The Institute of World Affairs offers training and education programs throughout the world that are designed to increase the capacity of individuals and institutions to deal with social conflict in a constructive manner.  The Institute also responds to requests to serve as a third party in situations of conflict.  Workshops and seminars concentrate on negotiation and related skills development and on the development of civic and economic infrastructures essential to peace and stability.  The Institute facilitates non-official problem-solving and post-conflict reconciliation workshops at the local, national, and international levels.  It also helps organizations and communities to assess, design, and implement sustainable systems for conflict management. 

Program in Conflict Analysis and Negotiation for UN Diplomats

 This two- to three-day annual program provides participants with the opportunity to expand their skills in conflict analysis, bilateral and multilateral negotiation, post-conflict peace building and peace operations. It also incorporates the latest theories and practices in conflict analysis as well as a highly interactive negotiation simulation. Participants are able to practice their multilateral negotiation skills in the context of both political and economic crises.  

 Overall a great success, praise for the seminar by the participants was overwhelming, all of whom wished for more time. This professional development program has enjoyed over a decade of success and is recognized as a valuable opportunity for UN diplomats, government and non-government officials, and scholars.

“Being more practice than theory, the seminar proved to be a significant training exercise that helped apply different negotiation techniques with the proper guidance from the organizer.”

--Haron Hassan, Second Secretary, Jordanian Mission to the UN  

“IWA's Conflict Resolution and Analysis Seminar is useful for diplomats and negotiators to understand that to truly learn conflict resolution, one must employ the theory in action.”

--Sybil Kessler, The Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights

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On-Line Distance Learning Program for the Inter-American Defense College

In conjunction with the Inter-American Defense College (IADC), IWA created three distance education courses:  “Conflict Management and Negotiation” ;  “Overview of the Inter-American System”; and the "Interagency Process".

Conflict Management and Negotiation

The first course provides an overview of the conflict resolution field, including modern sources of conflict, complex emergencies, formal and informal approaches to conflict resolution, and strategies for negotiation. It is self-paced, accessible online at all times, and offered at no cost to students. Students are evaluated through quizzes and a narrative final exam, and receive a certificate upon successful completion. Without any publicity or solicitation, the course now has over 200 actively registered students with more enrolling daily. Written in both Spanish and English, the course was intended for a Central and South American audience, and has drawn most of its students from Spanish speaking countries in Latin America. These students are predominantly affiliated with government and military institutions, although there has also been interest from researchers, journalists, and social workers. The course has also received praise from outside the region, and was showcased as the featured distance education course on the Asia-Pacific Area Network website (www.apan-info.net/).

Overview of the Inter-American System

The second course provides a comprehensive overview of the entire inter-American system including all major institutions, agencies and legal frameworks. The course consists of ten units that are focused on areas such as democracy and governance, human rights, security and defense, economic development, trade and integration, narcotics, social development, environment and agriculture, as well as education, science, technology and culture.  The course is available on-line in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. These courses have attracted hundreds of learners from all continents.

The Interagency Process (IAP)

To facilitate an effective response to crisis situations, the fulfillment of national and regional security objectives, and the implementation of a wide variety of policies in today’s interconnected global system, a method of planning and operation is needed to coordinate the efforts of multiple civil, military, and non-governmental agencies.  This method, known as the Interagency Process (IAP), creates a framework that facilitates productive interagency planning by facilitating collaboration to leverage the resources necessary for an efficient, cost-effective and unified effort to achieve policy goals.

In this course the word “interagency” is used as a generic descriptor in reference to national-level civilian and military planning activities among the several ministries and agencies within the executive branch. The course consists of eight modules, which provide lessons learned and best practices for effective interagency collaboration.  The modules are organized as follows: Module 1: Requirement for Interagency Responses; Module 2: Interagency Structures and Processes; Module 3: Interagency Working Groups; Module 4: Policy Decision-making; Module 5: Advance Policy Planning; Module 6: A Political-Military Plan; Module 7: An International Response to Crises; and Module 8: Interagency Management.

      Looking beyond the current program, IWA is working with the IADC and potential funders to prepare the groundwork for three additional courses on “ Complex Humanitarian Emergencies," "Terrorism," and “International Relations/Security Affairs”. 

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For more information about our past seminars, workshops and presentations, please click here.