Across the globe, conflicts both erupt and smolder. Lives are lost, people are wounded, and communities are forced from their homes. Volatile geopolitics have intensified already delicate situations, while powerful digital tools open up new arenas in which these struggles unfold.
Working to prevent violence and foster peace has always been essential. Lately, that mission has felt even more urgent.
This February, Behavioral Scientist will partner with the peace science organization Neuropaz to present “Hard Truths and Paths Forward: Peace as a Scientific Challenge,” a virtual gathering highlighting new research and ideas at the nexus of behavioral science and peace and conflict. The event is free, and you can register here.
Date: Friday, February 6, 2026
Time: 9:00am – 3:30pm New York/Bogotá | 2:00pm – 8:30pm London | 3:00pm – 9:30pm Berlin/Lagos | 5:00pm -11:30pm Nairobi
Location: Online
Cost: Free to attend
Register: Register here
About Neuropaz 2026
Where there is conflict or peace, there we are as well. We encounter our beliefs and emotions, our customs and social norms, our political systems and institutions. Deepening our understanding of who we are is essential for imagining who we might become—whether as people locked in conflict or as people living in peace.
The theme of Neuropaz 2026—hard truths and paths forward—captures the many obstacles that define this work: shrinking budgets for research and humanitarian organizations, technologies that fuel anger and division, and leaders who choose power over peace. Neuropaz 2026 will convene leading researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and funders to confront these challenges directly. By engaging in frank, open dialogue about what holds us back, we aim to reveal new ways to move ahead.
Featured speakers will include prominent scholars and organizations, among them Nobel Prize-winning economist James A. Robinson, psychologists Betsy Levy Paluck and Felipe De Brigard, the International Rescue Committee, Global Partners Governance, Semillas de Apego (Seeds of Attachment), Memoria & Perdón (Memory & Forgiveness), and others.
The event will showcase diverse philosophies, methods, interventions, and programs from behavioral science, peace and conflict studies, and related fields. The goal is to spark productive collisions among these different perspectives and approaches.
The complete Neuropaz 2026 program will be announced in January 2026. For now, you can register for the event and reserve your place.
Neuropaz goes global
Neuropaz 2026 will mark the first time the event is held on a global scale. Launched in Colombia in 2022, Neuropaz has already organized four in-person gatherings in Bogotá, Medellín, and Cartagena. The event was created in part to honor the late neuroscientist Emile Bruneau and his vision for how behavioral science can contribute to peace building. He devoted himself to advancing peace through science in Colombia and around the world. Neuropaz 2026 will now extend the event—and Emile’s spirit—to a truly global audience.
We hope you’ll be part of it. Register here for the event and share the invitation with friends and colleagues.
Sincerely,
Evan Nesterak, Editor-in-Chief, Behavioral Scientist & Andrés Casas, Founder, Neuropaz
The post Save the Date—Neuropaz 2026: Hard Truths & Paths Forward appeared first on Behavioral Scientist.