<P> Peacekeeping measures may be deployed to avoid violence in solving such incompatibilities . Beginning in the last century, political theorists have been developing the theory of a global peace system that relies upon broad social and political measures to avoid war in the interest of achieving world peace . The Blue Peace approach developed by Strategic Foresight Group facilitates cooperation between countries over shared water resources, thus reducing the risk of war and enabling sustainable development . </P> <P> Conflict resolution is an expanding field of professional practice, both in the U.S. and around the world . The escalating costs of conflict have increased use of third parties who may serve as a conflict specialists to resolve conflicts . In fact, relief and development organizations have added peace - building specialists to their teams . Many major international non-governmental organizations have seen a growing need to hire practitioners trained in conflict analysis and resolution . Furthermore, this expansion has resulted in the need for conflict resolution practitioners to work in a variety of settings such as in businesses, court systems, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions throughout the world . </P> <P> Conflict resolution as both a professional practice and academic field is highly sensitive to cultural practices . In Western cultural contexts, such as Canada and the United States, successful conflict resolution usually involves fostering communication among disputants, problem solving, and drafting agreements that meet underlying needs . In these situations, conflict resolvers often talk about finding a mutually satisfying ("win - win") solution for everyone involved . </P> <P> In many non-Western cultural contexts, such as Afghanistan, Vietnam, and China, it is also important to find "win - win" solutions; however, the routes taken to find them may be very different . In these contexts, direct communication between disputants that explicitly addresses the issues at stake in the conflict can be perceived as very rude, making the conflict worse and delaying resolution . It can make sense to involve religious, tribal, or community leaders; communicate difficult truths through a third party; or make suggestions through stories . Intercultural conflicts are often the most difficult to resolve because the expectations of the disputants can be very different, and there is much occasion for misunderstanding . </P>

Main features of the western approach to conflict resolution