It's not the spark that caused the fire...

What motivated you (or your organization) to become involved in peace and conflict resolution?

Began studying religion during my undergraduate and focused my graduate studies on religious and identity conflicts and how they influence violence. As I saw both the beauty and danger of religion, I realized it will take a concerted effort to encourage people to seek the peace of their religions and cultures rather than violence.

Please feel free to provide a short bio about yourself or the work of your organization (no more than 3 paragraphs)

Brandon Sipes, M.A. Senior Consultant: The ARIA Group. Brandon Sipes has spent the last several years engaged with identity conflicts in the United States and around the world, leading to an understanding of the way in which identity can be utilized for both division and unity. Research on religious conflict has taken him to Northern Ireland, Croatia, Bosnia and the Middle East. His work with ARIA has included organizational visioning and conflict mediation, facilitator training and development, as well as educational and training work.

Please list the countries and/or regions in which you (or your organization) have direct and significant expertise

Northern Ireland, Croatia, Bosnia and the Middle East

What is your current country of residence (or location of your organization)?

United States

What is your current job (and organization) and/or where and what field are you studying?

Senior Consultant: The ARIA Group

How many years professional experience do you have ?

3-5

What is your personal or organizational website?

http://www.ariagroup.com

What is one of your favorite websites in the field? (please provide one answer per box)

http://www.beyondintractability.org

What is one of your favorite websites in the field? (please provide one answer per box)

http://www.usip.org

Which are your primary sectoral areas of expertise (or the primary sectoral areas of your organization) ?

Conflict Resolution, Organizational Development, Peacebuilding

Which are your primary skills areas(or the primary skill areas of your organization)?

Capacity Building, Evaluation, Program Design, Training, Intervention

What are some of your current areas of research (if any)?

Intra-Group Pre-Negotiation: Often conflict mediations / interventions are stymied by a lack of consensus within each stakeholder group. These internal divisions hamper the fluidity and efficacy of an inter-group dialogue.