The NATO Association of Canada’s Society, Culture, and Security program takes a look at the issues that impact Canadians’ every day lives while connecting them to international relations. The program covers a wide range of topics, which include: pop culture, art, film, global events, and socio-political relations. In addition, Society, Culture, and IR aims to examine and provide in-depth analyses that relate international affairs to the interests of Canadian society.

Arash Toupchinejad Society, Culture, and Security

The Foreign and Domestic Perceptions of the Allied Presence in Afghanistan

The final departure of American troops from Afghanistan is set for September. This plan of withdrawal dates from the Trump Administration, which signed the bilateral Doha Agreement with the Taliban. It authorized the withdrawal of US and NATO forces if the Taliban agreed to prevent other terrorist groups from using Afghan soil. Although the Taliban has Read More…

Canadian Armed Forces Society, Culture, and Security Steven Hu

Leaving Together: Interpreters Risked Their Lives for Canada. It Is Time Canada Helped Them.

Photo: A Canadian soldier and an Afghan interpreter converse with an Afghan woman in Kandahar as part of Allied reconstruction efforts in that district. 08/26/2007. Picture by Cpl Simon Duschesne, via flickr. Licensed under CC BY 2.0. On September 27th, 2015, Mohammad Omar Abdullah fled his home in Kabul, leaving behind his wife and daughters. Read More…

Hailey Clarke Society, Culture, and Security

Accountability or Punishment? Recent Pew Research Centre study reveals how divided—and confused—society remains over ‘Cancel Culture’

In this article, Hailey Clarke analyzes the results of the Pew Research Centre’s study on ‘cancel culture’ and argues that ‘cancel culture,’ at large, reflects individuals’ reactions to the rapidly changing social norms within the U.S. and Canada.

Hailey Clarke Society, Culture, and Security

Book Review: The Future We Choose: Surviving the Climate Crisis by Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac

In this article, Hailey Clarke reviews The Future We Choose: Surviving the Climate Crisis by Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac (2020), the key architects of the UN-sponsored Paris Climate Agreement in 2015.

Arash Toupchinejad Society, Culture, and Security

Killer Tunes – The Role of Music as a Weapon in Combat and Conflict

Music embodies the best of cultures around the world. Like many aspects of human life, music has been closely linked to the culture of military. From martial music to anti-war protest songs, music has long impacted public perceptions of war. But it also has a deeper connection to this area: its role as a weapon. In this article, Arash Toupchinejad explores the bizarre history of the weaponization of music in a military capacity.

Arash Toupchinejad Society, Culture, and Security

NATO as Turkey’s Channel for Rapprochement with the West

Despite Turkey’s fractured ties to NATO, which has increasingly alienated its people from the alliance over the past year, there seems to be a paradigm shift in Ankara’s foreign policy towards its allies. Arash Toupchinejad analyzes how NATO can capitalize on this shift in attitude to motivate Turkey’s rapprochement with the West under the auspices of the Framework Nations Concept.

Arash Toupchinejad Society, Culture, and Security

Revisiting NATO’s Role in the Russo-Ukrainian War

As NATO finds itself at the center of the growing conflict over Ukraine’s potential accession to the alliance, Arash Toupchinejad examines the different state-led sociopolitical narratives concerning NATO and the implications for member state citizens as it navigates its emerging role in the conflict.