About Us
 
As the world becomes more interdependent and unequal, there is a crucial need for cross-regional dialogues to foster new thinking and policy solutions to contentious security challenges.
 
Through the Global Consortium on Security Transformation (GCST) we aim to encourage existing south-south and south-north security and develop debates in order to promote a change of the existing understanding of security as well as open spaces for new voices.
 
Our dialogue network takes the form of a partnership among several institutions located in different regions of the world: the African Security Sector Network (ASSN), the Arab Reform Initiative (ARI), the Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO)-Chile, the Institute for Strategic and Development Studies (ISDS), the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), and the Southern African Defence and Security Management Network (SADSEM).
 
GCST will build upon and forge relationships between regional networks, linking researchers and practitioners, which have emerged in the developing world. It differs from existing networks by focusing on south-south as well as south-north links; by sharing research findings and policy lessons among regional networks; by promoting cross-regional research; by fostering evidence-based policy dialogue; and by reaching out to a broad range of policy constituencies not normally considered in security analysis and policy-making.
 
Main Goals/Objectives
 
We expect to become a point of reference where high-level policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and, more importantly, representatives from civil society are able to discuss new ways to confront security issues worldwide. This will be done by:

1. Encouraging the inclusion of new voices, from traditionally excluded sectors, within policy discussions and analysis;
2. Making sure existing initiatives, studies and practical experiences on conflict prevention and security issues become more visible for a wider community;
3. Providing new perspectives concerning security dilemmas and the expanding concept of security, including a bottom-up strategy involving social actors and citizens' approach and concerns on policy processes and analyses;
4. Promoting policy dialogues and the exchange of knowledge and experience across regions;
5. Identifying and responding to new security tendencies.

Regional Working Groups 
 
The Regional Working Groups are the central working structures within the GCST. They are thematic work groups conceived as clusters of practitioners, researchers, and activists who have a common interest in a given topic and engage in new, cross-regional and comparative research projects. The groups convene to share new knowledge, take advantage of practical experiences in the field, foster new agendas, and strengthen existing networks.
 
These are:

• Working Group on Regional Security from Above and Below;
• Working Group on Transnational Organized Crime;
• Working Group on Crime Prevention;
• Working Group on Security and the Marketplace: Privatization of Security and Insecurity.