Behind the Nobel Peace Prize: First-Hand Explorations of Conflict Resolution

Catalog description

How can the world's thorniest, most intractable conflicts be resolved? How can autocracies become democracies, or war crimes and ethnic cleansing give way to justice and peaceful coexistence? Does gender contribute to conflict resolution, and what is the role of psychology in peacebuilding? Questions like these have long been debated by scholars, conflict analysts, and peace practitioners. This course offers a rare opportunity to hear responses to these and related questions from dozens of renowned peace practitioners mediating the world's largest conflicts. Guided by a key participant in the peace negotiations post-Tunisia's Jasmine Revolution of 2011, students will acquire many first-hand practical insights into the dimensions and challenges of peace mediation. Through class discussions, role-playing, interactions with peace practitioners, and conflict mediation exercises, students learn the importance of deep listening, dialogue, and storytelling as critical tools for creating spaces conducive to conflict resolution and peacemaking. This course will be offered in January-Term 2026.