Recent Beyond Intractability Posts
Including Hyper-Polarization Posts
Posts by BI Section
Lists of recent posts are also available separately for each BI Section:
Hyper-Polarization Discussion Posts | Earlier Constructive Conflict Initiative Blog
Things You Can Do To Help | Conflict Frontiers | Conflict Fundamentals
Beyond Intractability in Context | Colleague Activities
- Comments on Our Webinar with Ashok Panikkar on "Whither Peacebuilding" -- Our discussion with Ashok about peacebuilding after USAID and USIP generated three very different comments. We share them all and respond here. -- Jun 11
- Bridge-Building in Times of Hyper-Polarization: An ACR-EPP Webinar -- A report on the webinar Guy and Heidi Burgess did with the Environmental and Public Policy Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution, focusing on how environmental and public policy mediators might be able to help strengthen U.S. democracy. -- Jun 09
- Bridge-Building in Times of Hyper-Polarization: An ACR-EPP Webinar -- A report on the webinar Guy and Heidi Burgess did with the Environmental and Public Policy Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution, focusing on how environmental and public policy mediators might be able to help strengthen U.S. democracy. -- Jun 08
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of June 1, 2025 -- A note about the Boulder terror attack, followed by our weekly set of readings. -- Jun 03
- Ashok Panikkar, Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess Discuss: Whither Peacebuilding? Is There Life After USAID and USIP? -- The peacebuilding field has been seriously shaken by the closure of USAID and USIP. What does this (and other real-world pressures) mean for the field? A conversation with three people who have been thinking about these challenges for a long time. -- May 30
- Kenneth Boulding's First Law: If It Exists (or Has Been Done), It Must Be Possible -- Reflections on the vital role played by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the fraught relationship between those organizations and governmental sources of support. -- May 27
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of May 18, 2025 -- More interesting readings. -- May 21
- Every Problem Creates an Opportunity to Develop Something New and Better -- A retrospective look at the long and hopeful history of the conflict resolution and peacebuilding fields -- a history punctuated by a long series of societal crises and, ultimately, constructive responses to those crises. -- May 18
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of May 11, 2025 -- Another in our weekly sets of interesting readings -- May 14
- Better Together America: Another Example of Massively Parallel Democracy Building at Work -- A report on Better Together America's first Hub Accelerator Workshop -- an inspiring get together of people from around the United States who are working in a wide variety of ways to strengthen civic engagement in their local communities. -- May 09
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of May 4, 2025 -- Insightful readings for this week. -- May 05
- Things to Think About -- Alone and Together - Part 2 -- Two more interesting exercises to think about ways of constructively approaching intractable conflicts and the role of intervenors in those conflicts. -- Apr 30
- Things to Think About -- Alone and Together - Part 1 -- An introduction to a set of exercises that people can do alone or in groups to think through difficult conflict situations and find ways of overcoming obstacles to moving forward more constructively. -- Apr 29
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of April 27, 2025 -- This weeks readings from colleagues and journalists of note. -- Apr 26
- Daniel Stid: Competitive Authoritarianism Comes for Civil Society -- An exploration of the critical role that civil society needs to play in the defending US democracy and thoughts about how civil society might overcome the challenges that are making it difficult for it to play that role. -- Apr 24
- Harry Boyte and the Burgesses on Thinking Politically -- What does "thinking politically" mean in terms of nonviolent action. It doesn't mean thinking along party lines. Rather, it means thinking strategically about audiences, desired outcomes and best strategies to meet those outcomes. -- Apr 21
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of April 20, 2025 -- Useful readings for today. -- Apr 19
- Predicting a "Rule-of-Law" Crisis? -- Are we facing a "constitutional" or "rule-of-law" crisis? What can/should the peacebuilding community do in such circumstances? This is what we call "the peacebuilder's dilemma." -- Apr 14
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of April 13, 2025 -- Weekly readings and viewings of interest. -- Apr 12
- Harry Boyte On Nonviolence Training and Effective Nonviolent Action -- A reflection on the relationship between love and power and what makes nonviolent protests effective. -- Apr 10
- David Eisner's P.S. -- Are Trump's Moves -- and the Results -- Controlled Burns or Out-of-Control Wildfires? -- David Eisner asks whether the fires we talked about in our "Fiddling While Rome Burns" series are controlled burns or forest fires. The Burgesses respond "out of control forest fires" -- and explain why. -- Apr 06
- Colleague, News, and Opinion Links for the Week of March 30, 2025 -- Our weekly readings for your enjoyment! (Or blood pressure increase). -- Apr 02
- Part 2 of the Burgess's Answer to Ashok Panikkar's Questions about Hyperpolarization and Today's World -- We finish answering Ashok Panikkar by talking about other drivers of hyper-polarization: globalization and technology driven job loss, identity politics, cable news and social media, and distrust of institutions. We also address Ashok's notion of theory of continuity and share what we think it will take to "save" liberal democracy in the U.S. -- Mar 30
- USIP, CRS, and FMCS and Responding to Ashok Panikkar's Question about Hyper-Polarization -- We reflect on the implications and impact of the closing of FMCS, USIP, and probably CRS, what might be done about that, and then turn to answering Ashok Panikkar's question about whether hyper-polarization is "logical and rational," given the current state of the world. -- Mar 28
- Heidi and Guy Burgess Talk with Tom Klaus and Lamar Roth in their "Third Space" - Part 2 -- The second half our Guy and Heidi Burgess's conversation with Lamar Roth and Tom Klaus on their podcast "Getting to Third Space." Here we talk more about what is driving American polarization, why it is a problem, and what can be done to address it. -- Mar 25
