Tools
Resources
Extra resources for folks looking to understand conflict, build peace and have deeper dialogue on complicated topics.
I do research and workshops/trainings, but I approach stuff first as a practitioner.
This is a page for folks to find resources on how to better understand conflict and get a big-picture view of questions facing peacebuilding today. Or to learn its history and how to facilitate dialogue or complicated conversations wherever you are.
Some of these resources I made myself (wanted to store/promote them somewhere), but I've also included handbooks, academic articles and books that've had a big impact on how I approach the field. Peace and conflict are huge topics and it's impossible to list everything, and I've focused here on understanding and responding to large-group societal conflicts that may or may not turn violent.
Other forms of peacebuilding are also important (mediation, alternative dispute resolution, etc), but I have less experience with that and I'm not the best person to give recommendations on those. But maybe one day?
Enjoy!
This is a page for folks to find resources on how to better understand conflict and get a big-picture view of questions facing peacebuilding today. Or to learn its history and how to facilitate dialogue or complicated conversations wherever you are.
Some of these resources I made myself (wanted to store/promote them somewhere), but I've also included handbooks, academic articles and books that've had a big impact on how I approach the field. Peace and conflict are huge topics and it's impossible to list everything, and I've focused here on understanding and responding to large-group societal conflicts that may or may not turn violent.
Other forms of peacebuilding are also important (mediation, alternative dispute resolution, etc), but I have less experience with that and I'm not the best person to give recommendations on those. But maybe one day?
Enjoy!
Stuff I've Made:
A lot of our conversations on political or social issues end in a mess. But there are ways to have better dialogue on complicated topics.
If you want to reach out to the other side but aren't sure how to so without ending in an argument, here's a quick guide with tips aimed and building a spirit of curiousity, mutual understanding and bridge-building.
If you want to reach out to the other side but aren't sure how to so without ending in an argument, here's a quick guide with tips aimed and building a spirit of curiousity, mutual understanding and bridge-building.
Articles that have shaped the way I think about conflict, peace and dialogue.
Guides For Facilitating Dialogue
Three handbooks for dialogue facilitation, arranged by size from short to long. The fourth handbook is made entirely of practical exercises anyone can use.
Basics of Dialogue Facilitation
Norbert Ropers, 2017
Berghof Foundation
29 pages
A short, practical guide for planning and facilitating group dialogue in conflict contexts. Emphasizes facilitation skills and the importance of creating safe spaces for open communication and understanding among diverse participants. This resource is designed for practitioners looking to quickly understand the basics of facilitation.
Berghof Foundation
29 pages
A short, practical guide for planning and facilitating group dialogue in conflict contexts. Emphasizes facilitation skills and the importance of creating safe spaces for open communication and understanding among diverse participants. This resource is designed for practitioners looking to quickly understand the basics of facilitation.
PDF
The Practical Approach of Public Dialogue
Christiane Seehausen and Siri Syverud Thorsen, 2024
Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue
116 pages
This handbook focuses on large group dialogues that are open to the general public. In addition to facilitation tips, it explores different formats (in-person and digital), the role of the facilitator and suggests principles that make a dialogue a more constructive and transformative experience.
Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue
116 pages
This handbook focuses on large group dialogues that are open to the general public. In addition to facilitation tips, it explores different formats (in-person and digital), the role of the facilitator and suggests principles that make a dialogue a more constructive and transformative experience.
PDF
Democratic Dialogue: A Handbook for Practitioners
Bettye Pruitt and Philip Thomas, 2007
UNDP
241 pages
The longest handbook on this list. It gets not only into how to organize and facilitate a dialogue, but also how dialogue can contribute to change, how to identify contexts that are "ripe" for dialogue, how to evaluate projects and more. It finishes with in-depth case studies and descriptions of different approaches in the field.
UNDP
241 pages
The longest handbook on this list. It gets not only into how to organize and facilitate a dialogue, but also how dialogue can contribute to change, how to identify contexts that are "ripe" for dialogue, how to evaluate projects and more. It finishes with in-depth case studies and descriptions of different approaches in the field.
PDF
The Nansen Handbook for Trainers in Dialogue and Conflict Transformation
Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue, 2020
110 pages
This handbook is a collection of activities, exercises and handouts that facilitators can use in their own dialogues. It provides examples of how they've been used in Afghanistan, Norway and Serbia.
110 pages
This handbook is a collection of activities, exercises and handouts that facilitators can use in their own dialogues. It provides examples of how they've been used in Afghanistan, Norway and Serbia.
PDF
Book Recommendations
Good places to start:
Are We Done Fighting?
Matthew Legge
2019
A comprehensive intro to peacebuilding as a field. Provides a practical toolkit for fostering understanding and peace in a polarized world. Draws on research from neuroscience and social psychology and suggests ways readers can take action in their own contexts.
2019
A comprehensive intro to peacebuilding as a field. Provides a practical toolkit for fostering understanding and peace in a polarized world. Draws on research from neuroscience and social psychology and suggests ways readers can take action in their own contexts.
How To Have Impossible Conversations
Peter Boghossian and Peter Lindsay
2019
A very practical guide divided into different tools and techniques for having dialogue and constructive conversations. The authors focus not only on dialogue, but changing people's minds. This last part will rub some people the wrong way, so take it with a grain of salt.
2019
A very practical guide divided into different tools and techniques for having dialogue and constructive conversations. The authors focus not only on dialogue, but changing people's minds. This last part will rub some people the wrong way, so take it with a grain of salt.
The Moral Imagination
John Paul Lederach
2005
Explores the role of creativity in conflict resolution and peacebuilding. Argues that envisioning new possibilities is essential for addressing complex social issues. While Lederach is a scholar and practitioner, this book appeals to the heart and describes peacebuilding as something like an artistic process.
2005
Explores the role of creativity in conflict resolution and peacebuilding. Argues that envisioning new possibilities is essential for addressing complex social issues. While Lederach is a scholar and practitioner, this book appeals to the heart and describes peacebuilding as something like an artistic process.
Short guides for peacebuilders:
The Little Book of Conflict Transformation
John Paul Lederach
2005
Describes the "conflict transformation" approach, which claims that conflict resolution must move past fixing crises and instead transform societies as a way to address root causes.
2005
Describes the "conflict transformation" approach, which claims that conflict resolution must move past fixing crises and instead transform societies as a way to address root causes.
The Little Book of Dialogue for Difficult Subjects
Lisa Schirch and David Campt
2007
Provides practical tools for facilitating meaningful conversations on sensitive topics like race, gender, and politics. This book offers strategies to create safe spaces, promote empathy, and find common ground through dialogue.
2007
Provides practical tools for facilitating meaningful conversations on sensitive topics like race, gender, and politics. This book offers strategies to create safe spaces, promote empathy, and find common ground through dialogue.
The Little Book of Strategic Peacebuilding
Lisa Schirch
2005
Presents a holistic framework for sustainable peacebuilding by integrating diverse approaches like dialogue, nonviolence, and systemic change. With practical insights and case studies, the book aims to equip readers to design inclusive, long-term strategies for resolving conflicts effectively.
2005
Presents a holistic framework for sustainable peacebuilding by integrating diverse approaches like dialogue, nonviolence, and systemic change. With practical insights and case studies, the book aims to equip readers to design inclusive, long-term strategies for resolving conflicts effectively.
For going deeper:
Getting to Yes
Roger Fisher and William Ury
2011 (3rd Edition)
Outlines the interest-based approach to negotiation. Focuses on achieving win-win agreements even in hostile situations. Takes a pragmatic rather than transformative approach.
2011 (3rd Edition)
Outlines the interest-based approach to negotiation. Focuses on achieving win-win agreements even in hostile situations. Takes a pragmatic rather than transformative approach.
Nonviolent Communication
Marshall Rosenberg
2015 (3rd Edition)
Focuses on the needs-based approach, which claims that certain conflicts won't be resolved until we acknowledge and address hidden needs that are often hidden. While it focuses on communication generally, the approach is widely used in peacebuilding contexts.
2015 (3rd Edition)
Focuses on the needs-based approach, which claims that certain conflicts won't be resolved until we acknowledge and address hidden needs that are often hidden. While it focuses on communication generally, the approach is widely used in peacebuilding contexts.
Killing in the Name of Identity
Vamik Volkan
2006 (2nd Edition)
Explores the psychological roots of large-group, societal conflicts. Focuses on ethnic, religious and national identity groups. The book contains a case study (Georgia), a theoretical section on identity, memory and trauma, and a final description of how these can be built into dialogue and peacebuilding initiatives.
2006 (2nd Edition)
Explores the psychological roots of large-group, societal conflicts. Focuses on ethnic, religious and national identity groups. The book contains a case study (Georgia), a theoretical section on identity, memory and trauma, and a final description of how these can be built into dialogue and peacebuilding initiatives.
Narrative Mediation
John Winslade and Gerald Monk
2000
Argues that conflicts are deeply rooted in the stories individuals tell about their experiences. Instead of focusing solely on interests, positions or needs, narrative mediation emphasizes understanding the context and meaning behind each party's narrative. By deconstructing the dominant narratives surrounding conflicts, the authors propose that mediators can create space for alternative stories that foster understanding and resolution.
2000
Argues that conflicts are deeply rooted in the stories individuals tell about their experiences. Instead of focusing solely on interests, positions or needs, narrative mediation emphasizes understanding the context and meaning behind each party's narrative. By deconstructing the dominant narratives surrounding conflicts, the authors propose that mediators can create space for alternative stories that foster understanding and resolution.
Track Two Diplomacy
Peter Jones
2015
Describes how informal dialogues among non-official actors such as academics, religious leaders, retired officials and NGOs, can enhance or complement official diplomatic processes. These dialogue processess can address sensitive issues that official channels may avoid, or create momentum in contexts where official diplomacy may be limited or ineffective. The book draws from academic research and practitioner experience.
2015
Describes how informal dialogues among non-official actors such as academics, religious leaders, retired officials and NGOs, can enhance or complement official diplomatic processes. These dialogue processess can address sensitive issues that official channels may avoid, or create momentum in contexts where official diplomacy may be limited or ineffective. The book draws from academic research and practitioner experience.
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Josh Nadeau is a freelance writer and dialogue practitioner.
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