POL2346 Conflict ManagementBahçeşehir UniversityDegree Programs ENERGY SYSTEMS ENGINEERINGGeneral Information For StudentsDiploma SupplementErasmus Policy StatementNational QualificationsBologna Commission
ENERGY SYSTEMS ENGINEERING
Bachelor TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 QF-EHEA: First Cycle EQF-LLL: Level 6

Course Introduction and Application Information

Course Code Course Name Semester Theoretical Practical Credit ECTS
POL2346 Conflict Management Fall 3 0 3 6
This catalog is for information purposes. Course status is determined by the relevant department at the beginning of semester.

Basic information

Language of instruction: English
Type of course: Non-Departmental Elective
Course Level: Bachelor’s Degree (First Cycle)
Mode of Delivery: Hybrid
Course Coordinator : Assoc. Prof. ESRA ALBAYRAKOĞLU
Recommended Optional Program Components: None
Course Objectives: This course offers an overview of different definitions, perspectives, actors, and tools in conflict management. Examining the history and development of contending approaches to conflict and peace, their basic assumptions and methodologies and their application to current conflict situations, the course aims to understand why and how conflicts emerge, escalate, and are transformed.

Learning Outcomes

The students who have succeeded in this course;
The students who have succeeded in this course;

1. Define basic concepts and approaches of conflict management;
2. Differentiate between peacekeeping, peacemaking and peacebuilding;
3. Grasp the historical evolution of International Human Rights Law and International Humanitarian Law;
4. Evaluate the effectiveness of various conflict management practices at the state, non-state and organizational levels;
5. Develop competencies with respect to active inquiry and critical thinking.

Course Content

Introduction to conflict management; sources of conflict; escalation of conflict; conflict prevention; conflict mitigation; peacekeeping; peacemaking; reconstruction and peacebuilding; reconciliation; institutionalization; gender issues; case study.

Weekly Detailed Course Contents

Week Subject Related Preparation
1) Introduction to Conflict Management • Ramsbotham et. al. "Introduction to Conflict Resolution”, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-mymUJRULs (10 conflicts to watch in 2022)
2) Sources of Conflict • Mitchell, “Compulsion & Formation”, 2014. • Smith, Trends and Causes of Armed Conflict, 2004. • Avruch and Black, “The Culture Question and Conflict Resolution”, 1991. • Agbiboa, “Peace at Daggers Drawn? Boko Haram", 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1_qXlLGX8k (The causes of war and conditions of peace by Dr. David Cortright) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DlglQFGY64 (Why we go to war? by Noam Chomsky)
3) Escalation of Conflict • Mitchell, “Perpetuation”, 2014. • Sørensen and Johansen, “Nonviolent Conflict Escalation”, 2016. • Shain, “The Role of Diasporas in Conflict Perpetuation or Resolution”, 2002. • Moon and Suh, “Historical Analogy and Demonization of Others", 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iHfSR3_zIs (Diaspora mobilisation during conflicts: Armenian, Albanian and Palestinian diasporas compared) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJdErHQGEHM (Mahatma Gandhi, Sarojini Naidu and others during the Salt Satyagraha (Salt March), April 1930) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpGWkPBpMaY (Serbia: The Legacy of Otpor) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVu9eawb1QY (Greenpeace: Inspiring Action) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2att1HJqH2o (Pussy Riot sentenced for Putin protest) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIPmvoHWPFU (China & Japan: History of tensions) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUKblujiRyk (Why is Russia invading Ukraine?)
4) Conflict Prevention • Mitchell, “Prevention”, 2014. • Ackermann, “The Idea and Practice of Conflict Prevention”, 2003. • Eralp and Beriker, “Assessing the Conflict Resolution Potential of the EU", 2005. • Clubb, “From Terrorists to Peacekeepers: The IRA", 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M83fUUEqA9g (What is conflict prevention?) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OceStgzIHc (Preventing conflict, making peace) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4hlnZFdClA (Iran: The impact of conflict prevention) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMA6QyuhrsU (Nicosia: The world's last divided capital) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82edi9VJrn8 (Brexit, dissidents and the Irish border)
5) Conflict Mitigation • Mitchell, “Mitigation”, 2014. • Tir and Stinnett, “Weathering Climate Change: Can Institutions Mitigate International Water Conflict?” 2012. • Dukalskis, “Why Do Some Insurgent Groups Agree to Ceasefires While Others Do Not?", 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZ-K4rlz8mo (Conflict mitigation in informal settlements: Kenya Tuna Uwezo Program) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9CgvK0J5ww (Somali youth participation in conflict mitigation) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04axDDRVy_o (The “ethnic cleansing” of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims, explained) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdizU0arrJ0 (Nile River dispute) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45rqjz6qXRo (Mekong Transboundary Dialogue)
6) WRAP UP AND Q&A MIDTERM EXAM
7) Containing Conflict: Peacekeeping • Mitchell, “Termination I: Stopping the Violence”, 2014. • Diehl, “With the Best of Intentions: Lessons from UNOSOM I and II”, 1996. • Howe, “Lessons of Liberia: ECOMOG and Regional Peacekeeping”, 1996/97. • Karlsrud, “The UN at War: Examining the Consequences of Peace-enforcement Mandates", 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2xOe22dwi4 (Peacekeeping, peacemaking, peacebuilding) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyJULAN7-so (UN Peacekeeping: Challenges from the field today and tomorrow) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VONdAkDZTUI (Why wealthy "peacekeeping nations" are rejecting UN missions) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDUAEegImXY (Patrolling the lawless Sahara Desert with The Blue Helmets) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-2uMYBSL68 (Under the Blue Helmet: Life as a UN peacekeeper in the Democratic Republic of the Congo) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBEERS2JvuU (China’s growing role in UN peacekeeping missions in Africa)
8) Ending Conflict: Peacemaking • Mitchell, “Termination II: Addressing the Issues”, 2014. • Bercovitch and Jackson, “Negotiation or Mediation?", 2011. • Lundgren, “Mediation in Syria", 2016. • Böhmelt, “The Effectiveness of Tracks of Diplomacy Strategies in Third-party Interventions”, 2010. • Alonso, “Why Do Terrorists Stop? Analyzing Why ETA Members Abandon or Continue", 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0ziw8ojM7g (Track II Diplomacy) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyV7mAdnwYk (Track I.5 Diplomacy) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrC30Tlsf2I (International Peace Summit: Resolving conflicts through mediation) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZNH49ujKcw (Brief history of ETA & peacemaking efforts) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhBqx2clQd4 (The art of peacemaking: Can women solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?)
9) Post-conflict Reconstruction and Peacebuilding • Ramsbotham et. al. "Postwar Reconstruction”, 2016. • Baxter and Ikobwa, “Peace Education", 2005. • Tom, “Building a Liberal Peace in Post-Conflict Sierra Leone”, 2017. • Linabary, Krishna et al., “The Conflict Family: Storytelling as an Activity and a Method", 2016. • Chandler, “The Twenty Years’ Crisis”, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHaMoUZv4_A (Peacebuilding starts small) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaKcKTIUkXY (UN to stand behind Sierra Leone peacebuilding efforts) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bI_WP2Hijz0 (The future of peacebuilding: Lessons from Afghanistan) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBEevCiQM4o (Politics of reconstruction) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cid9OiYUIOU&t=52s (Rethinking gender in peacebuilding)
10) Post-conflict Reconciliation • Mitchell, “Reconciliation", 2014. • Mutua, “Never Again: Questioning the Yugoslav and Rwanda Tribunals”, 1997. • Rafferty, “Engaging with the Violent Past in Northern Ireland”, 2017. • Hassauna, “Spaces for Dialogue in a Segregated Landscape: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”, 2016. • Schliesser, “The Politics of Reconciliation in Post-genocide Rwanda”, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DajmN6zQrGE (Rwanda’s gacaca courts questioned 10 years on) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99HhGu5kwJg (Genocide’s legacy: A reconciliation village in Rwanda) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdCR9N8v9XY (Two decades after peace pact, reconciliation still lags in Northern Ireland) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBP_O6OhlCc&t=53s (What does a "Jerusalem Hug" look like?) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGYMOLj3mSM (Jews, Muslims and Christians form "peace circle" in Jerusalem) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P15U1sXJ5xM (Establishment of Peace and Conflict Studies for Reconciliation in Iraq)
11) Institutionalization • Mitchell, “Institutionalization”, 2014. • Fixdal and Smith, “Humanitarian Intervention and Just War”, 1998. • Plessis and Pete, “Who Guards the Guards? The ICC and Serious Crimes Committed by the UN Peacekeepers", 2004. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcBovmGZSPU (Michael Walzer on Just War Theory) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR8qPyCrrsM (ICC - I) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jz7fOtThE6E (ICC - II) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDQepfY3igM (ICC - III) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjD95gmn87c (ICC - IV) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBSP3GCLNQo (ICC - V) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxhyGQpdVME (Does the ICC target African states?) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5kup8zyxks (Will the ICC probe into Palestinian Territories achieve anything?)
12) Gender Issues • Ramsbotham et. al. "Gender and Conflict Resolution”, 2016. • O'Reilly, "Contextualising Gendered Agency in War and Peace”, 2018. • Parashar, “Gender, Jihad, and Jingoism", 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI2AZdl-2O8 (Gender analysis of conflict: Why is it important?) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaukupIWOL0 (The importance of women in peace processes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ps1eiGL_6Y (Women at the negotiating table: The missing piece in peacebuilding) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhFLJJPWT9M (Gender dynamics in conflict-affected Middle East and North African countries)
13) Vaka Çalışması: Dağlık Karabağ Anlaşmazlığı https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKoxiCE_ozE (Armenia-Azerbaijan | The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict explained) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNyh1VDrVlQ (The Nagorno-Karabakh disputed region: old conflict and new players) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GUncACmm8s (The gendered face of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict)
14) Review

Sources

Course Notes / Textbooks: Weekly readings will be uploaded on ItsLearning at the beginning of the semester. Please note that all book chapters and articles listed on the syllabus are also accessible through the BAU Library.
The PPT files will be shared on ItsLearning following each class.

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Haftalık ders okumalarının tamamı, dönem başında ItsLearning’e yüklenir. Ders izlencesinde yer alan tüm kitap bölümleri ve makalelere BAU Kütüphanesi’nden de erişilebilir.
PowerPoint dosyaları, hafta bazında ve işlenen ders sonrasında ItsLearning’e yüklenir.
References: Youtube videos on related subjects.

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İşlenen konularla ilgili Youtube videoları.

Evaluation System

Semester Requirements Number of Activities Level of Contribution
Quizzes 2 % 20
Midterms 1 % 30
Final 1 % 50
Total % 100
PERCENTAGE OF SEMESTER WORK % 50
PERCENTAGE OF FINAL WORK % 50
Total % 100

ECTS / Workload Table

Activities Number of Activities Workload
Course Hours 14 42
Study Hours Out of Class 14 102
Quizzes 2 1
Midterms 1 1.5
Final 1 1.5
Total Workload 148

Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes

No Effect 1 Lowest 2 Low 3 Average 4 High 5 Highest
           
Program Outcomes Level of Contribution
1) Build up a body of knowledge in mathematics, science and Energy Systems Engineering subjects; use theoretical and applied information in these areas to model and solve complex engineering problems.
2) Ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex Energy Systems Engineering problems; select and apply proper modeling and analysis methods for this purpose.
3) Ability to design complex Energy systems, processes, devices or products under realistic constraints and conditions, in such a way as to meet the desired result; apply modern design methods for this purpose.
4) Ability to devise, select, and use modern techniques and tools needed for solving complex problems in Energy Systems Engineering practice; employ information technologies effectively.
5) Ability to design and conduct numerical or pysical experiments, collect data, analyze and interpret results for investigating the complex problems specific to Energy Systems Engineering.
6) Ability to cooperate efficiently in intra-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary teams; and show self-reliance when working on Energy Systems-related problems
7) Ability to communicate effectively in English and Turkish (if he/she is a Turkish citizen), both orally and in writing. Write and understand reports, prepare design and production reports, deliver effective presentations, give and receive clear and understandable instructions.
8) Recognize the need for life-long learning; show ability to access information, to follow developments in science and technology, and to continuously educate oneself.
9) Develop an awareness of professional and ethical responsibility, and behave accordingly. Be informed about the standards used in Energy Systems Engineering applications.
10) Learn about business life practices such as project management, risk management, and change management; develop an awareness of entrepreneurship, innovation, and sustainable development.
11) Acquire knowledge about the effects of practices of Energys Systems Engineering on health, environment, security in universal and social scope, and the contemporary problems of Energys Systems engineering; is aware of the legal consequences of Energys Systems engineering solutions.