This 40 page guide is aimed at people and groups working for social change who want to develop an understanding of conflict and how to deal with it. There are sections on what conflict is, the benefits of addressing it, and tools to work though conflict and maintain healthy and effective social change groups.
Introduction
Every group and relationship experiences conflict, regardless of whether we are trying to bring about an anarchist revolution or play dominoes on the street. It’s simply part of being human, it’s also a particular feature of living in a world which is more mobile.
Humans used to live in largely homogeneous groups, whereas today many different world-views and cultures are present in our communities. However, we haven’t yet developed the skills to successfully hold this diversity. Add to this the fact that you probably grew up in a capitalist society, where you were taught that to do well, or even just survive, you need to behave competitively. Phew! So it’s really no surprise that so many of us struggle to collaborate with each other to find a healthy way through conflict.
Conflict is bound to happen while we un-learn old habits, and develop new skills and awareness to work cooperatively and challenge oppression.
This guide is aimed at people and groups working for social change who want to develop an understanding of conflict and how to deal with it. There are sections on what conflict is, the benefits of addressing it, and tools to work though conflict and maintain healthy and effective social change groups. Throughout the guide you’ll find short exercises to help you learn skills and tools. The more involved we are with our own learning, the deeper the learning goes. So if you really want to learn this stuff, give yourself the time to try out the exercises.
Contents
- Introduction and Contents
- 1. What is conflict and why deal with it?
- 2. Why conflict happens in social change groups
- 3. Understanding conflict
- 4. Responding to Conflict
- 5. Good communication
- 6. Taking effective action to deal with conflict in your group
- 7. Resources
Sneak Peek into Guide
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About Author
Seeds for Change are a workers’ co-op of experienced campaigners. They offer training, facilitation, online resources and other support for campaigns, community groups and co-operatives.
They offer many guides which are designed to help you be more effective in your campaign, co-op or project. The ideas, examples and tips in their guides are based on working with many different groups and projects, both as campaigners and as trainers. All Seeds for Change guides are anti-copyright. Feel free to copy, adapt, use and distribute them, as long as the final work remains anti-copyright.
Explore Further
- Conflict is Inevitable: Knowledge Roundup
- Leaderful Organizing Tool: Conflict Icebergs
- Mediation for Movements: Managing Intra-Movement Conflict
- On Conflict and Consensus
- Principles of Co-operative Conflict Resolution
- De-escalate, Manage and Transform Conflict
- Transformative Approaches to Conflict Resolution
- Leaderful Organizing Tool: Conflict Icebergs
- Pathways to Repair: Guides to Navigate Healing, Trust building and Human Messiness
- Working in Groups: Start Here