Tracking Complex Conflicts

Complex conflicts can involve a lot more side switching, ingroup fragmentation and coalition rivalries. These rapid-action changes can feel like you are walking on quicksand if you don't get to know the parties involved or their motivations.

Aisha Ahmad will teach you how to map and identify the interests and actors in complex conflict zones. This course is three weeks long. The course will use Mali as an example to show you how to analyze a real-life conflict situation.

This course will examine the major actors in conflict theatre, including state, international, and non-state actors. You'll focus on the Malian conflict and help to organize the information into useful categories. It is crucial to determine what people are willing to do to map conflict. You can begin to determine the type of conflict you're dealing with by mapping the entire matrix of grievances.

This course will help you understand the social and material causes of complex conflicts. It will also examine what motivates rebel groups. This course will explore the issues of identity, ideology, economic grievances, and how they can overlap. Mali is used as a case study to illustrate these factors.

After you have figured out who is who and what they want, this course will focus on how these actors function in the larger conflict system. You'll learn about the various types of coalitions and how they affect your conflict map, from pro-government alliances to rebel and even jihadist allies.