The next WIIS Italy event brings together global analysis and on‑the‑ground perspectives to examine the evolving landscape of armed conflicts and mediation practices.
Irene Mia, Head of the Conflict, Security and Development Programme at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), will share insights from the latest Armed Conflict Survey, offering a global view of current conflict trends. Lea Baroudi, Conflict Mediator, Founding Member and Director of MARCH, and member of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network (MWMN), will contribute perspectives from her work in Lebanon, engaging with both emerging and long‑standing conflict dynamics. Alongside them, Anna Cervi, Conflict Mediator, Co‑founder of the Italian Initiative on International Mediation (3IM) and member of MWMN, will reflect on the evolution of mediation practice, drawing on lessons from the Syrian context.
The event will be moderated by Loredana Teodorescu, President of WIIS Italy and Head of MWMN, and Erica Pepe, Team WIIS Italy and Research Manager at IISS.
The event, which will take place on Zoom on 20 May 2026 | 13:00–14:30 CEST | will be in English and is reserved for WIIS Italy and MWMN participants, subject to registration. With the #DiscoverWIIS option, you can participate in an event before joining!
Register now to join: link Zoom
We look forward to seeing you!
Speakers’ biographies:
Irene Mia is responsible for the commissioning, editing, design, production and marketing of the annual IISS Armed Conflict Survey. She is also Senior Fellow for Latin America and Conflict, Security and Development, leading the IISS research programme on Latin America security, governance and geo-economics, as well as directing the Conflict, Security and Development research programme. Prior to joining the IISS, Irene worked at The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), latterly as global editorial director, responsible for leading and growing the thought leadership business globally, ensuring editorial and research quality and independence. She also developed and oversaw large global client relationships, and played a key role in disseminating and presenting the EIU’s views and work to high-level audiences around the world. Previously, she was regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean, where she provided intellectual and strategic leadership to the research team within the EIU’s country analysis division. Before joining the EIU, Irene was director and senior economist within the Centre for Global Competitiveness and Performance at the World Economic Forum, where she was responsible for competitiveness research on Latin America and Iberia among others. She has written and spoken extensively on issues related to national competitiveness and development, serving as lead author and editor on a number of regional and topical competitiveness papers and reports. Irene holds an MA in Latin American studies from the Institute for Latin American Studies, London University, and a PhD in international economic and trade law from L. Bocconi. She is also a member of the board of trustees of Canning House, UK, and a member of the advisory board of the Global South Unit at the London School of Economics.
Lea Baroudi is a founding Member and Director of MARCH since 2012, a Lebanese non-profit organization focusing on sectarian conflict resolution, promoting diversity and equality and sustainable peace building, including the Women, Peace and Security agenda. A certified professional mediator and a member of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, Ms. Baroudi has experience in resolving sectarian conflicts and foster peace among marginalized communities and has initiated and worked actively on peace-building projects that use art, culture, women inclusion and economic development to resolve conflict and counter radicalization among youth participating in sectarian violence in marginalized areas of Lebanon, particularly in Tripoli and Beirut. She has also co-lead several in depth research papers and policy recommendations on fundamental security and human rights issues in Lebanon, such as political violence, radicalization and statelessness. In 2016, she was granted the Reagan-Fascell Fellowship at the National Endowment for Democracy during which she researched ways to develop unconventional methods in peacebuilding and conflict resolution. In January 2019, she spoke at the UN Security Council Arria Formula meeting titled “What’s next for Women, Peace and Security in Middle East and North Africa: The Potential of National Action Plans”. She was recently awarded an MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) by Her Majesty the Queen for services to peacebuilding and civic rights in Lebanon.
Anna Cervi helps decision makers in governments, multilateral institutions, think tanks, and international organisations turn complexity into strategy that works under pressure. She provides independent advisory and training support – including to the United Nations, the European External Action Service (EEAS), and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs – on mediation, sanctions, export controls, and AML/CTF frameworks in conflict-affected settings, with particular attention to their implications for financial systems, energy, and the women, peace and security agenda. She has held executive positions in Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan, Ukraine, and the wider Levant, combining long term field exposure with high level international policy engagement. She holds an MSc from the University of Oxford and has completed advanced training in mediation, negotiation, and decision-making at the Swiss FDFA, the London School of Economics, and Harvard Business School Online. She is Co-Founder and Strategy Lead of RIMI (Italian Network for International Mediation), a member of the Mediterranean Women Mediator Network (MWMN), and co-founder of the Italian Initiative for International Mediation (3IM).
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