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| Conflict Resolution Consortium | |
|---|---|
| Name | Conflict Resolution Consortium |
| Founded | 1995 |
| Founder | Dr. Eleanor Hayes; Ambassador Marcus Ben-Ami |
| Headquarters | Geneva, Switzerland |
| Type | Non-governmental organization |
| Focus | Mediation, peacebuilding, dialogue facilitation |
Conflict Resolution Consortium is an international non-governmental organization focused on mediation, arbitration, and dialogue facilitation in protracted conflicts. Founded by practitioners and scholars, the Consortium engages state actors, intergovernmental bodies, regional organizations, and civil society to design negotiated settlements, transitional mechanisms, and restorative processes. It operates at the nexus of diplomacy, academic research, and practitioner training to influence peace processes, post-conflict reconstruction, and institutional reform.
The Consortium emerged from dialogues among diplomats and academics following the Oslo Accords, the Dayton Agreement, and the 1994 Rwandan peace conferences, drawing on experiences from Oslo Accords, Dayton Agreement, Rwanda genocide, Good Friday Agreement, and Madrid Conference of 1991. Founders included alumni of Harvard Kennedy School, University of Oxford, Sciences Po, and former officials from United Nations peace operations and the European Union foreign service. Early operations focused on mediation support in the Balkans during the aftermath of the Yugoslav Wars and expanded to engage in informal shuttle diplomacy related to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and the Northern Ireland peace process. By the 2000s the Consortium opened regional offices coordinating with missions such as United Nations Mission in Kosovo and African Union mediation teams.
The Consortium’s stated mission emphasizes negotiated settlements, capacity-building, and evidence-based dispute resolution in conflict-affected settings like Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, Colombia, and Myanmar. Core objectives include: providing third-party mediation in disputes involving actors such as African Union Commission, Organization of American States, and Association of Southeast Asian Nations; training negotiators drawn from institutions like National Democratic Institute and International Crisis Group; and producing analyses useful to policymakers at European Commission and United Nations Security Council meetings. The organization also promotes transitional mechanisms inspired by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (South Africa) model and principles articulated in instruments like the Geneva Conventions.
Governing bodies mirror hybrid models used by entities such as International Committee of the Red Cross and Amnesty International. A Board of Directors with former ministers, ambassadors, and scholars—many from Chatham House, Brookings Institution, and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace—provides oversight. An Executive Secretariat manages field teams deployed in coordination with missions like United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and regional offices linked to Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe hubs. Technical units include Mediation Services, Research and Analysis (affiliated with London School of Economics and Columbia University), Training and Capacity Building (partners with Stanford University), and Legal Advisory (networked with law faculties at Yale Law School).
Programs draw on precedents such as the Carter Center’s election observation and Search for Common Ground’s grassroots engagement. Initiatives include Track II dialogues with non-state actors involved in Syrian Civil War and Libyan Crisis (2011–present), women-led peace tables modeled after the UNSCR 1325 agenda, and youth mediation academies inspired by Seeds of Peace. Rapid response mediation teams have been deployed alongside missions like United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti and in support of ceasefire talks mediated by the Organization of American States during regional crises. The Consortium also runs simulation exercises for negotiators patterned after protocols used in Crisis Simulation Exercises at international diplomacy schools.
The Consortium publishes policy briefs, field reports, and peer-reviewed articles in collaboration with journals and think tanks including International Security, Journal of Peace Research, Foreign Affairs, and the Council on Foreign Relations. Research topics cover transitional justice following models like Truth Commission (Peru), disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration strategies akin to those used in Sierra Leone Civil War post-conflict programs, and power-sharing arrangements referencing the Annan Plan and the Taif Agreement. Annual white papers synthesize lessons from mediation in contexts such as South Sudan and draw on datasets maintained with partners like Uppsala Conflict Data Program.
The Consortium operates through partnerships with intergovernmental organizations, academic institutions, and NGOs, mirroring collaborations seen between International Organization for Migration and research centers. Formal memoranda of understanding exist with United Nations Development Programme, African Union, European External Action Service, and regional bodies like Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Academic networks include cooperative labs with University of Geneva, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and The Fletcher School. Operational collaborations have linked the Consortium with humanitarian actors such as International Rescue Committee and Médecins Sans Frontières during integrated peacebuilding and relief efforts.
Supporters cite successful mediation contributions to localized ceasefires in Mindanao and delimited negotiations in Colombia Peace Process, and credit advisory roles in constitutional dialogues in countries like Tunisia. Critics argue the Consortium’s informal Track II interventions can undermine official diplomacy or lack transparency compared to mechanisms led by bodies like United Nations Mediation Support Unit. Academic critics from institutions such as London School of Economics and Oxford University have questioned methodological rigor in some field studies, while regional activists have contested perceived Western-centric frameworks reminiscent of debates surrounding Responsibility to Protect. The organization has responded by revising codes of conduct and engaging with oversight mechanisms used by entities like Transparency International.