Demilitarise Education (dED) works to see universities break their ties with the global arms trade and instead champion peace.  In July 2023 they were awarded a grant by The Edith M Ellis 1985 Charitable Trust to teach students the skills needed to work for systemic change within UK universities and ensure this power is used to fuel peace – human security, sustainability and social justice – not war.

So far, dED has hosted 14 workshops and are booked to host an additional nine in the Autumn term.  Their workshops build has successful taught nearly 300 students and staff how to apply the dED Model to their university campaign.  This has included teaching them their Freedom of Information Act strategy, policy analysis strategy and how they themselves can upload to the universities and arms database.  dED have built university specific executive summaries which analyse the data collected on the militarisation of the campus and where policy is not adequately preventing arms partnerships.  They are therefore able to make clear campaign suggestions to support the campus process of demilitarisation.

This has led to over 77 student actions being uploaded to the Universities and Arms Database and the aggregate research uploading now amounting to over £1.9bn worth of UK University partnership with the arms trade.  Students and staff have therefore been successfully upskilled and made aware of the tools available to contribute to the work pushing for systemic change within UK universities, with a specific focus on peacebuilding, human security, sustainability and social justice; not war.

Thanks to the support of The Edith M Ellis 1985 Charitable Trust, Demilitarise Education have been able to step up to the needs of the student movement which has grown dramatically since 7th October 2023 and the ongoing attack on Gaza which followed, in turn, fulling their ability to equip students with the skills they need to create long-term change.

In the long term, it is hoped that this will enable the movement to build national strength and consistency which is more likely to trigger a national standard for demilitarised education and policy change.