May 15, 2015, published in Vision of Humanity.

Why data and measurement are so important in the pursuit of more peaceful societies.

Peace is notoriously difficult to define and even more difficult to measure. The Institute for Economics and Peace believes that in measuring peace we can identify the social, economic and political factors that help develop more peaceful societies. In other words, analysing measurements of peace over time allow us to understand what we need to do to become more peaceful.

Through a statistical analysis of the relative peacefulness of different countries and regions, it is possible to assess whether our actions and polices are helping or hindering us in achieving our goals.

Additionally, producing rigorous research and hard data allow the Institute to strip the word peace of its utopian connotations and to make it an achievable policy objective.

MEASURING PEACE

The Global Peace Index, produced annually by the Institute for Economics and Peace, ranks over 160 countries according to their peacefulness. It gauges peace according to 22 different qualitative and quantitative indicators that can be grouped together in three broad themes: societal safety and security, international and domestic conflict, and militarisation.

The latest edition of the index shows that despite living in the most peaceful era in human history, the world has become less peaceful over the last seven years.

The 2015 edition of the Index will be released on the 17th of June along with an analysis trends in peace, security and violence over the last eight years.

UNDERSTANDING PEACE

Peace is more than just the absence of war or conflict, peace is the presence the many different elements that allow human wellbeing to flourish.

In order to understand the complexity of peace, the Institute for Economics and Peace has adopted two core concepts: negative peace and positive peace. Negative peace is the absence of violence or the fear of violence, this is the definition of peace used by the Global Peace Index.

Positive peace is the attitudes, structures and institutions that underpin peaceful societies. The Institute has done significant research into Positive Peace and found there are eight key factors that work together as mutually reinforcing system to create and sustain peace.

EXPLORING PEACE

In order to make this complex research relevant, the Institute for Economics and Peace has created Vision of Humanity, a digital lab for curious minds to explore the complexity of peace and its causes.

Vision of Humanity  contains interactive data visualisations, research reports, infographics and narratives that engage a diverse audience with the complex fabric of peace. The interactive Global Peace Index map allows you to explore peace around the world, discover country specific information and understand changes in peace over time.