British American Security Information Council (BASIC) is an independent research organisation that analyzes government policies and promotes public awareness of defence, disarmament, military strategy and nuclear policies in order to foster informed debate.

Conciliation Resources (CR) serves as an international resource for local organisations pursuing peace building and conflict resolution initiatives.

Conflicts Forum is an organisation dedicated to engaging and listening to Islamists, while challenging Western misconceptions and misrepresentations of the region’s leading agents of change. Since the late 1980s, member of Conflicts Forum has been in dialogue with a wide range of leading Islamists in the Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan and South and East Asia.

Conscience campaigns for the legal right for those who have a conscientious objection to war to have the military part of their taxes spent on peace building initiatives.

Crisis Action is an independent, non-profit organisation which aims to help avert conflicts, prevent human rights abuses and ensure governments fulfil their obligations to protect civilians. They work closely with a diverse range of partners who are all concerned with tackling the immediate effects or long-term consequences of conflict. They aim to help them increase the impact of their responses to current and emerging conflict-related crises.

Independent Diplomat is a unique non-profit venture in the world of international relations, diplomacy and conflict prevention. Their aim is to resolve or prevent conflict by enabling disadvantaged and marginalised actors to engage effectively in diplomatic processes. They offers an independent and confidential source of advice and assistance on diplomatic technique and strategy to governments, international institutions, non-governmental organisations and political groups in areas of conflict or potential conflict.

International Alert (IA) is an independent, international non-governmental organisation that works at local, national, regional and global levels to generate conditions and processes conducive to the cessation of war and the generation of sustainable peace.

Medact is a health professionals' organisation challenging barriers to health that highlights the health impacts of violent conflict, poverty and environmental degradation, and with others act to eradicate them.

Peace Direct is an initiative to fund the resolution of conflict and the prevention of war.

Peaceworkers UK works for the alleviation of human suffering caused by violent conflict through the promotion and encouragement of civilian strategies for the prevention, management and resolution of conflict.

Quaker Peace and Social Witness (QPSW) represents the Religious Society of Friends in Britain on issues of peace and justice and undertakes peace building work in Israel/Palestine, the former Yugoslavia, Uganda and South Asia.

Responding to Conflict (RTC) provides advice, cross-cultural training and longer-term support to people who are working for peace, development, rights and humanitarian assistance in societies which are affected or threatened by violent conflict.

Saferworld is an independent non-governmental organisation that works with governments and civil society internationally to research, promote and implement new strategies to increase human security and prevent armed violence.

The Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) is working for the reduction and ultimate abolition of the international arms trade, together with progressive demilitarisation within arms-producing countries.

The United Nations Association-UK (UNA-UK) is an independent membership-based non-governmental organisation that undertakes research, advocacy, campaigning and education in support of principles and work of the United Nations.

Brookings Institution is an independent, nonpartisan US organisation devoted to research, analysis, and public education with an emphasis on economics, foreign policy, governance and metropolitan policy. See, in particular, the Iraq Index for a statistical compilation of economic and security data on Iraq.

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is the monthly publication of the Educational Foundation for Nuclear Science (EFNS) which aims to educate citizens about global security issues, especially the continuing dangers posed by nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, and about the appropriate roles of nuclear technology.

Center for Defence Information is dedicated to strengthening security through: international cooperation; reduced reliance on unilateral military power to resolve conflict; reduced reliance on nuclear weapons; a transformed and reformed military establishment; and, prudent oversight of, and spending on, defense programs.

Chatham House is one of the world's leading organisations for the analysis of international issues and the birthplace of the Chatham House Rule often used by ORG in off-the-record meetings and consultations.

Global Security Institute is dedicated to the worldwide reduction and elimination of nuclear weapons, in a series of well-defined stages accompanied by increasing verification and control.

GlobalSecurity.org is focused on innovative approaches to emerging security challenges and seeks to reduce reliance on nuclear weapons, to improve the capabilities of the American intelligence community and to reduce the worldwide incidence of deadly conflict.

Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) is a UK-based progressive think tank that aims to deliver far-reaching and realistic policy solutions that they hope will produce a fairer, more inclusive and more environmentally sustainable world.

International Crisis Group an independent, non-profit, multinational organisation, working through field-based analysis and high-level advocacy to prevent and resolve deadly conflict.

International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is one of the world?s leading authorities on political-military conflict and is a primary source of information on international strategic issues.

Project on Defense Alternatives seeks to adapt US security policy to the challenges and opportunities of the post-Cold War era and promotes consideration of the broadest range of defence options. The Project is premised on the belief that policy innovation can overcome the practical obstacles to progress toward more cooperative security postures.

Pugwash is an international movement of scientists and others with a professional concern about the social impact of science and seeking ways to prevent its misuse. Particular attention is given to banning weapons of mass destruction; to the solution of conflict without resort to force; to the creation of a sustainable environment; and to bettering the conditions of life of all people.

Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) seeks to contribute to the understanding of the preconditions for a stable peace and for peaceful solutions of international conflicts, focussing on armaments, their limitation and reduction, and arms control.

The Smith Institute is an independent think tank, which has been set up to undertake research and education in issues that flow from the changing relationship between social values and economic imperatives. In recent years the Institute has centred its work on the policy implications arising from the interactions of equality, enterprise and equity.

Transnational Foundation for Peace and Futures Research (TFF) is a Sweden-based think-tank for individual-to-global - transnational - peace, working on peace research, conflict-mitigation and education.

Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI) is a leading professional forum in the UK for those concerned with national and international defence and security.

Atomic Mirror employs the creative arts, creative analysis, and creative partnerships to reawaken the need to turn away from nuclear technology to nurture a sustainable way of life.

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) campaigns non-violently to rid the world of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction and to create genuine security for future generations.

Greenpeace is an independent non-profit global campaigning organisation that uses non-violent, creative confrontation to expose global environmental problems and their causes. They work on a number of international environmental issues, including nuclear power, the Iraq war and global warming.

Human Rights Watch is an independent, non-governmental organisation that stands with victims and activists to prevent discrimination, to uphold political freedom, to protect people from inhumane conduct in wartime, and to bring offenders to justice.

Natural Resources Defence Council is a US-based environmental action organisation with campaigns including global warming and nuclear weapons & waste.

Centre for Conflict and Peace, University of Kent is the successor to the long-established Centre for Conflict Analysis founded in the 1960s. The practical activity of the Centre continues and includes a role in track-II mediation in protracted international conflicts around the world.

Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence, University of St Andrews aims to investigate the roots of political violence, to develop a body of theory spanning its various disparate elements, and to study the impact of violence, and responses to it, at societal, governmental, and international levels.

Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford is the largest academic centre exclusively for the study of peace and conflict anywhere in the world.

Post-War Reconstruction and Development Unit, University of York specialises in academic research, teaching and consultancy in issues of peacebuilding, management and planning of reconstruction after war, humanitarian intervention in complex emergencies and post-war recovery.

The Richardson Institute for Peace Studies and Conflict Research, Lancaster University aims to promote a better understanding of the
conditions of peaceful change and encourage the practical application of its work.

10 Downing Street website contains information about the Prime Minister and the Government, and includes the PM's speeches since May 1997 and a form to email Gordon Brown.

Defence Select Committee is a Commons Select Committee currently chaired by Bruce George MP.

Department for International Development (DfID) "manages Britain's aid to poor countries and works to get rid of extreme poverty". See, in particular, the Conflict and Humanitarian Affairs Department (CHAD).

Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) works "for UK interests in a safe, just and prosperous world". See, in particular, the Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP) which involves FCO, DfID and MoD.

Foreign Affairs Select Committee is a Commons Select Committee currently chaired by Donald Anderson MP.

Houses of Parliament website contains information on the House of Commons and the House of Lords as well as a directory of MPs, Peers and Offices.

Intelligence and Security Committee is currently chaired by Ann Taylor MP and provides parliamentary oversight of SIS (MI6), GCHQ and the Security Service (MI5).

Ministry of Defence (MoD) "is responsible for defending the United Kingdom and promoting international peace and security". See, in particular, Operation Telic for information on UK military operations in Iraq.

Prime Minister's Strategy Unit aims to improve Government's capacity to address strategic, cross-cutting issues and promote innovation in the development of policy and the delivery of the Government's objectives. See, in particular, the Countries at Risk of Instability project.

Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues provides a broad, balanced range of annotated references for the study of nuclear issues. This searchable collection includes books, articles, films, CD-ROMs and websites.

Angus Reid Global Monitor is the world's largest free-access online public opinion database, with thousands of surveys from every continent on topics that range from approval ratings for heads of government, voting intention studies, and reviews of public sentiment on a wide array of global issues.

Global Security Matrix, from Brown University, provides essential knowledge, offers analytical tools, poses critical questions, and filters multiple media to enable informed debate and expand policy options on the most pressing security issues. It is an analytical and educational tool that visually represents a broad range of threats as they play out across several levels of analysis and actors.

Iraq Body Count is a human security project to establish an independent and comprehensive public database of media-reported civilian deaths in Iraq resulting directly from military action by the USA and its allies.

Iraq Coalition Casualty Count provides a breakdown of Coalition military deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Policy Pointers is a not-for-profit online facility created to enable those involved in government, academia and the media to gain rapid access to the research and conclusions of think tanks and research institutes around the world. The site currently provides links to over 4,000 reports selectable through 31 policy areas.

The Human Security Gateway is a rapidly expanding searchable online database of human security-related resources including reports, journal articles, news items and fact sheets. It is a joint initiative of the Human Security Centre (HSC) and the Canadian Consortium on Human Security (CCHS).

The International Relations and Security Network (ISN) is is a free public service that provides a wide range of resources to encourage the exchange of information among international relations and security professionals worldwide. By cooperating with its partners, the ISN is able to offer its international audience a vast amount of high-quality content through its website.

The Public Whip is a project to monitor Members of the UK Parliament, so that the public can better influence their voting. They maintain an online searchable database of MP's voting records from Hansard since May 1997. See also www.faxyourmp.com and www.theyworkforyou.com.

BBC News offers headlines and analysis from the BBC and includes in-depth reports on, for example, the nuclear fuel cycle, the conflict in Iraq and al-Qaida.

Common Dreams is a non-profit organisation promoting progressive visions for America's future and offers a varied mix of politics, issues and breaking news with an emphasis on progressive perspectives.

Global Politics is an online magazine that provides an international forum in which to engage those who will influence and shape the global policy of the future. It facilitates critical discussion and the exchange of ideas amongst young people worldwide, building an intellectual platform from which contemporary global solutions can emerge.

Inter Press Service (IPS) is a non-profit civil society new agency which focuses its news coverage on the events and global processes affecting the economic, social and political development of peoples and nations. Also offers free weekly news bulletins on a variety of issues from indigenous peoples to Iraq and the Middle East.

OneWorld is an online civil society network and media gateway that aims to effectively inform a global audience about human rights and sustainable development.

openDemocracy is an online global magazine of politics and culture publishing clarifying debates on key issues. ORG's Global Security Consultant, Paul Rogers, writes a weekly international security column for the site.

Reporting the World is a journalism think-tank that is working towards an effective ethical framework for reporting conflicts and includes events, publications and discussions about issues of representation and responsibility in international news.

An article for The Independent by Gabrielle Rifkind, 13 February 2007