POSTPONED! Studying the War Data from Ukraine: Lessons from Uppsala Conflict Data Program

EVENT POSTPONED! NEW DATE TBA.

Collecting data on conflict deaths in contexts where neither party wants to admit their own losses, while at the same time largely inflating the numbers of enemies killed, is a challenge. Yet, this is what the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP), the world’s main provider of data on organized violence, has been doing for 40 years, and continues to do for the war in Ukraine. Last year, UCDP recorded a conservative number of over 81,500 battle-related fatalities in Ukraine, the second most deadly state-based conflict-year on record. The data shows that the pattern of violence has changed significantly over the past 19 months, as the conflict has entered different phases, revealing important trends for how it is developing.

Therese Pettersson is a Research Coordinator and Project Leader at UCDP. She is responsible for the UCDP’s outreach activities, presentations, social media, and data presentations. She focuses specifically on violence in Afghanistan, Syria, and Ukraine. Therese has published articles on conflict data in International Interactions and Journal of Peace Research.

Shawn Davies is a Senior Analyst at UCDP. His work focuses on the interstate conflict between Ukraine and Russia, and organized violence in Yemen and Mozambique. He has also published articles on conflict data in the Journal of Peace Research.