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

What are Intractable Conflicts? Beyond Intractability participants have thought and written a lot about the nature of intractability. Here are some of his thoughts about it, focusing on different kinds of intractable conflicts, how intractable conflicts are different from more negotiable or "tractable" disputes and how such difficult conflicts can be approached.
The Nature and Types of Intractable Conflicts
	Peter Coleman discusses different types of intractable conflicts.
	Pamela Aall, of the U.S. Institute of Peace, discusses the disagreement among scholars and practitioners regarding a definition of "intractability."
	Peter Coleman explains how intractable conflicts are different from simpler "tractable" conflicts.
	Peter Coleman describes five different metaphors or ways of defining what intractable conflicts are all about.
Approaches to Intractable Conflicts
	Peter Coleman describes the importance of long-term thinking when it comes to intractable conflicts.
	Peter Coleman discusses how some aspects of an intractable conflict might be transformed while others are not.
Case Examples of Intractable Conflicts
	Peter Coleman describes an abortion dialogue in which the parties came to respect each other and protect one another, but they were still very polarized on the abortion issue.

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

The infusion of a sense of righteousness into the common urge to bash things around has always proved to be a powerful stimulus to action. -- Kenneth Boulding

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

Storming Media

Other Resources from
Beyond Intractability

Preventive Diplomacy and International Violence Prevention
"The concept and practice of violence prevention have evolved from being focused almost exclusively on the short-term interventions of preventive diplomacy, to a new, more comprehensive approach that can be defined as structural prevention and includes long-term initiatives targeting the root causes of conflict."

Nobel Peace Prize Winners

Desmond Mpilo Tutu
Former Secretary General of the South African Council of Churches (SACC), and 1984 Nobel Peace 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