Erwin van Veen

Erwin van Veen is a senior research fellow with Clingendael's Conflict Research Unit. A political scientist by training, Erwin applies this lens to relations between political order, security and justice in conflict-prone environments. Extensive travel in the Middle East also generated Erwin’s lasting interest in the region’s conflicts. 

Well known in foreign policy and development circles for employing a mix of applied research, facilitation and strategic advice, his work straddles academic and policy spheres to produce hard-hitting, constructive insights on how to get to less conflict. 

With over seventy published works ranging from journal articles to blogs, bespoke advisory services to governments, international organisations, NGO’s and foundations alike, timely events and a key role in policy initiatives like the New Deal for Engagement in Fragile States and the Knowledge Platform Security and the Rule of Law, he is equally at home in thought and practice. 

Erwin leads Clingendael's research program on hybrid security actors in the Levant, as well as the organisation's security and justice practice. His personal strengths include a broad curiosity, a quick grasp of complexity and the ability to combine the conceptual with the practical.

Previous experience

•    Peacebuilding and conflict specialist at the OECD (2010-2013)
•    Security and development advisor at the Dutch ministry of Foreign Affairs (2006-2010)
•    Human resource business advisor at Shell (2003-2005)

Recent field research

Guinea, Yemen (2014); Lebanon, Mali, Ethiopia and Afghanistan (2015); Iraq (2016); Palestine (several visits), Burundi (2017); Senegal and Mauritania (2018).

Other affiliations

Erwin is also a senior associate analyst at the European Union’s Institute for Security Studies since June 2017.