Click here for the Welsh translationConfronting Conflict
What Best of Both Worlds says:
- Conflict sometimes cannot be avoided in achieving a long-lasting solution
- Look for areas of agreement as well as disagreement
- Look for ways in which all can gain
- Keep debates constructive and adjourn if they become destructive
Don’t be frightened to disagree:
- Disagreement and conflict in an open debate is healthy, worthwhile and an essential part of the process of consensus building.
- The issues are likely to have been ducked if all is peace and light.
- In contrast, conflict will bring out the real wants and needs of each party.
- This, in turn, leads to an understanding of where the Best of Both Worlds lies.
- By establishing as much common ground as possible and reducing the number of points of disagreement ‘the problem’ will be reduced to more manageable proportions.
- If people close their minds to ideas, stop listening or lose tempers call for a time out
Click here to learn about Critical Mistakes in Consensus Building
- Give people time to cool off; possibly adjourn the meeting and fix another date.
Keep looking for mutual benefits.
For example, assuring a site manager that participants will keep the site free of litter will benefit all.
In the North Solent National Nature Reserve, canoeists collect data needed by site managers for monitoring effects of sea level rise – this is easier to do from the water, and the site managers do not have the time or resources to do it themselves.
Click here to go back to the Step by Step Guide page
