Conflict Fundamentals Seminar/Blog
As conflicts have been heating up and becoming both more destructive and intractable, many of our friends who are not in the conflict resolution field have been asking me "what can I do?" or "What can be done to defuse the deepening level of distrust, hostility, and even hate that we see growing daily in the United States and elsewhere around the world?" We created the Conflict Fundamental seminar series -- along with the "What Everyone Can Do" Blog -- to try to help answer that question.
These seminars go into more detail than the Blog, presenting the core knowledge from the conflict resolution and peacebuilding fields---knowledge that is, to a large extent, considered a "starting point" for our more advanced Conflict Frontiers Seminar Series. These posts, which cover both "normal" conflicts and conflict resolution processes as well as complex intractable conflicts, are also likely to be of use and interest to students of conflict resolution and peacebuilding as well as a more general audience.
Key to addressing the tough challenges posed by the
Hyper-Polarization Discussion
is the more widespread utilization of the fundamental insights of the conflict and peacebuilding fields.
As of March, 2019, the Fundamentals Seminar has been re-organized and expanded. It now has twenty units, covering introductory concepts, and then a deeper examination of typical conflict problems and solutions, or at least ways of addressing such problems constructively if "solution" to too high a goal. Posts in the first five units are mostly ones that were in the earlier seminar. The units after that are new. Right now they are primarily populated with BI Knowledge Base essays. We will soon begin adding "Current Implications Sections" for these, which is what we had done previously when we included Knowledge Base materials in the Fundamentals Seminar. But we decided linking to the original essays in the interim was still useful. Current Seminars include:
- Seminar 1: Understanding the Problem of Destructive Conflict
- Seminar 2: Core Concepts
- Seminar 3: Conflict Assessment and Mapping
- Seminar 4: Core Conflict Elements
- Seminar 5: Conflict Overlay Factors
- Seminar 6: Parties
- Seminar 7: Framing
- Seminar 8: Communication Pitfalls and Corrections
- Seminar 9: The Abuse and Use of Real and "Fake" Facts
- Seminar 10: Escalation and De-Escalation Processes
- Seminar 11: Procedural Problems/Solutions
- Seminar 12: Power- It's Uses and Abuses
- Seminar 13: Exchange Power and Negotiation
- Seminar 14: Collaboration and the Power of Working Together
- Seminar 15: Alternative Dispute Resolution Processes
- Seminar 16: Culture and Conflict
- Seminar 17:Unrightable Wrongs and Reconciling the Past
- Seminar 18: Developing an Attractive Common Future
- Seminar 19: Promoting Good Governance
- Seminar 20: Peace Processes
See syllabi for the entire seminar series with a list and short descriptions of all posts including a collection of teaching materials and erercises.
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Rules and Rhythms of Reconciliation
Reconciliation practices need to be practical and effective before they can promote personal enlightenment. For this, shared justice practices are needed.
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History Education and Reconciliation in (Post)Conflict Societies
History education forms narratives of conflicts that can continue tensions or lead to reconciliation, depending on how it is done
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Engaging Extremists in Reconciliation Processes: Limitations and Opportunities
The understanding of extremism as a social phenomenon should guide efforts to reconcile with former and current extremists.
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Reconciliation - Part 2: Making Reconciliation Happen
Pursuing truth, accountability, apology, and structural and policy changes all contribute to reconciliation.
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Reconciliation Part 1: What Is Reconciliation?
Providing an historical and theoretical basis for the concept of reconciliation and beginning to explore ways it can be pursued.
There are four ways to participate in BI Seminars and Discussions.
- Visiting and Searching: Browse the BI homepage or particular seminar landing pages (particularly the right side) to see what's new (or what you may have missed), or use our search tool if you are looking for specific information.
- Subscribe to Our Free Substack Newsletter: You can sign up for Beyond Intractability's newsletter and get updates about everything that is new sent directly to your email.
- Discuss: We are inviting anyone with thoughts on how to better meet the many challenges posed by hyper-polarization to contribute their ideas to the ongoing BI/CRQ discussion on the topic. The invitation to participate contains more details.
- Contribute: We, of course, appreciate financial contributions which we are now collecting with a GoFundMe Page. We also welcome suggestions about anything that might be done to strengthen Beyond Intractability, as well as information about things that you are doing that relate to BI. (We add information about these activities to our Colleague Activities Blog.)
