Kaja Borchgrevink is now coordinator for PRIO's research group on religion. She takes over from Gina Lende, who has been instrumental in establishing a common arena for religion-related research at PRIO. Kaja's own research focuses on peacebuilding, civil society and religion in Afghanistan and Pakistan. She is currently investigating the relationship between private Islamic charity and poverty reduction. Kaja has a background from Development Studies and practical development work in South Asia.

​Seminar organised at PRIO 19 May 2012

​​On 22 July, Norway was struck by a double terror attack. A few minutes before 15:30 a car bomb was detonated at the centre of the executive government quarter, severely damaging several office buildings including the Prime Minister’s office in ‘Høyblokka’. Eight people were killed by the blast and several wounded. Sometime between 17 and 17:30 came the first reports in the media of shootings at Utøya, where the Norwegian Labour Party's youth organisation AUF were having their summer camp. At approximately 18:30, Special Police troopers apprehended the shooter, who willingly gave himself up. Sixty-nine people — mostly teenagers — were shot and killed at Utøya, making it the worst shooting incident in peace time globally, and bringing the total death toll that day to 77.

On 9 and 10 November 2009, the Liberal Peace and the Ethics of Peacebuilding held its final workshop. This was the third workshop of the project, and the programme offered interesting presentations, as well as discussions by the participants on multiple issues related to liberal peace and the ethics of peacebuilding. The project is set up as an international network with participants from both Norwegian and European institutions.

The kick-off meeting of the Liberal Peace and the Ethics of Peacebuilding project was held on 18 January, with constructive and inspiring discussions. Participating in the meeting were Oliver Richmond and Sharbanou Tadjbakhsh from the U.K. and France, Ole Jacob Sending and Lars Christie from NUPI/MFA and a number of PRIOites.