The Most Peaceful Country in the World: The Meaning of Peace in Iceland

Iceland has for a number of years been ranked the most peaceful country in the world on the Global Peace Index (GPI), but very little research has actually been done on the meaning of peace for Icelanders. Indeed, the country has not participated in international conflicts and has not suffered terrorist attacks. The paper tries to move beyond this external vision and look at practices of peace within the country, in particular the way in which municipalities and non-governmental organizations try to enact peace in their work. One example is taken from the aftermath of the financial crisis in 2008, when many worried that civil disobedience would lead to internal conflict. Instead, communities organized to find ways to bring positive change to their immediate surroundings. By looking at the everyday practices of women in times of crises through a feminist lens, I suggest that contributions to peace are often overlooked by systemic analysis of peace at the level of states, and that while Iceland may be the most peaceful country in the world by some measures, it may be more thanks to the everyday practices of agencies, groups, and individuals, rather than the structural conditions of the state.