Must We Fight? From the Battlefield to the Schoolyard - A New Perspective on Violent Conflict and Its Prevention

Kosovo . . . The World Trade Center . . . Rwanda- we are shocked as reports of these horrific tragedies capture the headlines on an all too regular basis. But how is it possible to intervene to end these tragic conflicts if, as many have long believed, that violent behavior is said to be as much a part of human nature as DNA? In this landmark book, William Ury- best-selling author and director of the Project on Preventing War at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School- and a stellar panel of experts from several scientific disciplines debunk the commonly held notion that violence is a predictable part of the human condition and outline an innovative paradigm for preventing violent confrontations. Must We Fight? presents compelling new research and insights into human nature which clearly demonstrate that humankind is not doomed to continue the seemingly endless cycle of violent conflict. With intelligence and sensitivity, Ury describes a brilliant program for personal and community empowerment called The Third Side. As he explains, in most conflicts between two parties there is actually a third entity-the community in which the combatants, and their dispute, are embedded. The Third Side is a proven model for ending conflict that shows how to mobilize communities to stop and, in some cases, prevent individual and group violence. A practical resource for helping to resolving real life conflicts, Must We Fight? includes a simulation of an actual racial incident at a public high school. Readers are challenged to put themselves in the place of an administrator dealing with this incident and are presented with a series of questions and Third Side activities that can help them find a resolution to this complex community conflict. Contributors to this volume, including such well-known scholars as Frans de Waal, R. Brian Ferguson, Steven Wikinson, and Chris Winship detail the factors that have enabled communities to be successful, to overcome obstacles, and to curtail and prevent violence through mobilization of Third Side interventions.Ury, William L. is the author of 'Must We Fight? From the Battlefield to the Schoolyard - A New Perspective on Violent Conflict and Its Prevention', published 2001 under ISBN 9780787961039 and ISBN 0787961035.