Armed conflict may appear to be in long term decline, but the intractability and destructiveness of contemporary conflicts make conflict resolution as urgent and necessary as ever.
Since the end of the Cold War, conflict prevention and resolution, peacekeeping and peacebuilding have risen to the top of the international agenda.
Major processes of social change, such as democratization, uneven development, and power transitions, sometimes lead to armed conflicts, sometimes to peaceful change. Under what conditions are violent conflicts arising from such changes prevented? Hugh Miall draws upon conflict theory, case studies of averted conflict and a survey of the preventors of war since 1945 to explore this question. He also looks ahead to discuss the prevention of emerging global conflicts, focusing on climate change.