Each week, it seems that fresh incidents of violence, aggression and hatred emerge. The threat of nuclear war, [1] terrorist attacks, [2] mass shootings [3] and the ongoing brutality in Myanmar [4] continue to confound us. It’s as though conflict is to be expected; it’s inevitable.

It would be easy to fall into despair about the state of our world given recent events that have caused so much human suffering, death and anxiety.

As a professor of political science and a researcher in conflict resolution, I see and hear the despondency in my students. Many send me emails expressing fear that the world is heading towards very serious trouble. There is a high level of anxiety about what is happening in distant lands, across the border and here at home.

Given the prevalence and persistence of violence and conflict throughout history, and in the present day, it would also be easy to draw the conclusion that it’s an inescapable part of the human experience, something we ought to resign ourselves to, and a fact of life that we will never be rid of.

Continue to read full article about Why conflict can be necessary to bring about justice [5] by our Political Science professor, Dr. Ian Spears.