The United States Institute of Peace is offering their annual National Peace Essay Contest for all high school students attending school in the United States (regardless of citizenship). In total, there can be a total of 53 winners for this program: 1 $10,000 National First Place Winner, 1 $5,000 National Second Place Winner, 1 $2,500 National Third Place Winner, and 1 $1,000 State Winner in each state plus 1 winner for U.S. territories, 1 winner for the District of Columbia, and 1 winner for American Students abroad.
The question that entrants must respond to this year is as follows: How can new media best be leveraged to help build peace and prevent conflict? In the essay (of 1,500 words max), you must address the following points:
- Choose, and briefly describe, two foreign (non-U.S.) cases from the past ten years of countries in transition from violent conflict to peace, where new media played a role. The two cases may be from one country or two countries that face ongoing violent conflict or are in a post-conflict environment.
- Analyze the ways that new media, including relevant technologies, were used. If use of new media changed the conflict environment, explain what it changed and how. If not, explain why not.
- What are the risks, trade-offs, and/or limitations involved in using new media as a peacebuilding tool?
- What recommendations would you make to policy makers for how new media can best be leveraged in building peace?
If you have any questions, contact the USIP at essaycontest@usip.org, or check out the FAQ page. To apply, you must do so through a “coordinator”, who can be “and can be any adult-teacher, parent, youth leader, etc.” Essays must be submitted by February 1, 2012. Good luck!
