{"title": "Anthony Hyman Memorial Lecture 2026 – The UN in Afghanistan: from state building to survival, rethinking the UN's role", "start": "2026-10-28T18:00:00Z", "end": null, "place": "SOAS University of London", "address": "", "price": "", "price_from": null, "price_to": null, "tickets_url": "https://www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/korean-artist-lee-qoede-after-divide-mexico-socialism-and-another-modernism", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["history/afghanistan", "society/politics"], "description": "The Anthony Hyman Memorial Lecture 2026 is a talk at SOAS University of London on the United Nations' role in Afghanistan. Mark Bowden, a former UN Assistant Secretary-General with over two decades of engagement in and on Afghanistan, examines how the UN's role has been shaped and constrained by the Bonn Conference settlement. He traces its evolution from political architect to system manager, through elections and reconstruction efforts, to today's humanitarian-centred debates after the Taliban's 2021 takeover. The event is organised by the SOAS Centres and Institutes Office.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/anthony-hyman-memorial-lecture-2026-the-un-in-afghanistan-fr-43639/", "official_url": "https://www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/anthony-hyman-memorial-lecture-2026-un-afghanistan-state-building-survival-rethinking", "image": "https://noky.io/images/a9bfed14f6d2b81df66edacbab93c3a9860bad5fc76149a7a396409cbeb0dc24-2000.webp", "dates": [{"start": "2026-10-28T18:00:00Z", "end": null, "place": "SOAS University of London", "address": "", "tickets": ""}], "similar": [{"title": "Book launch: 'Decolonizing Afghanistan: Countering Imperial Knowledge and Power'", "start": "2026-11-10T17:30:00Z", "end": null, "place": "SOAS University of London", "address": "", "price": "Free to attend, but registration is required", "price_from": "0.00", "price_to": "0.00", "tickets_url": "https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/JNUxM7FKnS", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["history/colonialism", "society/media"], "description": "A book launch for 'Decolonizing Afghanistan: Countering Imperial Knowledge and Power', hosted by the SOAS Middle East Institute and the SOAS South Asia Institute at SOAS University of London. The book, published by Duke University Press, is edited by Wazhmah Osman and Robert D. Crews and offers cross-disciplinary, ground-up perspectives on colonial projects in Afghanistan, focusing on the US intervention that began in 2001. Contributors Dawood Azami, Marya Hannun and Wazhmah Osman will discuss media narratives, information warfare and knowledge production, and how visual tropes and ideologies shape portrayals of Afghanistan. Attendance is free but registration is required, with seating allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/book-launch-decolonizing-afghanistan-countering-imperial-kno-43667/", "official_url": "https://www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/book-launch-decolonizing-afghanistan-countering-imperial-knowledge-and-power", "image": "https://noky.io/images/5a3032d06453f61472b5faf6331ace0c9f76c3a2e2be8952a7d176992e71c768-2000.webp"}, {"title": "IGHI Special Lecture 2026: Global Challenges, Human Solutions", "start": "2026-11-11T17:00:00Z", "end": null, "place": "Imperial College London", "address": "Exhibition Road, SW7 2AZ London", "price": "Free", "price_from": "0.00", "price_to": "0.00", "tickets_url": "https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/2001059495819", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["society/humanitarian"], "description": "A special lecture hosted in person and online, open to all with advance registration. Dr Christos Christou, a surgeon and former International President of Médecins Sans Frontières from 2019 to 2025, discusses how medicine, leadership and politics intersect in real humanitarian settings, drawing on his work with MSF during crises including Ebola and COVID-19. The Institute of Global Health Innovation, one of Imperial College London's global challenge institutes, is behind the lecture, which is introduced by Professor the Lord Ara Darzi. The talk also looks at where academic institutions can contribute to humanitarian medicine.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/ighi-special-lecture-2026-global-challenges-human-solutions-74067/", "official_url": "https://www.imperial.ac.uk/events/213463/ighi-special-lecture-2026-global-challenges-human-solutions/", "image": "https://noky.io/images/bedfc8984c5a29d014c9fd68eb0bf33fde754c8abbc982bcb706a7229e9aa57f-2000.webp"}, {"title": "Ukraine’s veterans. Coming home from a war that isn’t over", "start": "2026-11-05T19:00:00Z", "end": "2026-11-05T21:30:00Z", "place": "Bishopsgate Institute", "address": "Bishopsgate 230, London", "price": "£10 General Admission (£5 Students)", "price_from": "10.00", "price_to": "10.00", "tickets_url": "https://www.tickettailor.com/checkout/view-event/id/9259601/chk/cd99156d6a5778064ccfc6ed733750fd/?modal_widget=true&widget=true", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["history/war/ukraine-war"], "description": "An evening panel and conversation about Ukraine's veterans and how to support them as they return to civilian life while the war continues. It is organised by the Ukrainian Institute in London and marks the launch of a new issue of the London Ukrainian Review dedicated to veterans, with a free copy for every ticket holder. The speakers are veterans and practitioners who have built and led veteran-support initiatives, discussing rehabilitation, peer support, policy reform, what has worked and what veterans still lack. The panel is moderated by Larissa Babij, editor of the London Ukrainian Review, and followed by a Q&A.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/ukraines-veterans-coming-home-from-a-war-that-isnt-over-42752/", "official_url": "https://uil.org.uk/events/ukraines-veterans-coming-home-from-a-war-that-isnt-over/", "image": "https://noky.io/images/507bfd0853ca563c153d50c26af6edb2d7ad485e3af86c011c69249cb2a8e328-2000.webp"}, {"title": "Book launch: Escaping the Conflict Trap?", "start": "2026-11-09T14:00:00Z", "end": null, "place": "King's College London, Strand Campus", "address": "Strand, WC2R 2LS London", "price": "", "price_from": null, "price_to": null, "tickets_url": "https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launch-escaping-the-conflict-trap-tickets-2002616053525?aff=oddtdtcreator", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["history/africa", "literature"], "description": "A book launch at King's College London's Strand Campus for 'Escaping the Conflict Trap?: Seeking Stability in Liberia and Sierra Leone'. It is hosted by the Africa Research Group, with Alan Doss and David Harris discussing the book they wrote together. Drawing on his experience as a practitioner and his as an academic, they explore the peace processes in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the actors involved and the factors that shaped peacebuilding, comparing the two with the Democratic Republic of Congo. A panel with Mats Berdal, Felix Marco Conteh and chair Kieran Mitton follows, ending with questions from the audience.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/book-launch-escaping-the-conflict-trap-80732/", "official_url": "https://www.kcl.ac.uk/events/book-launch-escaping-the-conflict-trap", "image": ""}, {"title": "2026 Australia Studies Institute Reese Lecture: Vannessa Hearman, \"In the hands of ordinary people: Australia’s changing relationship with Indonesia and Timor-Leste\"", "start": "2026-11-03T18:30:00Z", "end": null, "place": "King's College London, Strand Campus", "address": "Strand, WC2R 2LS London", "price": "", "price_from": null, "price_to": null, "tickets_url": "https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/2026-australia-studies-institute-reese-lecture-vannessa-hearmann-in-the-tickets-2002803480123?aff=oddtdtcreator&_gl=1*8ffir0*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTIyMzU3MDUyMC4xNzkwOTQ4NzMx*_ga_TQVES5V6SH*czE3OTA5NDg3MjkkbzEkZzAkdDE3OTA5NDg3MjkkajYwJGwwJGgw", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["society/migration", "history"], "description": "The 2026 Reese Memorial Lecture, a talk by Associate Professor Vannessa Hearman of Curtin University, hosted by King's College London's Australia Studies Institute. She presents her new book 'The Good Sea' and examines how East Timorese resistance, asylum seekers and ordinary Australians shaped Australia's relationship with Indonesia and Timor-Leste. The lecture, honouring historian Dr Trevor Reese, is given by an emerging scholar in history or political science. It takes place in the Nash Lecture Theatre at King's College London's Strand Campus.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/2026-australia-studies-institute-reese-lecture-vannessa-hear-36786/", "official_url": "https://www.kcl.ac.uk/events/2026-reese-lecture", "image": "https://noky.io/images/71365dda5e848ab04d471c04d6ae8965f38f030352c6c738ec107b948568fbef-1200.webp"}, {"title": "2026 BRISMES Annual Lecture: Beyond Bearing Witness: Palestine, Knowledge Production and the Political Economy of the Future", "start": "2026-11-12T17:30:00Z", "end": null, "place": "SOAS University of London", "address": "", "price": "Free, registration required", "price_from": "0.00", "price_to": "0.00", "tickets_url": "https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/2026-brismes-annual-lecture-tickets-2003047622359", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["society/politics/israel-palestine", "history/colonialism"], "description": "A public lecture, also streamed online, discussing what forms of knowledge and analysis are needed beyond documenting conditions in Palestine. The British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES) presents its 2026 Annual Lecture with Rafeef Ziadah, co-hosted at SOAS by the Centre for Palestine Studies and the SOAS Middle East Institute, chaired by Dina Matar. It examines the political and economic projects being assembled around Palestine, including infrastructures of regional integration, energy, logistics, reconstruction and normalisation. Admission is free, but registration is required and seating is first come, first served.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/2026-brismes-annual-lecture-beyond-bearing-witness-palestine-50444/", "official_url": "https://www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/2026-brismes-annual-lecture-beyond-bearing-witness-palestine-knowledge-production-and", "image": ""}, {"title": "Sudan’s War: Political Economy, Regional Interests and the Search for a Viable Peace", "start": "2026-11-10T17:00:00Z", "end": null, "place": "SOAS University of London", "address": "", "price": "Free to attend, but registration is required", "price_from": "0.00", "price_to": "0.00", "tickets_url": "https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=odBNZ2Kux0Kjn2nuGZU3qNQxGyvuolVHrInpQGVsN9ZUNUc3SEZQMjJPRzlONUVVWllURjJUSTlGOC4u", "category": "talks-readings", "tags": ["history/sudan", "society/politics"], "description": "A seminar at SOAS University of London examining why the war in Sudan has proved so difficult to end. Professor Mekki Medani El Shibly, a Research Associate in the Department of Development Studies, will look at the political economy and regional interests that sustain the conflict, and at the conditions and incentives that might make peace more viable than continued warfare. He will conclude by looking beyond a cessation of hostilities towards rebuilding legitimate and functioning civilian institutions. The talk is chaired by Professor Zoe Marriage and forms part of the SOAS Global Development Seminar Series; attendance is free with registration, in person and online.", "url": "https://noky.io/en/london/events/sudans-war-political-economy-regional-interests-and-the-sear-43664/", "official_url": "https://www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/sudans-war-political-economy-regional-interests-and-search-viable-peace", "image": ""}]}