Manish Thapa (2006 - 2007)

Nepal

Manish Thapa is regional coordinator of the South Asian Regional Cooperation Academic Network and co-chair of the Internal Conflicts Commission of the International Peace Research Association. He is on the faculty of the Department of Conflict, Peace and Development Studies at Tribhuvan University in Nepal and a doctoral research candidate in International Studies at the University of Tokyo. In January 2009, Manish became a Visiting Fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame, in Indiana, USA, where he will continue work on his doctoral research project, "From Bullet to Ballot: The Politics of Peacemaking in Nepal". His research also will support the Nepal-based work of John Paul Lederach, professor of international peacebuilding at Kroc. He received his Bachelors degree in Development Studies from Kathmandu University, and Masters in Peace and Conflict Studies from Austria’s European Peace University. He is now serving as Executive Director of the Asian Study Centre for Political & Conflict Transformation (ASPECT) and as Regional Coordinator of the South Asian Regional Cooperation Academic Network (SARCAN, a joint project between the McGill University Joint Research Group in International Security (REGIS) and the Canada and Asian Study Centre for Political & Conflict Transformation (ASPECT) Nepal. SARCAN is the outcome of Manish’s work with his mentor during his time as Sauvé Scholar, Prof. T. V. Paul, James McGill Professor in International Relations. In 2005, Manish founded the Nepal Peace Initiative Alliance, which was instrumental in the establishment of the Ministry of Peace & Reconstruction in Nepal. He also played a key role in establishing the Conflict, Peace & Development Studies Program at Tribhuvan University, where he is a core faculty member. He is co-chair of the Internal Conflicts Commission at the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) and Council Member of the Asia-Pacific Peace Research Association (APPRA).

Manish was the publisher - and with Gilli Stern was responsible for the design and layout - of "Reflections, Sauvé Scholars 2006-2007", the collection of the cohort’s scholarly works and personal accounts of their experiences as Sauvé Scholars.

Country of origin

Nepal