The Peace Resource Collaborative (PRC) was established in 2014 as a joint initiative of eight academic institutions to provide knowledge, expertise and skills to help transform the conflict in the Deep South of Thailand/Patani. The collaboration of the eight institutions started in 2011 with the creation of the “Insider Peacebuilder’s Platform” (IPP), a diverse network of individuals from within region as well as other parts of Thailand who were keen to explore and share ideas for a peaceful settlement of the conflict. In 2017 the IPP network created a governance structure of its own with the election of an IPP Committee. Following this restructuring, PRC continues to support the IPP by providing academic services and administrative oversight. In the same year, PRC decided to broaden its knowledge and skills related services beyond the Deep South of Thailand/Patani. This was in recognition of the fact that society, in general, would benefit from a better understanding of ways to transform actual or potential violent conflicts.
The work of the PRC is guided by an Advisory Board comprising representatives of the eight founding institutions. Financial and administrative oversight of the PRC was initially undertaken by the Center for Conflict Studies and Cultural Diversity (CSCD, PSU Pattani). Since 2018, this responsibility has been shared with the Institute of Peace Studies (IPS, PSU Hat Yai). Future plans will include the establishment of the “Peace Resource Collaborative Foundation” (PRC Foundation) in accordance with Thai Law.
PRC has two offices – in the Faculty of Political Science, PSU Pattani Campus and in the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University Bangkok. PRC is currently funded by the European Union Delegation in Bangkok, the German Federal Foreign Office, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and the Sasakawa Peace Foundation (Japan). PRC has also received support from the Finnish Foreign Office, the Australian Federal Foreign Office, the Norwegian Foreign Office, and the Embassy of the UK in Bangkok.
Vision
They believe that it is possible to develop a peaceful settlement to all violent socio-political conflicts in which the disputing parties feel safe and acknowledged with respect to their particular set of grievances; whether they be rooted in identity (historical, cultural, linguistic, religious) and/or ideology.
The Mission of the PRC is to provide knowledge, expertise and skills to support the peaceful settlement of violent conflicts, particularly in the Deep South of Thailand/Patani.
