Activities

The GCSP was born out of a tailor made course designed to meet the specific needs of government actors.  We continue to grow with, and through, our partners who have diversified across sectors and around the world to include international organisations, civil society organisations and the private sector.  From new or adapted courses, workshops and events to advisory services, our multidisciplinary team is ready to collaborate with you.

The driving force behind our approach to customised offerings is achieving impact.  We invest time up front to understand what you want to achieve, your strategic policy and organisational needs, and your context.  We then co-design the solution together.  
 

Why partner with the GCSP?

* In line with The GCSP Way, we integrate the most effective adult education and facilitation methods to enable the co-creation of knowledge and its transfer into the workplace;

* We offer a unique blend of expertise, combining a comprehensive portfolio of topics related to international security and peace with world class strategic and leadership tools and skills;

Discover the GCSP Way

We customise solutions on multiple levels: 

• By content: select and combine the topics in our comprehensive portfolio;
• By level of customisation: from advertised courses to highly customised solutions;
• By education and facilitation method: highly interactive expert presentations, skills-enhancement sessions, workshops and retreats, simulations, coaching;
• By duration or language: according to your needs;
• By location: at the GCSP premises in the Maison de la paix in Geneva or at a location close to you;

OPTIONS TO COLLABORATE WITH US: 

1. Adapt an existing course offering
2. Co-design a workshop, retreat, course or event.
3. Seek our advisory services

Our Customised Solutions

• Annual Senior Officers Seminar (ASOS)
• Business Integrity and Corruption
• Crisis Management and Leadership
• Climate Change and Security
• Comprehensive Peacebuilding for the 21st century
• Développement des Capacités sanitaires dans le Domaine de la Sécurité Sanitaire
• German Armed Forces Orientation Course
• International Relations and Human Security
• International Law in Cyberspace
• Introduction to Counter Terrorism and Intelligence Analysis
• Leading Inclusive Teams
• MAD: Monitoring, Analysing and Deciding (Methodologies, Tools and Processes)
• Migration and Good Governance for Civil Servants
• Negotiation, Theory and Practice
• Orientation Course for Defence Attachés and Senior Officials (available here)
• Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict: Addressing the Challenges Posed by the Presence of Non-State Armed Groups
• Risk and Resilience in Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Accidents and Terrorists Attacks
• Swiss Professional Officer Training (SPOT)
• Senior German Officers Course
• Strategic Anticipation in Practise: Integration Techniques
• Terrorism and the Media: How to Define a Counter-narrative Strategy
• The Case for Creativity
• Women's Leadership
• Maritime Security

The GCSP facilitates diplomatic dialogue with a view to assisting policymakers to find solutions to common problems, reduce tensions, and manage international relations peacefully. Owing to our experience in dialogue and mediation, in-house expertise, vast regional networks, and our strategic placement in international Geneva, we are ideally positioned to facilitate confidential discussions.

As geopolitical rivalries deepen and communication lines are cut, seemingly irreparably, the need for quiet, informal diplomacy has become greater than ever. In this context, establishing safe spaces for discourse is of paramount importance. Against this backdrop, Track 1.5 and Track 2 discussions can help keep threads of communication alive, and promote constructive engagement where it is currently not possible at the official level. Our diplomatic dialogue initiatives are designed not only to gradually rebuild trust and confidence, but also to find common ground so that the rationale for resumed cooperation is clear.

Turning theory into practice

The war in Ukraine has created a major trust deficit that continues to play out not only in the direct relationship among the big powers, but also in various regions where the West and Russia are both invested.
Rebuilding links between interlocutors in key states will be an arduous task, and Track 2 actors like the GCSP have a role to play in it. As such, the GCSP is working hard to identify opportunities for re-establishing communication flows that will be essential to the eventual rebuilding of more harmonious working relationships.

Of course, the geopolitical rupture over Ukraine has considerable implications for the rest of the world and the multilateral system. While cooperation has stalled at the Track 1 level, impartial actors like the GCSP can help enable channels of communication at the unofficial level, with a view to identifying paths towards a gradual return to proper diplomacy. With this in mind, the GCSP offers a neutral and safe platform for exchanges between government representatives and experts.

We aim to stimulate meaningful debate and new thinking on security, as opposed to the zero-sum thinking that often pervades public discourse. To achieve these objectives, the GCSP facilitates a range of dialogues that aim to elaborate creative ideas for addressing geopolitical and regional tensions.

What does the Creative Spark offer to its members

In a turbulent and polarizing world, the GCSP Creative Spark leverages the ‘Esprit de Genève’ and the Swiss values of impartiality, inclusiveness and independence, as well as Geneva’s position as a hub of global affairs in peace, security, health, human rights, humanitarian, trade and finance. Fellows have a unique risk-free space to test ideas, innovate and gain a holistic view of security challenges by gathering feedback from experts with broad perspectives. They are able to connect to and collaborate with people across sectors and break down silos of knowledge, expertise, methodology and experience, to strengthen ideas and develop policy and practices advancing sustainable peace and development. Fellows contribute to and benefit from the GCSP’s leading education environment.  They are able to learn about and integrate the most innovative tools in leadership, education and strategic policy development. 

The Creative Spark offers applicants presenting promising ideas with a high likelihood of generating sustainable impact on international peace and security an up to 12 months programme, where the GCSP provides targeted support to convert innovative efforts into reality.  This includes but is not limited to office space, business & marketing strategy services, business operation, legal support, media marketing services, accounting and financial management, training, networking opportunities and seed funding.   

	A public-private partnership, GCERF was established to serve as the first global effort to support local, community-level initiatives aimed at strengthening resilience against violent extremist agendas. Operating at the nexus of security and development, GCERF is committed to working in partnership and consultation with governments, civil society, and the private sector in beneficiary countries to support national strategies to address the local drivers of violent extremism.
	The Climate Action Accelerator (CAA) is a new, non-profit initiative, launched with the aim to mobilise large-scale climate action. Its goal is to help as many organisations as possible to directly halve their emissions by 2030, in line with the Paris Agreement. Learn more
	IDE4 is a non-profit association established with a distinct mission: to propel the domains of data analytics and visualization in service to academia, International Geneva and the SDGs. By cultivating a dynamic ecosystem of developers, institutions, and enthusiasts, IDE4 promotes open-source solutions, particularly their innovative visual analytics platform, CSX, conceived at CERN.
	MAP is a creative consulting and talent agency representing top media and arts professionals from conflict zones and diaspora communities. They train and consult on the strategic application of media and arts for transformational social change.
	Cyber-aid is a people public private collaboration on cyber-security, artificial intelligence and digital. They help individuals, companies and municipalities learn about new technologies, anticipate changes together and adapt and grow.
	Developed at the Stimson Centre and recipient of the first edition GCSP Transformative Futures in Peace and Security Prize, the GGIN's new Global Governance Innovation Project  (GGIP)– consisting of an annual Global Governance Innovation Report, Index & Survey – was incubated in the Creative Spark in the beginning of 2024. The GGIP explores and measure progress in global governance, including by carefully comparing national leadership within multilateral institutions and assessing their change over time. The project also examines the growing capabilities of new voices, tools, networks, knowledge, and institutions in global governance—to better cope with a variety of 21st century challenges. Thanks to the incubation in our Creative Spark, the project leaders refined their concept through collective intelligence and built up their network in International Geneva with, inter alia, two events held at the  GCSP: an informal breakfast with Civil Society Representatives and Scholars and a high-level round table with UN Member States on Collective Security and the Universality of Conflict Prevention.
	The Foundation for Humanitarian Action at Sea aims to mitigate the global humanitarian crisis at Sea by facilitating high-level dialogues, coordinating research and advocacy on maritime migration routes, and expanding Search and Rescue (SAR) operations at a global scale.

What does the Creative Spark offer its partners

With our 25 years’ experience in the fields of peace and security, we help our partners identify promising forward-looking solutions and transformational ideas for a more peaceful future. We know the needs and challenges in these fields and we therefore are able to assess for you the most innovative and impactful projects that will make their mark and change the trajectory of the future.