This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the GCSP. In May, we had the unique opportunity to fly our flags across the Mont Blanc Bridge in Geneva, alongside the Swiss national flag and Canton of Geneva flags. This initiative marked an important celebratory moment as we lead up to our official anniversary this November. Here is our story

Our Story 

The Geneva Centre for Security Policy has its roots in the Geneva Summit of 1985: the first meeting between President Ronald Reagan of the United States and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union to discuss international diplomatic relations and the arms race during the Cold War. The meeting exposed the pressing need to strengthen Swiss national expertise in the field of disarmament and international security, so the Swiss Confederation took the initiative to design a nine-month executive training programme for government officials. It met the needs of officials not just in Switzerland, but in many other countries in Europe and beyond. The course was uniquely designed to address the most critical issues in a round-table format that facilitated exchanges among experts and practitioners. These officials not only gained knowledge, but also built relationships and trust across political divides, and thus the course became a vehicle to build and maintain peace, security and stability, and foster international cooperation. The GCSP Way was born. 

Creation of an International Non-profit Foundation 

In 1995 Mr Adolf Ogi, Swiss President and Federal Councillor in charge of the Federal Department (Ministry) of Defence, initiated the establishment of an international foundation in Geneva to expand the reach and impact of the course and serve as a contribution of the Government of Switzerland to peace in Europe. Eleven states agreed to nominate a representative to serve on the Foundation Council (Board of Trustees). The GCSP’s mission was strengthened when, in 1996, Switzerland joined the Partnership for Peace (PfP), an initiative led by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) to enhance transatlantic security cooperation. The GCSP was a Swiss contribution to the PfP and is now recognised as a Partnership Training and Education Centre.

Our Mission

We are an international foundation serving a global community of individuals and organisations. Our mission is to advance peace, security and international cooperation. We provide the knowledge, skills, and network for effective and inclusive decision-making. 

Where We Are Now 

Since the Centre’s creation a quarter of a century ago, we at the GCSP have evolved. While adjusting to a new era of uncertainty, we have continued our operations, adapting where needed and innovating where we must. In recent months, we have moved our executive education offerings online to give our customers and network access to complete virtual learning experiences. We have expanded our scope to include live webinars as a gateway to a new horizon and have re-imagined “the GCSP way” to include hybrid online/offline solutions. Our Global Fellowship Initiative and Creative Spark are preparing to host many more people due to economic consequences of COVID-19 and our Alumni Community is uniting together to gain solutions and support, now more than ever.

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