On June 17, 2021, MOMRI Research Fellow Dr. Craig Robertson organised an online webinar on Music in Peacebuilding at the York Festival of Ideas in the UK. The webinar featured a talk and presentation by the Director of MOMRI, Professor Olivier Urbain, and a lively discussion from academics at the University of York and music in peacebuilding practitioners.

The York Festival of Ideas began in 2011 as a partnership between the University of York, York Theatre Royal, York Museums Trust, the National Centre for Early Music and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. The purpose was, and continues to be, to enhance York’s reputation as a city of ideas and innovation through offering high calibre public events to local, regional and international audiences.

The webinar itself featured Professor Olivier Urbain (Director of MOMRI), Laura Hassler (Director of Musicians Without Borders), Darren Ferguson (Director of Beyond Skin), Dr. Jacob Eriksson (Lecturer in Politics, University of York), Professor Henrice Altink (Professor of History, University of York), Dr. Jonathan Eato (Senior Lecturer in Music, University of York), Professor Rachel Cowgill (Professor of Music, University of York), and Professor Paul Gready (Director of the Centre for Applied Human Rights, University of York). The webinar had a global audience of several hundred and it can still be viewed here.