Dealing with Differences Dramas of Mediating Public Disputes

by Forester, John

• ISBN13: 9780195385908
• ISBN10: 019538590X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-08-06
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Politics and public policy are naturally contentious. But while some disputes are easily settled, many are not, and figuring out ways to reach solutions that are agreeable to all is a perennial issue for activists, politicians, planners, and policymakers. In Dealing with Differences, eminent planning scholar John Forester focuses on "hard cases"-conflicts that appear on the surface to be insoluble. Looking at policy disputes over the environment, ethnic conflict, and HIV, he shows how innovative mediators were able to bridge seemingly intractable differences. Dealing with Differences serves as an authoritative and fundamentally pragmatic pathway for anyone who has to engage in the inherently contentious worlds of planning and policymaking. Book jacket.

Author Biography

John Forester is Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at Cornell University

Table of Contents

Introduction: Discovery, Creativity, and Change in the Face of Conflict	p. 3
When Parties Conflict, Expect that More Is Possible than Anyone Says
Beyond Promises: Making Public Participation and Democratic Deliberation Work	p. 19
Cultivating Surprise and the Art of the Possible: The Drama of Mediating Differences	p. 37
Respecting Value Differences and Acting Practically Together Too
Exploring Values-Based Disputes	p. 59
Dealing with Deep Value Differences in Participatory Processes	p. 77
From Venting and Posturing to Learning and Proposing
Practical Consensus Building in the Face of Deep Value Differences: Negotiating HIV/AIDS Prevention	p. 95
Planning and Mediation, Participation and Posturing: What's a Facilitative Leader to Do?	p. 111
From Arguing to Inventing, from Presuming to Enabling Action
Making Public Participation in Governance Work: Distinguishing and Integrating Dialogue, Debate, and Negotiation	p. 133
Envisioning Possibilities: How Humor and Irony Recognize Dignity and Build Power	p. 155
Conclusion: Transforming Participatory Processes Integrating and Transcending Dialogue, Debate, and Negotiation	p. 175
Appendixes	p. 189
Notes	p. 193
Bibliography	p. 207
Index	p. 219
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