Tag Archives: Conflict

Our Spaces of Difference

There is much discussion about the polarising nature of social media, the increasingly partisan nature of politics, and the seemingly endless spaces of our difference and dissent. And it is true that we live in noisy times, where often the … Continue reading

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Islands of Belief

We live on islands of belief, carefully forged by our immersion in local culture, established education, held in tribal groupings, dominant doctrine and ideology, and internally reinforcing: to be within the tribe reinforces the strength and resilience of the tribe … Continue reading

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Engaging Power [4]: Diffusion

How do we fight, how do we conquer? In oppositional models of power, we deploy overwhelming force, to disrupt the structure. The sledgehammer solution. But when the structures of violence are held within coherent social units, the sledgehammer reinforces them. … Continue reading

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Engaging Power [1]: Conflict

To think that gangs are an aberration, or impermanent structure, is a mistake: they are stable social structures, governed by the same bonding mechanisms as the local church, or regional police force. They are structures of power, partly formalised, partly … Continue reading

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The Violence of Stories

Sticks and stones may break bones, but words are, allegedly, harmless. Or maybe not. There can be a violence in communication, not an act of physical aggression, but aggression nonetheless. The violence of vitriol, carefully constructed to cause pain. I … Continue reading

Posted in Social Leadership, Stories, Storytelling | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

Peace: Dialogue

What is the nature of peace? A simple absence of conflicts, or a positive force in itself? Is peace the outcome, or the process? As i think about the ways that power is held and exerted at the highest levels … Continue reading

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Reflections from Learning Solutions Day 2: Responding to challenge

The second day of Learning Solutions and i’ve delivered my fourth and final session. Themes: how do we engage communities, how do we respond to challenge, how do we make it safe? I thought i’d capture some ideas around this … Continue reading

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Resolution: the hardest road

Swarthy, thickset and boasting tattoos upon his tattoos, themselves layered around the scars, the man next to me turned to his son, a little bruiser sporting jeans and baseball cap, and asked the question, “What do you do when someone … Continue reading

Posted in Inclusivity, Race, School | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments