Research Project (Ongoing)

Research Project for Compiling the Handbook of Human Security in Practice

This research project is being undertaken to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development, which will be celebrated in 2028.

Since its introduction by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1994, the concept of Human Security has evolved as an important framework for addressing threats to people's lives, livelihoods, and dignity, including armed conflict, poverty, infectious diseases, and climate change. Although several comprehensive reference works on Human Security have been published, there remains a lack of systematic resources that adequately reflect recent changes in global challenges while integrating perspectives from developing countries as well as interdisciplinary and practice-oriented knowledge. Considering emerging issues such as the climate crisis, pandemics, and the rapid advancement of digital technologies, there is a growing need to systematically reassess and reorganize both the theory and practice of Human Security.

Building on the accumulated scholarship on Human Security, this project will compile and publish an international Handbook on Human Security as a Major Reference Work (MRW) in English. The handbook will be distinguished by four key features:
1. A people-centered perspective that begins with people's lived realities;
2. The active incorporation of experiences and insights from developing countries;
3. An interdisciplinary approach that bridges the social sciences, humanities, and natural sciences; and
4. The integration of theory and practice through a rich collection of case studies.

At a time when the world is increasingly characterized by fragmentation and violent ruptures, the handbook aims to identify new frontiers in Human Security research and advance Human Security as a global normative framework for realizing a world in which peace, prosperity, dignity, and justice are shared by all.

The handbook will serve not only as a foundational academic resource for researchers and students but also as a valuable reference for practitioners working in international organizations, governments and public administration, development agencies, civil society organizations, as well as entrepreneurs and private-sector actors. As an intellectual foundation linking Human Security perspectives to practice in areas such as policymaking, international cooperation, peacebuilding, and climate action, it is expected to have broad relevance and application both in Japan and internationally.

Editors of the Handbook
• Mely Caballero-Anthony
Professor of International Relations; and Ngee Ann Kongsi Professor of International Relations Associate Dean (International Engagement), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
• Scarlett Cornelissen
Professor of Political Science, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
• Oscar Gomez
Professor, College of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Japan
• Yoichi Mine
Executive Director, JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development, Japan
• Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh
Professor, Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA), Sciences Po, France