Explore some of the exciting research projects taking place at our affiliated research centers and labs.
The Government and Politics Research Lab
The Government and Politics Research Lab at the University of Maryland is a vibrant center where students and faculty collaborate on pioneering research, producing significant contributions to the field within their academic environment. The lab's influential work has been featured in esteemed journals like Research and Politics and Political Behavior. Additionally, its innovative research has captured the attention of major news outlets such as The Washington Post and The New York Times, underscoring the lab's importance in influencing discussions on current political issues. The lab is part of CDCE.
Department Chair: Dr. Antoine Jevon Banks
Anwar Sadat Chair for Peace and Development
The goals of the Anwar Sadat Chair, and of the professor who occupies it, are three-fold. First, the Chair works to further the dialogue for peace in the Middle East and throughout the world. Second, the Chair works to bridge the gap that often occurs between the academic and policy worlds, bringing the policy community of nearby Washington, D.C. in closer touch with the latest research findings. Third, the Chair strives to maintain an active and rigorous research agenda.
Professor Shibley Telhami was invested on October 7, 1997 as the first Sadat Professor. That date was also the day of the first annual Sadat Lecture for Peace, which was delivered by President Ezer Weizman of Israel. President Weizman, who played an integral role in the negotiations leading to the Camp David Accords, shared his memories of Anwar Sadat and noted that the Weizman and Sadat families continued a close relationship through the years.
Sadat Chair: Dr. Shibley Telhami
Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement (CDCE)
The current threats to democratic norms requires a commitment by institutions of higher learning to engage in an effort to better understand why this erosion has occurred, and to find solutions to the problem. Established in 2019, the Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement (CDCE) at the University of Maryland will play a leading role in this mission, leveraging our location near Washington, D.C., close to federal government offices, think tanks, and other organizations’ national headquarters.
Our faculty, research assistants and board leadership propose an agenda that advances knowledge to promote a strong democracy by focusing on the interactions between citizens, particularly those of the Millennial Generation, and government that foster greater trust in the purpose, legitimacy, and responsibility among the actors in our democracy.
Director: Dr. Michael Hanmer
Center for International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM)
The Center for International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM) is an interdisciplinary research center at the University of Maryland. CIDCM seeks to prevent and transform conflict, to understand the interplay between conflict and development, and to help societies create sustainable futures for themselves. Using the insights of researchers, practitioners, and policymakers, CIDCM devises effective tools and pathways to constructive change.
For more than 20 years, scholars and practitioners at CIDCM have sought ways to understand and address conflicts over security, identity, and distributive justice. CIDCM programs are based on the belief that "peace building and development-with-justice are two sides of the same coin." (CIDCM Founding Director, Edward Azar, 1987). CIDCM's accomplished scholars, its expertise in data collection and analysis, and its direct involvement in regional conflict management efforts make the Center a unique resource for discovering enduring solutions to the world's most intractable conflicts.
Director: Dr. Paul Huth
Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Computational Social Science (iLCSS)
