Tyne Williams is a Researcher at the Centre for Mediation in Africa and a fourth-year PhD Candidate in International Relations at the University of Pretoria. Her research focuses on understanding the dynamics and local conceptions of child agency and resilience among returnees in post-conflict reintegration contexts. She seeks to delve beyond traditional wartime narratives to capture the nuanced, everyday realities and participatory experiences of former child soldiers and returnees. Emphasising the evolving conceptualisation of childhood in the aftermath of prolonged conflict, Tyne advocates for recognition of contextualised understandings of childhood and the manner in which child agency manifests, highlighting the importance of local perspectives, norms and values.
Her fieldwork in Gulu, northern Uganda involved engagement with a diverse range of 150 individuals, including former child soldiers, community members, child mothers, children born in captivity, and organisations working in children’s rights and post-conflict reconciliation. Through this extensive research, Tyne aims to develop a normative framework for understanding child agency in post-conflict reintegration settings and identify areas for potential reform in reintegration programs. She envisions her collaboration with local organisations in Gulu as a means to foster networks and integrate insights from her study into future program development efforts.