Beyond Intractability: A Free Knowledge Base on More Constructive Approaches to Destructive Conflict

Ground Rules Ground rules often allow constructive communication to take place when it had not been possible before.
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	Laura Chasin recommends that the first phases of dialogue proceed in a highly structured fashion.
	Laura Chasin recommends that dialogue groups adopt concrete ground rules.
	Robert Stains talks about how he establishes groundrules for dialogue in very tense situations.
	Nancy Ferrell talks about re-establishing channels of communication during family mediation.
	Laura Chasin talks about how fostering an environment conducive to constructive conversation is central to the healing process.
	Nancy Ferrell says one job of a facilitator is to model good process so the clients eventually can handle things themselves.
	Community Relations Service Mediator Silke Hansen describes how it helps to level the playing field by helping community groups prepare for mediation.
	Community Relations Service Mediator Silke Hansen describes how she gets parties to sit down together before potentially violent demonstrations to work out the "rules of engagement." That usually prevents trouble before it starts.

This rough transcript provides a text alternative to audio. We apologize for occasional errors and unintelligible sections (which are marked with ???).

If it were proved to me that in making war, my ideal had a chance of being realized, I would still say "No" to war. For one does not create human society on mounds of corpses. -- Louis Lecoin, French pacifist leader

Featured Links
Organizations Making Noteworthy Contributions to Efforts to Promote More Constructive Conflict

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Beyond Intractability

A User's Guide for Third Siders
The Third Side concept was developed by William Ury. Third Siders are people who try to see both sides of a conflict and encourage cooperative solutions, fair fights, and decision making that advocates solutions which meet everyone's interests and needs as much as possible.

Nobel Peace Prize Winners

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso
1989 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Beyond Intractability Version IV
Copyright © 2003-2007 The Beyond Intractability Project
Beyond Intractability is a Registered Trademark of the University of Colorado
Project Acknowledgements

The Beyond Intractability Knowledge Base Project
Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess, Co-Directors and Editors
c/o Conflict Information Consortium (Formerly Conflict Research Consortium), University of Colorado
Campus Box 580, Boulder, CO 80309
Phone: (303) 492-1635; Fax: (303) 492-2154; Contact