I watched this TED talk on the plane to Bangkok. It’s by Jonas Gahr Støre, the foreign minister of Norway, who makes a compelling case for open discussion, even when values diverge, in an attempt to build greater security for all. He talks about:
“The deficit of political dialogue, our ability to address modern conflicts as they are, to go to the source of what they are all about and to understand the key players and how to deal with them…”
Many of his points struck a chord with me and many of the themes came up during lectures this week. When do we talk and when do we walk away and under what circumstances? Definitely worth a watch if you haven’t seen it already.
Practical Peace 
Hello! I just discovered your blog via Invesp, as I have a peacemaking blog as well, Peaceworks (http://xanskinner.blogspot.com) Thanks very much for journaling about your course and the resources! I will be sure to read more of your posts and use the resources to strengthen my own background in peace and conflict studies. I’ve also traveled in Thailand, but only as a tourist, during the time my family lived in China from 2004 – 2008. My original blog, Crossing Cultures (http://xanskinner.wordpress.com) was about my cross cultural experience as an expat. It was that journaling that led me to realize that everything I was concerned about was related to peacebuilding. 🙂