This panel will explore the challenge of accurately quantifying the harms of conflict, as well as ongoing work to improve upon international humanitarian law’s (IHL) role in minimizing a broad set of harms deeply affecting civilians. 

Panelists will discuss the use of sound epidemiological principles in estimating mortality and death in conflicts, which is central to fairness and the moral responsibility to ensure those lost are not forgotten. They will also explore how the changing nature of warfare, including a shift away from “boots on the ground” to fighting from the air with drones and airstrikes, has presented new challenges for the protection of civilians, highlighting the need for new legal and policy frameworks that better account for the cumulative harms and reverberating effects of war on communities, including the lasting socioeconomic, educational, and environmental impacts of military action.  

In short this panel asks: How might better counting help make civilian harm count?

SPEAKERS

Catherine Admay JD (moderator), is a Senior Lecturer and Assistant Director of Undergraduate Studies at the Sanford School of Public Policy as well as an Affiliate at the Duke Global Health Institute. Admay's teaching and research interests are in the areas of human rights, law and development, global health, comparative constitutional law of socio-economic rights, conflict transformation, and interdisciplinary engagements with law (ethics, arts, and storytelling).

Debarati Guha-Sapir PhD, is an epidemiologist specializing in humanitarian settings, including natural disasters and civil conflicts. Debarati has been the director of the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) for over 30 years. She holds a Ph.D. in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine from the Université catholique de Louvain and has been awarded the Peter Safar Award for Services to Prehospital and Disaster Medicin. This year, she received the Blue Planet Prize for her contribution to environment and climate research.

Mara Revkin JD, PhD, is an associate professor at the Duke University School of Law, where her research and teaching interests are in armed conflict, peace-building, transitional justice, migration, policing, and property with a regional focus on the Middle East and particularly Iraq and Syria. In addition to her academic research, she has worked with and advised United Nations agencies and other humanitarian organizations on the design of evidence-based programs and policies that aim to strengthen rule of law and the protection of human rights, support peaceful reconciliation after conflict, and mitigate the root causes of political violence and extremism.

*This is a hybrid event with both in-person and remote attendance options. Attendance in person is encouraged. Lunch will be available.