Conflict is a natural part of human life that can be a positive force for change, but can also bedestructive and eventually lead to violence and war. This course explores different forms of conflict -- from non-violent to violent -- and their underlying dynamics. The following questionswill be addressed: Why can some conflicts be managed in a peaceful way, while others end ingenocide? What are origins, stages, and causes of conflict? What role does the cultural context,the state, the military, the economy, the gender order and ethnicity and nationalism play inconflicts? What are techniques to mediate and transform conflicts? And how in the aftermath of a conflict, can peace be made sustainable?