This book analyses the politics of the humanitarian disarmament communitya loose coalition of activist and advocacy groups, humanitarian agencies and diplomatswho have successfully achieved international treaties banning landmines, cluster munitions and nuclear weapons, as well as restricting the global arms trade. Two campaigns have won Nobel Peace Prizes. Disarmament has long been a dirty word in the international relations lexicon. But the success of the humanitarian disarmament agenda shows that people often choose to prohibit or limit certain violent technologies, for reasons of security, honour, ethics or humanitarianism. This edited volume showcases interdisciplinary research by scholars and practitioners seeking to understand the dynamics and impact of the new global activism on weapons. While some raise concerns that humanitarian disarmament may be piecemeal and depoliticizing, others see opportunities to breathe new life into moribund arms control policymaking. Foreword by 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Jody Williams.

Matthew Breay Bolton is Associate Professor of Political Science and Director of the International Disarmament Institute at Pace University, USA.Sarah Njeriis Research Associate at Kings College Londons African Leadership Centre, UK.  Taylor Benjamin-Britton has taught courses in international relations and international organization in the Department of Political Science at Temple University, as well as the Department of International Relations at Lehigh University, USA. 

1. The Humanitarian Disarmament Movement: An Assessment and Review by Taylor Benjamin-Britton, Matthew Bolton and Sarah NjeriPart I: Emergence of Norms2. When Scientists become Activists: The International Committee for Robot Arms Control and the Politics of Killer Robotsby Matthew Bolton and Cayman Mitchell3. The Agency of International Humanitarian Disarmament Law: The Case of Advocacy for Positive Obligations in the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons by Matthew Bolton and Elizabeth Minor4. Religious Advocacy and Activism for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weaponsby Emily Welty, with Gabrielle ChalkPart II: Challenges in Diffusing and Implementing Norms5. US Arms Control Dynamics in the Era of Humanitarian Disarmament: A Case Study of the Convention on Cluster Munitionsby Taylor Benjamin-Britton6. The Politics of Non-Recognition: Re-evaluating the Apolitical Presentation of the UN Humanitarian Mine Action Programmes in Somalilandby Sarah NjeriPart III: The Wider Context7. The Relationship between Humanitarian Disarmament and General and Complete Disarmamentby Dan Plesch and Kevin Miletic 8. Assessing the Political Impact of Inclusion and Exclusion in Multilateral Disarmament Forumsby Elizabeth Minor