The Conflict Monitoring & Analysis initiative at MIPS includes three primary projects:

“Paths to Peace in Complex Conflict Systems: Lessons from Global Data and an In-Depth Study of Myanmar”
The P2P project aims to understand how the relationship between the government and a particular armed group affects the decision-making of other armed groups in Myanmar. The project utilizes data from the Township-based Conflict Monitoring System (TCMS) and includes significant field research and interviews with key stakeholders. P2P is conducted in partnership with Uppsala University and funded by the Swedish Research Council. The project is implemented by Dr. Min Zaw Oo, Ne Lynn Aung, and Morgan Michaels.

“Social Media in Armed Conflict”
In partnership with PRIO and made possible by funding from the Research Council of Norway, the purpose of this project is to examine the role of social media in armed conflict. The project utilizes data from TCMS as well as data from Facebook and other social media platforms. MIPS also conducts substantial field-based research in conflict-affected areas and interviews key actors in Myanmar’s internal conflict. The project is implemented by Dr. Min Zaw Oo, Professor Stein Tønnesson of PRIO, Ne Lynn Aung, and Ei Shwe Sin with support from 14 field-based monitors.

The Township-based Conflict Monitoring System (TCMS)
TCMS is a context-specific monitoring system developed by MIPS that consists of 75 acceleration and deceleration indicators of conflict dynamics nationwide. Data for TCMS is primarily collected from open sources by a team of trained coders specializing in specific states and regions. MIPS also employs 14 field monitors in 4 states and 4 regions to collect additional data as well as verify information from open sources. MIPS publishes a monthly “Peace & Security Brief” with analysis made possible by the data stored in TCMS. TCMS is implemented by Dr. Min Zaw Oo, Ne Lynn Aung, and Morgan Michaels with support from the coding and field-monitoring team.