The Full Story
About Us
The Corioli Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to rebuilding the resilience of communities affected by conflict. We recognize that rebuilding resilience is the first step in successful recovery and peace-building, and so we strive to provide these communities with the tools and support they need to help them move forward.
CI researchers combined bring decades of experience across a wide breadth of stakeholders, including governments, NGOs, and local organizations, to provide innovative solutions to the challenges faced by those affected by conflict. Our work has been recognized for its impact in supporting communities around the world.
Vision
To be the global vanguard of research on the reintegration of formerly armed actors and their communities, to align provision with need, prepare contextualized emergent reintegration practices for successful application to (inter)national donor streams, and to rebuild trust and social cohesion among conflict-affected communities worldwide.
Mission
Trust After Betrayal and the “Out of War” project represent two components of the work of the Corioli Institute, which has a tripartite mission, detailed as follows.
Our mission is to:
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Be the global vanguard of research on the reintegration of formerly armed actors and their communities
Operating in more than one dozen countries worldwide, researchers engage and include FAAs from cartels, transnational criminal organizations, militaries, guerrilla groups, violent extremist groups, militias, international legions, and returning foreign fighters, among others. Research and action design are fully participatory and holistic, engaging those living the everyday realities of reintegration (including families, communities, practitioners, and street-level bureaucrats) in the creation and implementation of initiatives. Monthly newsletters and original research briefs, along with an aggressive publishing calendar in both popular and academic outlets, ensure timeliness, relevance, and continuity of contributions to advancing knowledge on the science and practice of FAA reintegration.
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Align provision with need, preparing contextualized emergent reintegration practices for successful application to (inter)national donor streams
The work of the Corioli Institute addresses a key gap identified over more than a dozen years of on-the-ground experience: those organizations and associations best able to secure donor funding are not necessarily the best situated to deliver the intended impacts. In every context, there exist processes and approaches that are best suited to navigating the constellation of stakeholders, social, economic, and structural conditions. Often, however, these initiatives lack the technical capabilities to present their work, assess and evaluate their impact, and connect with donor streams and funding calls in a professionalized manner. The Corioli Institute conducts the ethnographic fieldwork that agencies concerned with localized approaches desire, but can rarely do because of the temporal, budgetary, and mandate constraints within which they operate. In short: we find what works, and then support local initiatives and organizations in the professionalization processes required to obtain their own sustainable funding streams for scaling their efforts in situ. The “sandwich” theory of change engages stakeholders from donor agencies, government ministries, and local officials together with local project leaders in selection, scoping, and evaluation to best match provision with capabilities and need. The ultimate objective is a “zero waste” funding stream in which every dollar spent results in the intended outcome. Our outputs include organizational ethnographies, impact evaluations, and contributions to academic fields such as organizational studies, international development, and reintegration programming.
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Rebuild trust and social cohesion among conflict-affected communities worldwide through climate security initiatives
The fundamental premise of the Corioli Institute is that policies and programs intending to facilitate the reintegration of formerly armed actors will be more likely to succeed when they 1) benefit the entire receiving community and 2) do not require that FAAs and conflict victims continue to re-perform these particular identities in perpetuity to obtain access to support. Given the urgency of climate change and environmental degradation, the Institute prioritizes initiatives that promote social cohesion and inclusive leadership, decision-making, and conflict resolution through implementing sustainable environmental practices and food and human security. By co-creating a shared vision of a better future, our research has found that participants are better equipped to build a foundation of interpersonal trust that is the basis for all social life while simultaneously ensuring a more resilient and sustainable future for all.