CNA's projects have targeted the resolution of conflicts concerning the environment, ethnic tensions, corruption, economic reform, and civil society strengthening, among other issues. Established in 1993, the Center has been supported by grants and contracts from the United States Government, the United States Institute of Peace, the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of the Johns Hopkins University, the United Nations, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (Austria), the Swedish Institute of International Affairs, Battelle Corporation/Pacific Northwest National Laboratories, Kluwer Law International (the Netherlands), the European-American Center for Policy Analysis/RAND Corporation (the Netherlands), and others.

A sample of recent assignments follows:

The Center has also sponsored several policy roundtables for practitioners and analysts to disseminate the findings of negotiation research. These sessions have been conducted under the auspices of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (Austria), the International Studies Association, the International Association for Conflict Management, and the Johns Hopkins University.

Support Areas

The Center offers the following types of support services:

Some Recent Projects

Environmental Security and Negotiation

We conducted research to support a NATO Pilot Study that is examining effective policy responses to environmental security threats and risks. Preventive diplomacy and negotiation activities are among the major policy options that we investigated. As part of this study, we developed an integrated threat assessment for the Caspian Sea region.

Inter-Ethnic Conflict Resolution

We advised Slovakian parliamentarians and nongovernmental leaders on practical dispute resolution techniques to deal with the incipient problems of inter-ethnic conflict between the majority Slovakians and the minority Hungarians and Gypsies. Sponsored by the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) High Commissioner for National Minorities, we offered ideas on how confidence-building measures and problem-solving techniques could be used to enhance inter-ethnic dialogue and avert the outbreak of conflict between these groups.

Negotiator Training for Central and Eastern Europe

We organized and conducted a training workshop for 25 Central and Eastern European (CEE) diplomats at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. This was a negotiation concepts and skills workshop that emphasized the issues and problems of operating effectively in a large multilateral context such as the United Nations. Since many of these new diplomats were trained in fields other than international affairs and diplomacy, this program was an important element of their education. This training workshop was a direct offshoot of an earlier "Train the Trainers" program that we organized in Vienna, Austria for future negotiation trainers and facilitators in the CEE countries.

Environmental Negotiations and the Growing Participation of NGOs

The Center has been studying the special problems and opportunities for resolving conflicts that arise over environmental issues and resources. We consulted with the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development prior to the Rio Earth Summit, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (prior to the Lucerne Conference) on developing an effective environmental action plan for Eastern Europe, and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research on designing a training workshop for policy makers from developing countries on environmental issues. We have worked recently with a Swedish institute and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratories to assess the problems and appropriate strategies to enhance effective policy implementation in field of global warming. Our conclusions point to the importance of facilitating greater participation by nongovernmental organizations in both the initial policy dialogue and decisions at the grassroots level. Much of this NGO involvement requires a broadening commitment to democratization, pluralism, and the building of civil society. To a large extent, dispute resolution systems will be the channel to ensure successful NGO participation. We published an article on compliance with international environmental agreements in Global Environmental Change journal and co-edited a book on negotiating international environmental regimes.

Deciding When to Negotiate

One of the most difficult decisions in dispute resolution occurs before the parties actually begin to settle their differences. It is the very decision to engage in dispute resolution with an enemy, challenger, or outgroup. In many cases, as the conflict escalates, the image of the enemy is distorted out of proportion, resulting in a villainization and demonization of the other side. This makes it more difficult psychologically to come to the decision to negotiate. We have examined this critical issue for the US Institute of Peace and published an article on the subject in the January 1998 issue of the Negotiation Journal.

Post-Agreement Negotiation and Policy Implementation

We have conducted studies which conclude that the policy implementation process is effectively a continuous negotiation process among domestic stakeholders. The dialogue, debate and problem-solving among NGOs, businesses, banks, citizen groups, and various governmental agencies are the mechanisms by which policies are implemented in countries. We have assessed the pitfalls and opportunities which characterize these post-settlement dispute resolution processes. The results of this study have been published in 2003 -- Getting It Done: Post-Agreement Negotiation and International Regimes, B. Spector and I.W. Zartman, editors (Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press).

Cultural Differences in Conflict Resolution

An important long-running debate in the dispute resolution field is the extent to which cultural differences impact the way conflicts are managed within a society and with other countries. We have been studying the problem by conducting interviews with practical negotiators and comparing them across national boundaries. This work was conducted under a grant from the Austrian Government.

Associates

The Center's Executive Director is Dr. Bertram I. Spector.   He has over 25 years of experience providing consulting support, directing research programs, conducting training workshops, and advising governments, industry and international organizations in the area of dispute resolution, negotiation and mediation, and decision-making. He has facilitated many problem-solving workshops, designed dispute resolution systems, and supported prenegotiation planning efforts necessary for effective conflict management. Dr. Spector’s regional specialization is in Europe, the former Soviet Union, and the Middle East. He is also a Senior Associate of Management Systems International in Washington. Most recently, in addition to his duties as Executive Director of the Center, Dr. Spector was a Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at the Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Spector directed the Processes of International Negotiation (PIN) Project at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Vienna, Austria from 1990 to 1993. Prior to that, from 1974 to 1990, he was a Principal of Booz, Allen and Hamilton Inc. and a Vice President of CACI, Inc. in Washington, two international research and consulting organizations.