Children in Conflict - agents of war or agents of peace?

I started this blog out of necessity. Many sleepless nights researching the use of children in conflict inevitably leads to a sense of isolation and despair, even for my hardcore idealism. So perhaps blogging will allow me to find some relief as I go through the next 8 months or so of researching and writing. If somehow my blog reaches anyone involved (or who wants to be) in children's rights, I completely welcome your reactions and comments...

My main concern at the moment is the absence of children in security studies, as well as in international political economics and development studies. Not that they aren't mentioned, because anyone familiar with these disciplines knows that children are usually the most common statistical feature in case studies (demonstrating that they are disproportionately affected by war and poverty - common knowledge). No, what I'm talking about is the lack of perspective or ownership over these disciplines - the effect of children on peace, security, & development. Children have a greater effect on war, peace, and economies than is acknowledged by much mainstream literature. I've got a lot of thinking to do in this area. But it's difficult not to do some soul searching as well. How valuable will my research be in the end when I finally finish? It's the activist in me wanting to get away from my computer and from all this literature and reach real people & lives... leave the policy designing for better brains. And yet, the growth of youth organizations and student-run advocacy groups out there dedicated to specific situations of children in conflict & poverty is a kind of assurance that this work will contribute to a new voice in political and economic discourse. One can dream...