Course Description

This course introduces students to Peace and Conflict Studies and their application in Conflict Analysis, Transformation and Diplomacy. Conflict management and conflict transformation are core issues of development work. Development projects are not only affected by conflict, but also run the risk of aggravating existing conflicts in a particular region or even triggering new conflicts. This training course gives a sound understanding of the phenomenon of conflict, which will explore on the personal and interpersonal level, as well as on the level of large groups and societies. The course examines the factors that need to be assessed when addressing violent conflict and when working to prevent international, intranational, and even interpersonal disputes from escalating into an intractable conflict.

This course aims to help course participants to develop a working model of conflict analysis that can provide a practical and theoretical context as well as contextualization of negotiation and/or mediation. Secondly, it is meant to help learners to develop skills that can address conflict without resorting to violence or to tactics that exacerbate differences between disputing parties. The course will introduce the important role that both the attitude of negotiators and the mastery of historical, cultural, demographic, political and economic detail play in the prevention, management, and transformation of conflict. This course will introduce Course Participants to extant resources available for assessing the causes and the gravity of conflict and for fostering a climate that increases the likelihood of productive and effective diplomacy, negotiation and the resolution/transformation of conflict.

Intended Learning Outcomes 

By the end of the course participants will be familiar with the principles of conflict management and conflict transformation. They will have substantially broadened their horizon on the issue of conflict and applied tools to understand its mechanisms and work with it in a non-violent way. Through participating in this course, the Course Participants will:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the history and evolution of conflict resolution.
2. Demonstrate the ability to propose interventions for conflicts that are appropriate interventions, based on the phase (e.g., stable peace versus crisis versus war), extent, and intensity of a conflict.
3. construct complex conflict maps in order to identify leverage points.
4. contextualize the theories of change: identify how change happens (or does not happen) at each programme step, and how the achievement of a programme’s goal contributes to the broader peace
5. identify gaps in analysis and strategy development critical to effectiveness and impact of a peace initiative.
6. provide the basis for evaluating programmes under uncertainty.
7. critically assess the strengths and limitations of systems approach to conflict transformation.
8. Demonstrate an ability to explain and apply the extant models for conflict analysis, management, resolution, and transformation that are covered in this class.
9. Demonstrate the ability to propose interventions for conflicts that are appropriate interventions, based on the phase (e.g., stable peace versus crisis versus war), extent, and intensity of a conflict.

Mode of instruction

The course is taught through two-hour seminars. Course Participants are expected to participate in both large and small group discussions; present and defend their ideas within an academic setting; and take part in individual presentations. The instructor will facilitate and ensure the efficient running of the discussion, but students are responsible for shaping its direction. Each seminar has a ‘required reading’ list that must be read in advance of each seminar.

Course Modules

The key topics to be covered in this course include:

• Introduction to Peace and Conflict Studies.
• Basic terms and concepts.
• Methods of peace and conflict analysis.
• Approaches to conflict transformation.
• Unification Theory and Conflict Transformation
• Securing Peace and the Role of Mediators and Negotiators.
• Facilitation and mediation processes and skills.
• Analysis and Diagnostics of Conflict Dynamics.
• The Basic Elements of Alternative Dispute Resolution.
• Personal Conflict Management.
• Actor Analysis and Mapping Techniques.
• Strategic Planning of Peace-Building Activities.
• Theory and Practice of Conflict Sensitivity.
• Challenges of Political and Economic Integration
• Approaches on “Peace and Conflict Impact Assessment”.
• Perspectives on Conflict Analysis and Transformation.

Research Paper

Students will develop a final paper in which they demonstrate familiarity with the background of an approved conflict and they will also demonstrate a creative, realistic approach to addressing the conflict. The main purpose of this exercise is to allow course participants to demonstrate an understanding of the tools of conflict analysis, resolution, and transformation. Each Course Participants should submit a two-page written brief on the country/countries or region of the conflict that they wish to do before proceeding with the final paper. The Course Director reserves the right to ask a Participant to change a topic after the written brief if it is somehow inappropriate, too narrow, or too broad.

Course Participants

• Up to 60 participants;
• Senior Leaders from the Public Service, particularly the Defence and Security Sector.
• Participants should preferably be selected trainers and key leaders who may be deployed in peace support operations and internal security operations.
• Participants should be proficient in English.

Course Dates

• Monday 12 December 2023 to Friday 15 December 2023.

Award

• Participants will be awarded professional certificates of successful completion at the end of the Course. 

Course Outline