George Mitchell in Northern Ireland – “To Hell with the Future, Let’s Get On With the Past”

Part of the PON Great Negotiator Case Study Series, this 46-age factual case study examines the strategies and tactics used by U.S. negotiator George Mitchell during his two-year tenure as chairman of the all-party talks in Northern Ireland between 1996 and 1998. His efforts culminated in the signing of the historic Good Friday Accords. In 2000, Mitchell received the Program on Negotiation "Great Negotiator" award.

This case study was prepared as a basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation.

Good Offices in a War-Weary World

Since the end of the Cold War, ethnic animosity, unresolved sovereignty claims, and persistent poverty have unleashed renewed violence in dozens of simmering conflicts — creating more pressure than ever to find improved conflict resolution methods. The Consensus Building Institute and the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School have identified "good offices" as a particular type of third-party engagement in hot disputes that deserves closer study because it stands out as one of the most viable and least controversial methods of intervention.

A "good offices" provider is a person or organization of some standing that provides a physically and psychologically safe setting for the facilitation of negotiation. The provider's role is to try to help the parties "get to readiness" to negotiate by correcting misperceptions, clarifying issues, and facilitating communication. The good offices provider might be an outside neutral or a group of stakeholders; in either case, an effective good offices provider represents a strong principle or process.

Rich with examples and commentary from experts in the field of public dispute resolution, this video explores the nature, functions, benefits, and potential of the "good offices" role. Speakers include Harvard Law School Professor Emeritus Roger Fisher, MIT Professor Lawrence Susskind, and Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy Professor Eileen Babbit, as well as distinguished representatives from international conflict management, peacemaking, and aid organizations.

Great Negotiator 2002: Lakhdar Brahimi

Each year, the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School presents the Great Negotiator Award to an individual whose lifetime achievements in the field of negotiation and dispute resolution have had a significant and lasting impact. In 2002, the Program on Negotiation selected Ambassador Lakhdar Brahimi as the recipient of its Great Negotiator Award.

Ambassador Brahimi is a universally-admired diplomat whose renowned negotiation skills have been tested in the harshest of circumstances. A native of Algeria, he has devoted the greater part of his four-decade career to convincing people to choose peace over war. Highlights of his extraordinary career include mediating the Taif Accord, which paved the way for an end to the Lebanese civil war; heading special United Nations troubleshooting missions to hot-spots such as Afghanistan, Yemen, Liberia, Sudan, Nigeria, South Africa, the former Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), and Haiti; and overseeing the production of the "Brahimi Report," a comprehensive critique of the efficiency and effectiveness of U.N. peacekeeping missions. In 2002, as the UN Secretary General's Special Envoy to Afghanistan, Ambassador Brahimi took a lead role in orchestrating both the Bonn Conference that set up an interim Afghan government following the fall of the Taliban, and the June 2002 Loya Jirga, the successor negotiations to Bonn.

 

The Program on Negotiation honored Ambassador Brahimi in events on October 2, 2002. These began with an in-depth faculty-moderated discussion with a group of students, faculty, and guests at Harvard Business School. On the evening of the 2nd, Ambassador Brahimi received the Great Negotiator Award at a formal dinner at Harvard Law School. This DVD features excerpts from the award discussion with Ambassador Brahimi.

On the DVD, Ambassador Brahimi speaks from personal experience about strategies, tactics, and lessons learned as UN Special Envoy to Afghanistan both before and after the fall of the Taliban; and about general negotiation issues such as knowing what is and what isn't negotiable, taking account of outside players in a negotiation, the role of deadlines in negotiation, negotiating with parties together or separately, and knowing when to continue negotiating and when to walk away.

The DVD booklet includes a guide to the 24 DVD tracks as well as a complete transcript of the DVD contents. Used alone or with the Lakhdar Brahimi case study, it provides a wonderful opportunity to teach from recent history, using a living, working diplomat as a focus for learning about negotiation. The case study provides a wealth of factual details regarding Brahimi's negotiations, while the DVD features Brahimi's personal reflections and observations. An instructor might, for instance, use the case study as a basis for classroom discussion, and use excerpts from the DVD to offer Brahimi's own thoughts on the issues discussed in class.

DVD run time: 1 hour, 35 minutes

Great Negotiator 2003: Stuart Eizenstat

Each year, the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School presents the Great Negotiator Award to an individual whose lifetime achievements in the field of negotiation and dispute resolution have had a significant and lasting impact. In 2003, the Program on Negotiation selected Stuart Eizenstat as the recipient of its Great Negotiator Award.

The former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, Under Secretary of Commerce, Under Secretary of State, and Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, Eizenstat was recognized for his landmark efforts to reclaim property and achieve some restitution for victims of Nazi Germany. This complex problem, centered around the millions of dollars of assets and property stolen from forced laborers, Jews, and other victims of the Nazis, was the subject of Eizenstat's "second job" during six long years of negotiations. Despite the fundamental role Eizenstat played in the achievement of $8 billion of reparations for victims of the Nazis, his description of the process was touched by a profound sense of humility. "I call the work that we did 'imperfect justice,' and if that seems a contradiction, it is not one here," he remarked. "There can be no final accounting, even for those who did recover something. And yet, there was still an accountability, a sense that justice has been done."

The Program on Negotiation honored Stuart Eizenstat in events on October 1, 2003. These began with an in-depth faculty-moderated discussion with a group of students, faculty, and guests at Harvard Business School. That evening, Eizenstat received the Great Negotiator Award at a formal dinner at Harvard Law School. This DVD features excerpts from the award discussion with Eizenstat.

In the video, Eizenstat speaks from personal experience about issues such as why Holocaust reparations were negotiated 50 years after the fact, the motivations and effects of U.S. involvement in the negotiations, the way in which his own goals and background influenced his involvement, the constraints of his negotiation instructions, the obstacles to agreement, the cultural differences between U.S. and European negotiators, the lessons learned, and possible future applications of these lessons.

A booklet includes a guide to the 16 chapters as well as a complete transcript of the video contents. Used alone or with the Stuart Eizenstat case study, it provides a wonderful opportunity to teach from recent history, using a living, working diplomat as a focus for learning about negotiation. The case study provides a wealth of factual details regarding Eizenstat's negotiations, while the video features Eizenstat's personal reflections and observations. An instructor might, for instance, use the case study as a basis for classroom discussion, and use excerpts from the video to offer Eizenstat's own thoughts on the issues discussed in class.

Great Negotiator 2004: Ambassador Richard Holbrooke

Each year, the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School presents the Great Negotiator Award to an individual whose lifetime achievements in the field of negotiation and dispute resolution have had a significant and lasting impact. In 2004, the Program on Negotiation selected Ambassador Richard Holbrooke as the recipient of its Great Negotiator Award.

Ambassador Holbrooke is a highly regarded diplomat and negotiator perhaps best known for his central role in helping broker the 1995 Dayton Agreement following the 1992-95 war in Bosnia, as well as his leading role in resolving the multinational dispute over U.S. dues owed in arrears to the United Nations. Over his four-decade career, Ambassador Holbrooke has served as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Asia as well as for Europe, U.S. Ambassador to Germany, managing director of Lehman Brothers, managing editor of Foreign Policy, and director of the Peace Corps in Morocco. Ambassador Holbrooke’s success in some of the world’s most difficult negotiations has led to him receive seven nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Program on Negotiation honored Ambassador Holbrooke in events in October 2004. These began with an in-depth faculty-moderated discussion with an invited group of students, faculty and guests at Harvard Business School and concluded with Ambassador Holbrooke receiving the Great Negotiator Award at a formal dinner at Harvard Law School. This DVD features excerpts from both discussions with Ambassador Holbrooke.

Previous recipients included Stuart Eizenstat, former Special Representative of the U.S. President and Secretary of State, for his work negotiating reparations for victims of Nazi Germany (2003); Ambassador Lakhdar Brahimi, U.N. Special Envoy to Afghanistan, for his mediating work in numerous international conflicts, including orchestrating the Bonn Conference that established an interim Afghan government following the 2001 fall of the Taliban (2002); Charlene Barshefsky, U.S. Trade Representative in the second Clinton administration, for her efforts negotiating a variety of complex international trade agreements (2001); and Former U.S. Senator George Mitchell, for his orchestration of peace talks in Northern Ireland (2000).

The DVD booklet includes a guide to the 34 DVD tracks as well as a complete transcript of the DVD contents.

Great Negotiator 2022: Christiana Figueres

The Program on Negotiation (PON) at Harvard Law School periodically presents the Great Negotiator Award to an individual whose lifetime achievements in the field of negotiation and dispute resolution have had a significant and lasting impact. In 2022, PON selected Christiana Figueres as the recipient of its Great Negotiator Award.

As UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres was tasked with a seemingly insurmountable challenge of putting together an impactful, global climate agreement to save the planet. Coming out the dramatic failure of the Copenhagen summit, many believed that such an agreement was not possible. However, with persistent optimism and careful, targeted interventions aimed at building momentum, in 2015 the Paris Agreement was unanimously adopted by the 196 participating nations and set forth a new framework for international climate agreements.

PON honored Christiana Figueres as its Great Negotiator in April 2022. This included a public session interview attended by students, faculty, and guests at Harvard Law School, as well as an in-depth private session interview, where Figueres answered questions and offered insights on the negotiation process. Both the public and private video interviews are included in the Great Negotiator 2022: Christiana Figueres video package. Below, check out a preview of the private session interview with Figueres and Professors James Sebenius and Hannah Riley Bowles:

These videos can be paired with the Christiana Figueres and the Collective Approach to Negotiating Climate Action case study, available for purchase separately from the Teaching Negotiation Resource Center (TNRC).

Great Negotiator Case Study Package

Since 2001, the Program on Negotiation has bestowed the Great Negotiator Award upon distinguished leaders whose lifelong accomplishments in the fields of negotiation and dispute resolution have had compelling and lasting results.

  • 2000 PON Great Negotiator: George Mitchell."To Hell with the Future, Let's Get on with the Past" features former U.S. Senator George Mitchell's work on the all-party talks in Northern Ireland between 1996 and 1998 that culminated in the signing of the historic Good Friday Accords.
  • 2002 PON Great Negotiator: Lakhdar Brahimi. Negotiating a new government for Afghanistan, featuring former United Nations Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi's involvement in negotiating an interim government for Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban in 2001
  • 2003 PON Great Negotiator: Stuart Eizenstat. Negotiating the Final Accounts of World War II, featuring former  EU Ambassador and Special Representative to the President, Stuart Eizenstat's work facilitating the award of $8 billion in reparations from multiple European governments, banks, and companies to victims of World War II
  • 2010 PON Great Negotiator: Martti Ahtisaari. Featuring former Finnish President and longtime diplomat's 2005 negotiation between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and the Indonesian government. The resolution ended 30 years of violence and became known as "The Helsinki Accords". Includes both A Case and B Case.
  • 2014 PON Great Negotiator: Tommy Koh. Details the efforts of Singapore Ambassador-At-Large Tommy Koh to negotiate the United States-Singapore Free Trade agreement. Highlights Koh's successful actions to overcome the significant challenges presented by trade negotiations with the United States. Includes both A Case and B Case.

 

Each case study describes the featured negotiator's background and examines the context, strategies, tactics, and outcome of a particularly difficult international negotiation in which the negotiator was involved. Used together, the case studies offer a unique opportunity to learn from recent history and to compare and contrast the approaches of four renowned professional negotiators.

Each case study is also sold separately.

Grocery Store

SCENARIO:

Tensions between the Korean and African-American communities of economically-depressed Urbana have been growing for some time now. Korean-Americans own most of the grocery stores in the area. The African-Americans that make up most of their customer base have complained for a long time that they are ill-treated by the store owners. The owners in turn complain that their customers frequently steal items from the stores.

Recently, an elderly African-American woman's visit to her local grocery store erupted into a city-wide incident. The store owners allege that she was attempting to shoplift. The woman denies this, and claims that she was beaten by one of the owners. Activists on both sides have made grandiose claims on television. The customer and owners have taken legal action. Tensions continue to mount.

Now, a deacon from the local African-American church is meeting with the principal from the Korean-American school to see if they can find a way to lessen the tension surrounding the incident, and the history of such incidents.

 

MAJOR LESSONS:

  • This exercise can provide a forum for discussing many issues, including the effect of culture and ethnicity on partisan formation, the influence of race on conflict, the use of negotiation in the shadow of legal action, choosing representatives for a community, and dealing with one conflict when it is part of a pattern of conflicts.

 

TEACHING MATERIALS:

For all parties:

  • General information

 

Confidential instructions for:

  • Deacon of the African-American Church
  • High School Principal

 

Teacher's package includes:

  • All of the above
  • No teaching note available at this time

 

NOTE: The fact pattern of this simulation is similar to that of Seoul Food in Urbana; the latter is a mediation involving legal representatives of the African-American and Korean-American communities, rather than the community members themselves.

Guatemala Role Play, The

The Guatemala Role Play is a simulation from the Workable Peace Curriculum Series unit on Indigenous Rights and the Environment in Latin America.

OVERVIEW OF THE GUATEMALA ROLEPLAY:

Guatemala has been an ethnically, economically, and politically divided society for over 450 years. In the early 1960s, some army officers who opposed the military government organized small guerrilla rebel factions. Soon, these rebel factions organized into a larger military force known as the URNG. As the URNG began to defeat government forces in the countryside, the government decided to put pressure on the URNG and their supporters. Thousands of indigenous people were killed and their villages destroyed.

After years of negotiations, the Guatemalan government and the URNG signed an "Accord for a Firm and Lasting Peace" in 1996. Despite the peace accord, several issues remain to be resolved. This follow-up negotiation takes place in 1998. The Guatemalan Minister of the Interior will chair a negotiation that includes representatives from the Guatemalan military, the URNG, and the ethnic Mayans living in Guatemala, as well as the U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala. The three issues on the table are how to protect human rights, how to deal with Mayan land claims, and how to recognize Mayan cultural and political rights.

 

MAJOR LESSONS:

  • This role play underscores the relevance of general lessons about "basic" negotiation skills as they apply to multi-party, multi-issue negotiations: e.g., active listening, improving one's BATNA, focusing on interests rather than positions, inventing options for mutual gain, etc.
  • Provides a means for exploring the political dynamics and economic issues likely to emerge during an actual negotiation
  • Imparts an understanding of the processes of international treaty negotiations as they are currently conducted
  • Highlights the importance of understanding the human dimension in ethnic conflict and the difficulty of proposing solutions without grasping the complexity of the relationships.
  • Emphasizes the importance of understanding the interests of internal constituencies and designing negotiation strategies which manage the link between internal and external negotiations, as well as the importance of creating external coalitions without letting internal coalitions crumble.
  • Demonstrates how members of groups in conflict can take steps toward a workable peace by negotiating truces, recognizing each others' right to meet basic needs, and making rules for settling their conflicts and meeting their needs without violence.

 

Teacher's Package Includes:

  • Participant materials
  • Teaching Note
  • Master List of Player Goals
  • Framework for a Workable Peace
  • Workable Peace Self-Assessment Form
  • Overheads
  • Observation/Assessment Instructions

 

If you would like additional information about the Workable Peace framework and teaching materials, including information about teacher training and support, please contact Workable Peace Co-Directors David Fairman or Stacie Smith at:

The Consensus Building Institute, Inc.
238 Main Street, Suite 400
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-492-1414
Fax: 617-492-1919
Website: www.cbuilding.org

Hans Brandt

Hans Brandt, a short film written and produced by Jeswald W. Salacuse, presents a dramatized problem for use in courses on negotiation, conflict resolution, management, or leadership. The brevity of the film and the richness of the teaching notes make the film highly adaptable for use in a variety of classroom settings.

The viewer is placed in the position of the leader of a software development team that has been successful in creating new products. The leader believes that the team's success has been due to the leader's efforts to develop a sense of cohesion and teamwork among its members. One important element in the team leader's approach is the holding of staff meetings twice a week, at 9 am on Monday and Thursday, for team members to share ideas and resolve problems. Six months ago, the leader's company acquired the U.S. subsidiary of a German software manufacturer. As part of integrating the two companies, Hans Brandt, a German software engineer in his late fifties, was assigned to the leader's team. Brandt attends staff meetings irregularly and says little or nothing when he does attend. Technically brilliant, he has proposed an innovative project idea that the leader's superior have just agreed to fund. When the team leader tells Hans of the company's decision, Hans takes that occasion to announce that due to the demands of the new project he will not be attending staff meetings any longer. He rises to leave. The film ends with a freeze frame of Hans rising from his chair.

Under the guidance of an instructor, students seek to resolve the problem through discussion. It is hoped that a dramatized problem will engage students more actively in discussion than a traditional written case and will also help develop students’ perceptual skills — key assets for any negotiator, manager, or leader. In a further attempt to simulate reality in the classroom, the video seeks to encourage students to react and make decisions in real time. This teaching note is designed to aid instructors in using the film and in conducting the classroom discussion of the various issues it raises, including cross-cultural communication, the tension between empathy and assertiveness, the potential gap between communicative intent and impact, and the risks and benefits of various approaches to conflict management. Attached as appendices to the teaching note are a student questionnaire, which may be reproduced for classroom use, and slide masters that the instructor may use in discussing the film.

 

  • "I like to use short dramatized problems such as Hans Brandt to launch classroom discussions. Video is an attention-getting medium, and it gives students a rich set of common background facts and data for their analyses and recommendations. Moreover, this video is short enough to be used in virtually any class period or training session while leaving plenty of time for discussion. The accompanying detailed teaching notes are intended to help the instructor guide the discussion. I have used this video with great success in both graduate classes and executive education seminars on negotiation, management, and leadership." – Jeswald W. Salacuse, Henry J. Braker Professor of Law, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University

Hiring a Newtonian

SCENARIO:

This is a negotiation between a recently hired computer programmer and a Human Resources Director regarding the new employee's salary, benefits, and start date. The computer programmer, a recent immigrant from "Newtonia," has certain requirements that cannot be disclosed for fear of invoking bad luck. The Newtonian also has cultural expectations of how the Human Resources Director should behave in order to transact business comfortably. The Human Resources Director simply has the task of hiring this candidate who has been interviewed and recommended for hire. There is a given salary range, an established list of benefits, and regular start dates from which the Human Resources Director can operate.

 

MAJOR LESSONS:

  • This exercise highlights the cultural elements of negotiation and helps sensitize participants to potential cultural differences.
  • This exercise also highlights the potential discrepancy between intent (by one party) and impact (on another party).

 

TEACHER'S PACK INCLUDES:

  • Participant materials and teaching note.

Hydropower In Santales

SCENARIO:

The Ortega Company is a new hydroelectric company that hopes to build a hydropower plant in the Cordillerana region of Santales, a fictitious South American country. In a departure from normal operations, the company has asked several different communities if they are interested in allowing a hydropower plant to be developed within their borders. Of the nine communities originally considered, two have expressed preliminary interest in the project. One is the town of Villaverde, located along the Reposado River. The development of the project could bring jobs and infrastructure investment to Villaverde, but would probably reduce the flow of the river, which could threaten the livelihoods of many community members.

The Ortega Company is seeking broad support for the project and has invited representatives from the nearby indigenous community, local residents, the mayor’s office of Villaverde, and the local environmental NGO (nongovernmental organization) to meet with a representative from the company to discuss their concerns. In addition, the company has hired a professional mediator.

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Expose participants to different viewpoints and interests regarding energy development and related land use dilemmas
  • Importance of voicing those different interests and perspectives early in the project development process (e.g. for identifying project impacts and possible design alternatives)
  • Questions about the role and responsibility of the mediator in: helping parties listen to each other, raising constructive options, clarifying solutions reached, and drafting written agreements
  • Build competency with brainstorming creative options based on party interests
  • Address fundamental value differences as a key source of disagreement among parties

 

MECHANICS:

This negotiation itself may be run within 2 – 3 hours (which includes a 30 minute prep period at the beginning). An additional 30 minutes prep time could be added should the instructor ask participants who have been assigned the same role in separate negotiation groups, to gather and discuss their role prior to the actual negotiation.
The instructor should allow at least 1 additional hour for debriefing.

 

TEACHING MATERIALS:
For all parties:

  • General Instructions
  • Transcription of the Local Radio Announcement


Role Specific Confidential Instructions:

  • Representative of the Junta de Vecinos – Villaverde
  • Mayor of Villaverde
  • Representative of Los Robles
  • Representative of the Ortega Company
  • Representative of the Environmental NGO
  • Mediator


Teacher's Package:

  • All of the above
  • Teaching Note

 

ENHANCED VERSION AVAILABLE:

A digitally enhanced version of this simulation is available through the iDecisionGames platform and includes the following features:

  • An Instructor’s Guide summarizing the negotiation concepts covered in the simulation, a quick review of simulation logistics, and a ready-to-use set of debriefing slides;
  • Highlights from background readings that will help both students and instructors gain a better understanding of negotiation concepts and methods covered in the simulation;
  • Pre- and post-simulation questionnaires instructors can use gauge each student’s grasp of the core concepts before and after participating in the simulation;
  • PowerPoint slides that introduce key concepts before the simulation and highlight lessons for debriefing;
  • Real time, interactive, data analytics provided via the iDecisionGames platform.

To order the Hydropower Enhanced Package click here.

Kaotian Crisis

SCENARIO:

This case is modeled on the Cambodian seizure of the Mayaguez in 1975. The American-registry merchant container ship Youraguez has been seized five miles off the coast of an uninhabited island claimed by both Kaotia and Dominia. Kaotia has seized and released 23 other vessels in these waters in the last five years; only one American. The situation is complicated, however, by the bitter civil war in Dominia. Kaotia, which favors Eastern Dominia, has publicly accused the U.S. at the U.N. of basing CIA operatives in remote Kaotian mountain sites, but has presented no proof. Western Dominia, supported by the U.S., is unexpectedly facing military collapse and catastrophe. The U.S. is using all available means to evacuate personnel and equipment before the end; the Youraguez undoubtedly contains military equipment from the evacuation. The crew is en route to the mainland, with no allied forces close enough to reach the scene (except jet fighters). An update further complicates the situation and the potential consequences of action.

 

MECHANICS:

The exercise is usually conducted with American and Kaotian teams of 5 or more players each. Typically each team has 1 hour to analyze the situation and formulate an approach, including any message they want to communicate to the other side. At the end of the hour, the instructor simultaneously passes these messages and delivers the factual update that moves the time frame forward 12 hours. Usually the exercise continues with a 45-minute period to formulate a second “move,” including any further message, followed by a final 30-minute period with one or more final messages. Alternatively, the free movement of messages (still delivered by the instructor, however) can commence immediately after the first hour. Additional time can easily be accommodated ; the exercise could be run over several weekly classes, if necessary, but it might lose its sense of immediacy.

 

MAJOR LESSONS:

  • This case highlights how easy, but counterproductive, it can be to react without careful analysis to a seeming provocation.
  • Also illustrated is the importance of formulating an objective and analyzing whether it can be achieved by self-help or whether it requires a decision or change of attitude by the other side. If self-help is unrealistic, then an effective action plan should be developed and judged in terms of its effect on the other side’s perceptions.
  • The large teams inevitably make group process a major issue in debriefing the case. How should a group organize itself to avoid group-think and stil achieve quality analysis efficiently?
  • Effective analysis can produce dramatically superior results in this case for either party. When more than one set of teams play, comparisons are illuminating.

 

TEACHING MATERIALS:

For Kaotian team:

  • Memo to file of the Kaotian Central Security Committee
  • Update to Kaotian Central Security Committee
  • Confidential instructions for Kaotian team members:

 

Confidential Instructions for the Kaotian team members:

  • Representative of Kaotian Ministry of Internal Security
  • Representative of Kaotian Foreign Ministry
  • Representative of Kaotian Military
  • Representative of Kaotian Communist Party
  • Representative of Kaotian Intelligence Agency

 

For U.S. team:

  • Meme to file of the U.S. National Security Committee
  • Update to U.S. National Security Committee

 

Confidential Instructions for U.S. team members:

  • Representative of U.S. State Department, Legal Advisor’s Office
  • Representative of U.S. State Department, Political-Military Affairs
  • Representative of U.S. Chief of Staff
  • Representative of U.S. Defense Department
  • Representative of U.S. Central Intelligence Agency

 

Teacher’s package includes:

  • All of the above
  • Teaching notes

 

PROCESS THEMES:

BATNA; Communication; Communication, public v. private; Compliance; Credibility; Currently perceived choice analysis; Education, as a means; Force; Group process; Group-think; Interest analysis; Issue control; Linkage; Meaning of “success”; Media; Meeting design; Message analysis; Partisan perceptions; Precedents; Self-help; Threats; Yesable propositions

Lakhdar Brahimi – Negotiating a New Government for Afghanistan

Part of the PON Great Negotiator Case Study Series, this factual case study examines former U.N. Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi's involvement in negotiating an interim Afghani government after the fall of the Taliban in 2001. As a result of these efforts, Brahimi received the Program on Negotiation's 2002 "Great Negotiator" Award.

The case study covers Brahimi's background and early career, the background of the 2001 conflict in Afghanistan, the players and issues involved in the 2001 Bonn Conference on establishing an interim Afghani government, the main points of the Bonn Agreement, and the post-Bon peace process. It also includes an ethnic map of Afghanistan, excerpts from Brahimi's remarks to the United Nations about Afghanistan, and a diagram of the Bonn Conference participants.

This case study provides a wonderful opportunity to teach from recent history, using a living, working diplomat as a focus for learning about negotiation. It may be used alone or in conjunction with the Great Negotiator 2002: Lakhdar Brahimi video, which is available separately.

The case study provides a wealth of factual details regarding Brahimi's negotiations, while the video features Brahimi's personal reflections and observations. An instructor might, for instance, use the case study as a basis for classroom discussion, and use excerpts from the video to offer Brahimi's own thoughts on the issues discussed in class.

Managing Groundwater Beneath the Pablo-Burford Border

SCENARIO:

The fictional countries of Pablo and Burford face a water crisis brought on by extreme water quality and quantity problems. The dismal water situation is largely a result of unsustainable agricultural activities in the borderlands separating the two countries.

Two years ago, the Presidents of Pablo and Burford instructed the responsible national authorities to prepare a sustainable agricultural and water protection plan. Since then, the Burford Environmental Department and the Pablo Agriculture Department having been working to organize a joint summit to negotiate the framework of such a plan. In the midst of summit planning, a new controversy regarding agrochemical pollution of borderland groundwaters emerges. The summit now has been scheduled for six months earlier than originally planned.

The summit will be co-chaired by representatives of the Burford Environmental Department and the Pablo Agriculture Department. The other participants include the Governor of the Burford border state of Grady and representatives from a number of national and international NGOs with interests in groundwater policy. The agenda includes nine decision items, and the participants are expected to reach agreement by at least a two-thirds vote on all nine items.

 

MAJOR LESSONS:

  • Importance of agenda control
  • Power of option creation
  • Repercussions of voting procedures on the content and sustainability of the outcome
  • Importance of reaching agreement on terms and scientific facts before negotiating
  • Impact of BATNA on the negotiation

 

TEACHING MATERIALS:

For all parties:

  • General Instructions and Information for All Parties
  • Issues to Resolve
  • Pablo-Burford map
  • Appendices A-E (Country Information, Hydrology, Location of Borderland Aquifers, Glossary, and Evaluating Zine)
  • Additional Reading References

 

Role-specific:

  • Confidential instructions for representatives of:
  • BED (Burford's federal environmental regulatory agency)
  • BIO (an international consortium of 72 biotech companies)
  • CONSUME (a small anti-hunger NGO in Pablo)
  • EARTH (an international consortium of environmental NGOs)
  • FARM (Burford Farm Association)
  • Chet Freeman (Governor of the Burford border state of Grady)
  • PAD (Pablo Agricultural Development)
  • SUSTAIN (a nonprofit of sustainable agriculture organization from the Burford border state of North Rhine.
  • TRADE (a Pablo agribusiness trade alliance)
  • UNION (National Farmer's Union of Pablo)

 

Teacher's Package (110 pages total):

  • All of the above
  • Game Manager Position Summary Sheet

 

KEYWORDS/ THEMES:

Multi-party negotiation; science-intensive policy disputes; transboundary environmental disputes; water quality and quantity negotiations; cross-cultural negotiations; facilitation

 

SIMILAR SIMULATIONS:

Hitana Bay Development Simulation

Tovisaria Power Sector Simulation

IPMS Series

March at Drumcree Role Play, The

The March at Drumcree Role Play is a simulation from the Workable Peace Curriculum Series unit on Religion and Nationalism in Northern Ireland.

SCENARIO:

This role play is set in the mixed Protestant/ Catholic town of Portadown, Northern Ireland. The conflict centers around the issue of Protestant celebrations of the Protestant defeat of the last Catholic King of England in 1690. These celebrations, in the form of marches through the neighborhoods of Portadown, have been occurring for nearly two hundred years; however, due to changing demographics, some of these neighborhoods are nor inhabited primarily by Catholics, who view the marches as a symbol of Protestant domination. As this role play begins, a government commission has ordered representatives of the Orange Order, the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition, the RUC, the Protestant Church of Ireland, and the Catholic Church to try to resolve the dispute, with the help of a mediator from the European Union. Specifically at issue are the following questions: whether the march will take place, and if so, the route that it will take; what behavior rules the marchers and residents will follow; and what kind of long-term arrangements can be made to settle such disputes in the future.

 

GOALS OF A WORKABLE ROLE PLAY:

The Workable Peace March at Drumcree Role Play aims to:

  • Provide accurate history and background information on the Northern Ireland conflict, and specifically the conflict over the issue of Protestant marches, and provide opportunities for students to engage with this history in a direct and realistic context
  • Stimulate and motivate student learning through active participation, as well as reading, writing, class discussion and other forms of analysis and expression.
  • Build students' negotiation and conflict management skills by asking them to take on the roles of participants seeking to resolve a conflict through negotiation, with support and feedback as they prepare, conduct and debrief the role play.
  • Challenge students to find the links between the conflicts presented in the role play and the conflict resolution steps presented in the Workable Peace Framework, and the links to other conflicts in history and in their own lives.

 

Teacher's Package includes:

  • History and General Instructions
  • Confidential Instructions for four parties and a mediator
  • Framework for a Workable Peace
  • Teaching Notes

If you would like additional information about the Workable Peace framework and teaching materials, including information about teacher training and support, please contact Workable Peace Co-Directors David Fairman or Stacie Smith at:

The Consensus Building Institute, Inc. 238 Maint Street, Suite 400 Cambridge, MA 02142 Tel: 617-492-1414 Fax: 617-492-1919 web: www.cbuilding.org Email: stacie@cbuilding.org