partners including IOM - UN Migration, IGAD, and ICPAC showcased how data is already enabling action, from tracking pastoral mobility to supporting climate risk decision-making in East and West Africa. 🔽 Watch the livestream via the link in the comments. #PreventionData #AnticipatoryAction #EarlyWarning #RiskAnalysis #DataForPeace #DataForPeace2026

Attending Data for Peace Conference with impressive insights on AI models in foreign policy analysis, early warning and conflict prevention and data analysis for informed decision making, strategic communications and actions. Yasir Atalan Lisa Bachir