John Paul Lederach
Encyclopedia
John Paul Lederach is Professor of International Peacebuilding at the University of Notre Dame
, Notre Dame, Indiana
, and concurrently Distinguished Scholar at Eastern Mennonite University
. He has written widely on conflict resolution
and mediation
. He holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Colorado and has been at Eastern Mennonite University
since 1990.
Dr. Lederach's theories of elicitive methods of conflict resolution have been influential in the fields of political science
, peace studies, international relations
and conflict transformation
. His approach is elicitive approaches to conflict intervention which he calls Conflict Transformation. His works have been published widely in English and Spanish.
His academic work comes laden with examples from his experience in the field as a mediator
, negotiator, peacebuilding practitioner, trainer and consultant. At international level, this has involved input into peace processes in, for example, Somalia
, Northern Ireland
, Nicaragua
, Colombia
and Nepal
. Within communities, his work has often been at the level of reconciliation within church and family.
Dr. Lederach is a committed Mennonite
Christian
, and as he explains in his 1999 book The Journey Toward Reconciliation (see below) his Christian faith has impacted both his thinking and application of non-violent solutions to conflict. In 2000, he received the Community of Christ International Peace Award
.
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
, Notre Dame, Indiana
Notre Dame, Indiana
Notre Dame is a census-designated place north of South Bend in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States; it includes the campuses of three colleges: the University of Notre Dame, Saint Mary's College, and Holy Cross College. Notre Dame is split between Clay and Portage Townships...
, and concurrently Distinguished Scholar at Eastern Mennonite University
Eastern Mennonite University
Eastern Mennonite University is a private liberal arts university in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, affiliated with one of the historic peace churches, the Mennonite Church USA. Its main campus is on the edge of the small city of Harrisonburg, Virginia, about three miles from state-owned...
. He has written widely on conflict resolution
Conflict resolution
Conflict resolution is conceptualized as the methods and processes involved in facilitating the peaceful ending of some social conflict. Often, committed group members attempt to resolve group conflicts by actively communicating information about their conflicting motives or ideologies to the rest...
and mediation
Mediation
Mediation, as used in law, is a form of alternative dispute resolution , a way of resolving disputes between two or more parties. A third party, the mediator, assists the parties to negotiate their own settlement...
. He holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Colorado and has been at Eastern Mennonite University
Eastern Mennonite University
Eastern Mennonite University is a private liberal arts university in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, affiliated with one of the historic peace churches, the Mennonite Church USA. Its main campus is on the edge of the small city of Harrisonburg, Virginia, about three miles from state-owned...
since 1990.
Dr. Lederach's theories of elicitive methods of conflict resolution have been influential in the fields of political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
, peace studies, international relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
and conflict transformation
Conflict transformation
Conflict transformation is the process by which conflicts, such as ethnic conflict, are transformed into peaceful outcomes. It differs from conflict resolution and conflict management approaches in that it recognises "that contemporary conflicts require more than the reframing of positions and the...
. His approach is elicitive approaches to conflict intervention which he calls Conflict Transformation. His works have been published widely in English and Spanish.
His academic work comes laden with examples from his experience in the field as a mediator
Mediation
Mediation, as used in law, is a form of alternative dispute resolution , a way of resolving disputes between two or more parties. A third party, the mediator, assists the parties to negotiate their own settlement...
, negotiator, peacebuilding practitioner, trainer and consultant. At international level, this has involved input into peace processes in, for example, Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. Within communities, his work has often been at the level of reconciliation within church and family.
Dr. Lederach is a committed Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, and as he explains in his 1999 book The Journey Toward Reconciliation (see below) his Christian faith has impacted both his thinking and application of non-violent solutions to conflict. In 2000, he received the Community of Christ International Peace Award
Community of Christ International Peace Award
The Community of Christ International Peace Award was established to honor and bring attention to the work of peacemaking and peacemakers in the world...
.
Publications
- Preparing for Peace: Conflict Transformation Across Cultures, Syracuse UniversitySyracuse UniversitySyracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
Press, 1995, ISBN 0-8156-2725-4 - Building Peace: Sustainable Reconciliation in Divided Societies, U.S. Institute of Peace, 1997, ISBN 1-878379-73-9
- The Journey Toward Reconciliation, Pennsylvania: Herald Press, 1999, ISBN 0-8361-9082-3
- A Handbook of International Peacebuilding: Into The Eye Of The Storm, Jossey-Bass, 2002, ISBN 0-7879-5879-4
- The Little Book of Conflict Transformation, Good Books, 2003, ISBN 1-56148-390-7
- The Moral Imagination: The Art and Soul of Building Peace, Oxford University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-19-517454-2
External links
- http://www.emu.edu/personnel/people/show/lederacj
- http://ecapc.org/articles/LederaJ_ChallengeTerror.asp
- http://kroc.nd.edu/people/directory/faculty/john-paul-lederach
- http://kroc.nd.edu/newsevents/news/peacebuilders-share-work-and-wisdom-apprentices-worldwide-485