Associate Professor

Research | Teaching | Publications | Other

Research Areas

Conflict termination, peace agreements, power sharing, multiparty conflicts, civil society actors in peace processes, and spoiler management.

Current Research

From Wars of the Weak to Strong Peace

Peace by Piece - Multiple Actors in Peace Processes in Civil Wars

The Partnership on Peace, Democracy and Social Progress in Africa

Turning Spoilers into Statesmen - Third Party Strategies for Sustainable Peace in West Africa

Who, Where and Why: Understanding Microfoundations of Civil War

Teaching

Co-convenor and lecturer, “International Conflict Resolution”, (15 ECTS credits), within the Master Program in Peace and Conflict Studies.

Co-convenor: C-course in Peace and Conflict Studies.

Publications

Dissertation

Nilsson, Desirée, 2006. “In the Shadow of Settlement: Multiple Rebel Groups and Precarious Peace”, Dissertation, Report No. 73, Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University. (Order)

Peer Reviewed Articles 

Nilsson, Desirée. 2012. "Anchoring the Peace: Civil Society Actors in Peace Accords and Durable Peace", International Interactions 38(2): 243-266.

Fjelde, Hanne and Desirée Nilsson, forthcoming. "Rebels Against Rebels: Explaining Violence Between Rebel Groups", Journal of Conflict Resolution. 

Nilsson, Desirée and Mimmi Söderberg Kovacs. 2011. "Revisiting an Elusive Concept: A Review of the Debate on Spoilers in Peace Processes", International Studies Review, Vol. 13, No. 4, Pp. 606–626.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2010. “Turning Weakness into Strength: Military Capabilities, Multiple Rebel Groups and Negotiated Settlements”, Conflict Management and Peace Science, Vol. 27, No. 3. Pp. 253–271.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2008. “Partial Peace: Rebel Groups Inside and Outside of Civil War Settlements”, Journal of Peace Research, Vol. 45, No. 4, Pp. 479-495. *Also published as Policy Research Working Paper No. 4572, World Bank, March 2008.

Jarstad, Anna & Desirée Nilsson, 2008. “From Words to Deeds: The Implementation of Power-Sharing Pacts in Peace Accords”, Conflict Management and Peace Science, Vol. 25, No. 3, Pp. 206–223.

Nilsson, Desirée & Mimmi Söderberg Kovacs, 2005. “Breaking the Cycle of Violence: Promises and Pitfalls of the Liberian Peace Process”, Civil Wars, Vol 7, No. 4, Pp. 396–414.

Other Publications

Nilsson, Desirée, 2011 (forthcoming). “Inclusive Peace Agreements – A Path to Durable Peace in Africa?” From Intra-State War to Durable Peace: Conflict and its Resolution in Africa after the Cold War, Edited by Thomas Ohlson. Dordrecht: Republic of Letters Publishers.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2010. “Peace Agreements and their Sustainability”. In The International Encyclopedia of Peace. Edited by Nigel Young. New York & Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2009. “Crafting a Secure Peace: Evaluating the Liberia Comprehensive Peace Accord”, Uppsala & New York: Uppsala University & the Mediation Support Unit, Department of Political Affairs, the United Nations.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2008. “Rebels on the Outside: Signatories Signaling Commitment to Durable Peace”. Chapter in Resources, Governance and Civil Conflict, Magnus Öberg & Kaare Strom (eds). London & New York: Routledge.

Nilsson, Desirée & Mimmi Söderberg, 2003. “På väg mot fred i Liberia?” (Towards Peace in Liberia?), Utrikespolitiska Institutet, Stockholm.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2003. Liberia - The Eye of the Storm: A Review of the Literature on Internally Displaced, Refugees and Returnees, Studies on Emergencies and Disaster Relief, Nordiska afrikainstitutet, Uppsala.

Nilsson, Desirée, 2000. Internally Displaced, Refugees and Returnees from and in the Sudan: A Review, Studies on Emergencies and Disaster Relief, Nordiska afrikainstitutet, Uppsala.

Other 
 

Member of the Editorial Committee, Journal of Peace Research. 

Visiting Fellow with the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame, Fall 2008.

Member of the steering committee of the Network of European Peace Scientists

Visiting Fellow with the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO), September 2007.

Predoctoral Visiting Fellow with the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) at Stanford University, January –June 2003.