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The walk from "no" to "yes" | William Ury
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The walk from "no" to "yes" | William Ury

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In this section, the speaker introduces a story about negotiation involving three sons and 17 camels, highlighting the challenge of dividing the camels among them.

The Story of the 17 Camels

  • The father left 17 camels to his three sons: half to the first son, a third to the second son, and a ninth to the youngest son.
  • The sons struggled to divide 17 camels as it didn't split evenly. They sought help from a wise woman who offered her camel, making it 18 in total.
  • By having 18 camels, each son could take their share without conflict, leaving one camel extra which they returned to the wise woman.

Finding Peace Through Understanding

This part delves into the speaker's experiences in conflict zones worldwide and emphasizes the importance of understanding and resolving differences for peace.

Humanity as One Family

  • Humanity is likened to a family with various conflicts globally due to differences.
  • The speaker has been involved in resolving conflicts across different regions like Yugoslavia, Middle East, Chechnya, emphasizing finding common ground as key to peace.

The Role of Community in Conflict Resolution

  • Communities play a crucial role in resolving conflicts by acting as mediators or facilitators between conflicting parties.
  • Sharing an example from South Africa with San Bushmen tribes using dialogue and community involvement for conflict resolution showcases effective methods used historically.

The Third Side: A Key Player in Conflict Resolution

This section explores the concept of "the third side" in conflicts and how surrounding communities can contribute positively towards resolution.

Understanding "The Third Side"

  • "The third side" refers to individuals outside direct conflict parties who can influence positively by reminding them of broader stakes beyond immediate disagreements.

The Third Side: The Path to Peace

In this section, the speaker discusses the role of the third side in conflict resolution and explores the application of these principles in challenging conflicts like Chechnya and the Middle East.

Understanding Conflict Resolution

  • The speaker highlights the importance of finding a way to stop suffering and bloodshed in Chechnya by utilizing the concept of the third side to help parties reach a resolution.
  • Emphasizes that stories play a crucial role in conflicts, as they give meaning to our lives and shape our perceptions. Stories are essential for transmitting knowledge and understanding different perspectives.

Uniting Through Stories

  • Explores the origin story of the Middle East, focusing on Abraham as a symbolic figure representing unity, interconnectedness, respect, and kindness towards strangers. Abraham's values serve as a potential antidote to terrorism and religious intolerance.
  • Discusses how Abraham's story can be leveraged to counter terrorism by promoting hospitality and unity. Encourages reexamining narratives in conflict zones like the Middle East to foster understanding and peace.

Walking Towards Understanding

  • Proposes experiencing stories rather than just hearing them by retracing Abraham's footsteps through walking. Walking symbolizes human connection and common direction, offering a powerful tool for building relationships and empathy.
  • Highlights the significance of walking together in negotiations as it fosters collaboration and reduces tension. Suggests creating a path following Abraham's journey across 10 countries in the Middle East to promote unity among diverse communities.

Retracing Abraham's Path

This section delves into an initiative where individuals from various countries retraced Abraham's path through regions associated with his legacy, emphasizing hospitality, kindness, and unity along their journey.

Journeying Through History

  • Describes how a group embarked on retracing Abraham's path from Southern Turkey to Hebron, visiting significant locations linked to his story such as Aleppo, Damascus, Jerusalem, Bethlehem. The experience showcased hospitality rooted in Abraham's teachings across different cultures.

The Abraham Path: A Journey of Hospitality

In this section, the speaker discusses the impact and significance of people walking parts of the path of Abraham in the Middle East, promoting hospitality and kindness towards strangers.

Walking the Path of Abraham

  • Walking parts of the path of Abraham in the Middle East has become a popular activity for thousands of people, fostering connections and hospitality among communities.
  • The walks have extended to various countries like Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Turkey, and Syria, creating a unique experience for participants.
  • Communities have organized walks within cities to promote interfaith dialogue and unity. For example, in Cincinnati, a walk from a church to a mosque to a synagogue culminated in an Abrahamic meal.

Economic Impact and Community Empowerment

This part delves into how walking the path not only fosters cultural exchange but also has economic benefits for local communities along the route.

Economic Empowerment through Hospitality

  • The concept of Abrahamic hospitality is not just psychological but also has economic implications as walkers spend money along their journey.
  • The story of Um Ahmad from Northern Jordan exemplifies how individuals like her can earn income by offering meals to walkers passing through their villages.

Transforming Conflict Through Hospitality

Here, the speaker explores how embracing Abrahamic values and promoting tourism could potentially transform conflicts in the Middle East.

Changing Perspectives for Peace

  • Drawing parallels with Europe's transformation post-WWII, there is hope that embracing common identity (Abraham's story) and economy (tourism) could lead to peace in the Middle East.
  • Reflecting on past conflict resolutions in South Africa and Northern Ireland, it is emphasized that transforming conflicts is challenging yet achievable with collective effort.

Call to Action: Embracing Hospitality for Peace

The speaker urges individuals to adopt a "third-side" approach by engaging with those from different backgrounds as a step towards fostering peace.

Taking Steps Towards Peace

  • Encouraging individuals to take small steps towards peace by engaging with others from diverse cultures or ethnicities through conversations.
  • Emphasizing that each individual plays a crucial role in advancing peace efforts globally by uniting through acts of understanding and empathy.
Channel: TED
Video description

http://www.ted.com William Ury, author of "Getting to Yes," offers an elegant, simple (but not easy) way to create agreement in even the most difficult situations -- from family conflict to, perhaps, the Middle East. TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck on design, Jill Bolte Taylor on observing her own stroke, Nicholas Negroponte on One Laptop per Child, Jane Goodall on chimpanzees, Bill Gates on malaria and mosquitoes, Pattie Maes on the "Sixth Sense" wearable tech, and "Lost" producer JJ Abrams on the allure of mystery. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. Closed captions and translated subtitles in a variety of languages are now available on TED.com, at http://www.ted.com/translate. Watch a highlight reel of the Top 10 TEDTalks at http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/top10