Tomorrow afternoon I board a plane bound for Dublin, and from there a bus north to Belfast.  I’m spending the next four and a half weeks, part of my sabbatical from Oakland University, continuing my research on the maintenance and stability of the Northern Ireland peace process.  This will be my sixth trip since 2008 but the first time I’ve been able to stay for an extended period.

My hope is that having more time in the country will make it possible for me to make more contacts, talk to more people, to follow up on issues that I haven’t had the time to before, and to immerse myself in an environment that I’ve spent a large part of my professional life reading and occasionally teaching about.

I’ll be using this blog initially to comment on my travels and the research I am conducting.  So stay tuned for future developments.