CONF 340: Global Conflict Analysis and Resolution

Conflict Memoranda Assignment

CONF 340 | Global Conflict Analysis and Resolution

I. Summary

This semester, you will write four short (2 pages, single-spaced) memoranda that apply the
lessons of class to present-day global conflicts and peacebuilding efforts. Each memorandum
must brief the reader on current developments in the particular conflict in question and then
analyze the conflicts in light of theories of global conflict. Each memorandum is worth 10% of
your grade; they are collectively worth 40%. Memoranda are due on Wednesday before class.
Two are due before our first take-home exam (i.e., by Week 7).
The remainder of this document explains the goals, content, and logistics of the assignment, as
well as how I will grade them. As usual, if you have any questions, you should contact me.

II. Objectives of the Assignment

I have four objectives in mind for you in this assignment, each of these goals maps to our course
objectives on the syllabus.
1) Deepen your understanding of conflict and peacebuilding in the world around you
(Objective 1 in the syllabus).
2) Learn how to apply the theories / frameworks and research we study in class to the real
world around us (Objective 2 in the syllabus).
3) Critically evaluate potential interventions into conflict (Objective 3 in the syllabus).
4) Improve important job skills, especially research and analytical writing (Objective 4 in
the syllabus).

III. Assignment

Each memorandum must be addressed to me. Imagine that I am considering leading a team of
George Mason students to work in a particular ongoing conflict or post-conflict context. I only
have a short amount of time to prepare and I ask you, as a student of conflict analysis, to write a
brief memorandum based on the most recent news from that conflict context.
Each memorandum therefore will discuss recent news on either conflict or a peacebuilding
intervention in a locality of your choosing.
For example, Based on a brief look at BBC News' website in late August last year, the conflicts
you choose could be about the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)'s peace process; conflict in
Iraq, Syria or Venezuela; the recent attacks on civilians in Germany, France, or India; American
Insurrection / meaning of reconciliation, Migration to US and /or Europe and many more.
The subject matter can be about a conflict that continues or about news of efforts to transform or
resolve conflict. Obviously, there's a broad range of conflicts and interventions that qualify. As
we learn in class, global conflict today can involve different combinations of civil war, interstate
war, terrorism, transnational crime, local conflict, one-sided violence, etc. Similarly,
interventions may include those designed to prevent conflict, protect civilians, mediate between
opposing sides, build peace when direct violence ends, reconcile formerly polarized groups, etc.
But they may also include interventions by outside actors to help one side win. In other words,
not a peacebuilding intervention, but a military one of some kind. Interventions may include the

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 CONF 340: Global Conflict Analysis and Resolution

UN, regional bodies, international NGOs, sovereign states, peace constituencies within the
conflict itself, etc. You may not write about the same topic more than once. If you have questions
about your subject, check in with me.

IV. Each memo must accomplish three goals.

1. The memo must brief me about the most recent news in that conflict context or
intervention. What has been happening? Who are the main actors? What have their
actions been? Who is intervening?

2. The memo must analyze the conflict in light of the theories and evidence on global
conflict that we read in class. What are the reasons for this conflict? How might the
theories we study in this class interpret this conflict differently? What have the effects of
this conflict been? What does this analysis mean for the success of interventions to
resolve the conflict? Do you have any other analytical thoughts that are different from our
theories and evidence in class thus far?

3. Have a clear recommendation of the way forward. In the other world what are your
suggestion on what should be considered as a part of a solution to this conflict?

V. Process
• Memos are due before class begins. Check the syllabus for due dates. You will see a
link on Blackboard to send your memo. The memo needs to be related to the readings
that have been covered in this class. For example, you may write about the impact of
discrimination against ethnic minorities (Karen, Kachin or/and Rohingya) in Burma
after we discuss grievance theories of conflict.
• You must complete at least four memos. If you do not, you will receive a 0 for the
memos you failed to turn in.
• You will have an option to re-write (optional) the memo (only one) that you have
received the lowest grade on. If you choose to re-write a memo, only your best four
grades will be included when calculating your total grade.

VI. Format

Follow these formatting rules very carefully! Please Do Not use your name on the top of the
memo. Instead, us your G-number (e.g.: G-000000). Memos can be only two pages long, single-
spaced. I will not read anything past the second page. They should be single-spaced in a normal
font (e.g., Times New Roman) in 12-pt font, with an extra space between paragraphs. Please do
not attempt to change the margins and font sizes; I'll notice the differences.

Use the Chicago citation style for your sources, which you can view more information about at
https://writingcenter.gmu.edu/guides/chicago-citation-style-quick-guide. This will mean using
foot-notes to cite your sources; follow the rules carefully. Do not include a bibliography page;
the footnotes will be enough.

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VII. Tips for Writing Good Memoranda

This assignment is different than the standard analytical or research paper. Here are a few tips to
help:
❖ Read the news daily. If you do, you'll more likely have a list of possible topics at your
fingertips. Keep a list of potential topics.

❖ Choose topics that interest you. Highlight conflicts, areas of the world, or peace
interventions that especially interest you. Set a news alert so that you're notified of news
stories about topics of interest.

❖ Focus, focus, focus. It's a bad idea to bite off more than you can chew out of ambition.
DON'T try to write a memo on the origins of conflict in Iraq. DO try to write one about
the impact of violence on civilians during the fall of ISIL in Tal Afar. Let me know if you
have a question about focus.

❖ Do your research. You will need to do some serious research on your topic; it won't be
enough to read only 3-4 news articles and write your paper. So use ProQuest, LexisNexis,
or browser searches to identify as many online sources as you can. Look for reports
written up by NGOs, government agencies, etc. See you if you can put together a timeline
of what's been going on in your conflict.

❖ Be careful about sources. Wikipedia is a great way to get some general information, but
don't use it as a source. Be careful about bias in your sources, as well; in work like this,
it's generally a good idea to get at least 4-5 sources for a claim that might be
controversial. If you write about Palestine and Israel, for example, you may not wish to
cite only Israeli or only Palestinian sources.

❖ Ask yourself, “What is this an example of?". As you compile your sources, you should
find opportunities to apply theories we've already studied to the topic in which you're
interested. Theories are means by which we simplify and make sense of complex
realities. Ask yourself how theories we've studied apply to this case. Perhaps there are
multiple theories that would have different interpretations.

❖ Write and edit very carefully. Your writing should be crisp, professional, grammatically
correct, and free of jargon. It is far more difficult to write a short than a long assignment.
Each sentence and word matters. In a brief memo, you must write very concisely and
crisply. Ask yourself, “Do I really need this sentence/phrase?" Edit your work by printing
it out and marking it up.

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VIII. Grading Standards

The following rubric is how assignments will be evaluated.

A. (A) The memo provides an accurate, robust, and concise summary of recent events in
the conflict/peacebuilding effort in question. It is superbly sourced. The analysis
successfully and accurately applies theory and evidence to the case. The writing is
clear and concise.

B. (B) The memo provides a good summary of the conflict context, but one that misses a
few details. It may also miss a potential theoretical explanation for the conflict or
misapply theory and evidence to it. The writing is generally clear but has some
mistakes throughout. The work shows potential for an A, but doesn't quite get there.
C. (C) The memo has frequent errors of summary and interpretation. The brief misses
some important aspects of the conflict and the analysis has serious trouble applying
theory to the case. The paper is at times unclear or confusing. This is passing work,
but only marginally so.

D. (D) The memo has major errors in summary and interpretation; there's more wrong
about this memo than is right. The paper has at best only thin sourcing. The
application of theory to the case is either non-existent or incoherent. It is written very
poorly. But there's still something here that makes us think that the memo might have
gotten to a C. An immediate meeting with is strongly encouraged.

E. (F.) The memo offers little in in the way of accurate summary or analysis. There's
little that we can seize on in the memo as a means to showing how it might have
passed. An immediate meeting is required.