Ever wonder why peace seems so difficult in the Middle East? In Africa? In Afghanistan and Pakistan? Too often, the headlines trumpet peace and months later declare failure. Why is it that internationally negotiated peace accords may cause more violence and genocide, not less? Why is it that in fifteen years of international climate change conferences, little has been accomplished? Why is it that the Rwandan genocide was directly caused by the Arusha negotiations? That the Oslo accords caused the Intifada? That the Darfur accords encouraged greater violence instead of promised peace in western Sudan? Why is it that a small band of piqueteros in Argentina are able to block international trade in an environmental justice conflict that has persisted for years? That the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remains unreconciled? Why is it that too often international mediators and negotiators fail to bring peace to the world?

 Elusive Peace penetrates the headlines and takes a critical look at peace negotiations through the eyes of a professional mediator and peacemaker. The international community’s approach to peace negotiations are based on outdated and flawed assumptions of human behavior, sovereignty, and power. These ideas, and the diplomatic technologies based on them, are inadequate to solve our 21^st century problems. The complexity of our problems requires modern attitudes, assumptions, and experience based on what works today rather on than what worked 300 years ago for an elite group of Europeans. Elusive Peace applies these 21^st century concepts and shows how they might be applied more effectively to bring peace to the table. For the general reader, Elusive Peace removes the mystery from the headlines. The “aha!” moments will flow as the reader gains an appreciation and understanding of what it will really take to solve our most intractable international problems.

Elusive Peace is published by Prometheus Books and released in late April 2011. The author is Douglas E. Noll, a nationally recognized mediator and peacemaker. For more information, go to www.elusivepeace.com.