Brendan O'Leary (born 19 March 1958) is an Irish political scientist, who is Lauder Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania. He was formerly a professor at the London School of Economics. In 2009–10 he was the second Senior Advisor on Power-Sharing in the Standby Team of the Mediation Support Unit of the Department of Political Affairs of the United Nations.
Brendan O'Leary | |
|---|---|
 Brendan O'Leary | |
| Born | 19 March 1958 |
| Citizenship | Irish |
| Alma mater | Keble College, Oxford, London School of Economics |
| Occupation | Academic |
| Employer(s) | London School of Economics, University of Pennsylvania |
Biography
editO'Leary is the author of numerous influential books about the Northern Ireland conflict, many of them co-authored with John McGarry, whom he met when they both attended Saint MacNissi's College.[1][2] McGarry and O'Leary's Policing Northern Ireland: Proposals for a New Start (Blackstaff Press, 1999) is considered to have had a significant influence on the work of the Independent Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland.[3] He has been an international advisor to the Kurdistan National Assembly, responsible for advising on the constitutional reconstruction of Iraq and Kurdistan, with special responsibility for federal arrangements and electoral laws.[4] He has also advised the United Nations, the European Union and the UK's Department for International Development.[2]
Previously, he was a policy advisor to the British Labour Party, and political advisor to Mo Mowlam and Kevin McNamara during their respective spells as Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.[4]
In both his own writings and those with John McGarry, O'Leary has long backed consociationalism as a method of conflict management for Northern Ireland, and is supportive of the Good Friday Agreement.[5][6] In this regard, Arend Lijphart has been a significant influence on O'Leary's work.[2][6] In 2009, a book entitled Consociational Theory: McGarry and O'Leary and the Northern Ireland Conflict was published, edited by Rupert Taylor.[7]
He authored How to Get Out of Iraq with Integrity (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2009). Recent books include Power-Sharing in Deeply Divided Places (co-edited with J. McEvoy), Divided Nations and European Integration (co-edited with T.Mabry, J.McGarry and M. Moore), and Courts and Consociations (coauthored with Christopher McCrudden).[citation needed]
In 2017, he became a member of the Royal Irish Academy.[8]
References
edit- ^ "Brendan O'Leary". Penn Program in Ethnic Conflict. Retrieved 8 December 2007.
- ^ a b c McDermott, Peter (11 February 2009). "Ethnic conflict specialist proposes Iraq withdrawal". Irish Echo. Retrieved 2 April 2009. [dead link]
- ^ Barry White (18 September 1999). "Patten...finding the gems in the detail". Belfast Telegraph.
- ^ a b "Brendan O'Leary, CV" (PDF). University of Pennsylvania Political Science Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 December 2006. Retrieved 15 August 2008.
- ^ O'Leary, Brendan (1989). "The limits to coercive consociationalism in Northern Ireland". Political Studies. 37 (4): 562–587. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9248.1989.tb00289.x. S2CID 144564193.
- ^ a b McGarry, John; O'Leary, Brendan (2006). "Consociational theory, Northern Ireland's conflict, and its Agreement. Part 1: What consociationalists can learn from Northern Ireland" (PDF). Government and Opposition. 41 (1): 43–63. doi:10.1111/j.1477-7053.2006.00170.x. S2CID 51749982.
- ^ Taylor, Rupert, ed. (2009). Consociational Theory: McGarry and O'Leary and the Northern Ireland Conflict. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-42913-9.
- ^ "18 New Members of the Royal Irish Academy". Royal Irish Academy. 26 May 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2021.