Universities network for children in armed conflict
The Universities Network for Children in Armed Conflict (UNETCHAC), launched in November 2020, represents the first International Academic Network with the aim to enhance the role of the Academic Community in the Protection of Children directly and indirectly involved in Armed Conflict.
The activities promoted by UNETCHAC see participation of more than 40 universities and research centers coming from different geographical areas such as Europe, Africa, Middle East and Americas; some of these universities and research centers located in conflict zones.
On 31 March 2023, the Association Universities Network for Children in Armed Conflict (UNETCHAC) was established (registered in Rome on 6 April 2023, no. 10920, Series 1T, REPERTOIRE N 11 COLLECTION N 5)
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The Network aims to promote analysis and research activities with a view to enhancing the social and legal protection of boy and girl children involved in armed conflict. The Network will also provide activities aimed at increasing the awareness of the spreading phenomenon of the consequences for children involved in armed conflict both when they are direct victims and also when they are affected indirectly by violations to their families and communities (i.e. early school leaving).
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All the Activities organized by the Network are specifically focused on the protection of girl children as affected by specific gender-based violations in armed conflict. All the Activities are organized with the aim to promote and increase a dialogue within the academic community both at the national and the international level, with a view to contributing to enhance the protection of girl children.
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More than 40 Universities and Research Centers of different countries from Europe, Middle East, Africa, North and Latin America have already joined the Network, and more will join.
If you are an Institution interested to be part of the Network, please write us with your proposals.
NEWS
book presentation
3 February 2026 5:30 P.M. Fondazione Ernesta Besso, Largo di Torre Argentina 11, Rome, Italy
“WOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY "
In a historical moment in which peace seems increasingly fragile, listening to the voices of those who have experienced conflict firsthand becomes essential. The stories of women who have navigated wars, silences, and complex negotiations invite us to rethink what peace and security truly mean today.
This event offers a space for reflection and dialogue through the testimony of Virginia Gamba, former Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, who will present her book On the Tightrope: Chronicle of a Struggle for Peace and Disarmament. Read more…
31 January 2026 Cinema Salem, 1 East India Square Mall, Salem, MA
cinema
“SOLDIERS OF SONGS"
Join Salem State University and UNETCHAC for a special screening of Soldiers of Song (2024), an award-winning documentary that follows Ukrainian musicians who transform music into resistance, healing, and national solidarity amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. Through intimate interviews and powerful performances, the film reveals how creativity becomes a lifeline in the face of violence, displacement, and loss. Read more…
tRAININGS
UNETCHAC regularly organizes training courses aimed at analizing, with a multi-disciplinary approach, issues relating to the protection of children in armed conflict and post-conflict situations, and international justice. These advanced courses offer the possibility of an academic and professional training on the subject of International Human Rights Law, International Humanitarian Law, and International Criminal Law.
International Criminal Jurisdiction 2023
International Criminal Jurisdiction 2022
Autumn School 2021
PUBLICATIONS
“NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICT”.
Legal, Ethical, and Humanitarian Challenges in the Age of AI and Autonomous Weapons.
CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICT AND CULTURAL HERITAGE.
Protecting Cultural Heritage as a Key Element in Preserving Children’s Rights in Armed Conflict
PROJECTS
2024-25
The creation of the YouthNet International Mediators: Empowering Youth for Long-lasting Peace and Security in the dimension of the IV PAN on UNSCR 1325. The project, launched in the course of a conference held in New York, and developed between October 2024 and February 2025, is part of the activities outlined in Italy’s IV National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (2020–2024), in alignment with UN Security Council Resolution 1325.
2023
The National Action Plans on UNSCR1325 and the impact of armed conflicts on boys and girls: a study and analysis of the International Universities Network. Co-funded by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2022
Analysis and study of the impact of armed conflicts on boys and girls in the Middle East: proposals for implementing their role as agents of change to realise peaceful and inclusive societies.
Co-funded by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Contact us
If you are a University or an Institution, or you just need information, contact us filling the form.
More than 40 universities and research centers of different countries from Europe, Middle East, Africa, North and Latin America have already joined the Network, and more will join.
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