Guide to Using Simulations

The difference between successful and unsuccessful simulations is often found in planning and resources. Issues covered in the Guide to Using Simulations include the educational value of using simulations, the advantages and disadvantages of using simulations, preparing simulations, role allocation, use of space, running a simulation, and debriefing the simulation.

Current Simulations

The following simulations remain current because they are either fictional or historical in a way that subsequent events will not make them irrelevant.

• The Case of "Palmyra"
  This simulation focuses on a conflict in the territory of "Palmyra" in the fictional country of "Siwa." The aim of the simulation is to demonstrate for the participants some of the challenges facing peacemakers in their efforts to resolve violent international conflicts.


• The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
  This simulation focuses on a U.S.-led effort to bring together many elements of both Israeli and Palestinian society to hold discussions about the needs and interests of both sides before entering into formal negotiations.


• Nepal: Governance, Corruption, and Conflict
  The simulation will be based on a fictional summit held in Kathmandu to address critical issues of governance and corruption that fuel divisions and hamper peace and progress in Nepal. The summit will launch a new body, the Governance Monitoring and Implementation Commission, which will produce a roadmap on how to improve governance and initiate reforms.
  • Public Roles
  • Private Roles


• The Paris Peace Talks of December 1972–January 1973
  This simulation focuses on a brief phase in the Paris Peace Talks when the United States, North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Soviet Union were meeting in Paris to salvage peace in Vietnam.

Archived Simulations

The following simulations reflect situations that have changed significantly since they were written. However, teachers are encouraged to make use of the scenarios and materials by updating them or as a way to engage students through a more historical role play.

• The Cambodia Peace Settlement
  Participants role-play negotiators at a peace settlement conference, where, due to international pressure, the Cambodian government has agreed to negotiate with opposition leaders over implementation of a peace settlement and past accountability for genocide and war crimes.


• Colombia: The Effectiveness of Nonviolent Civic Action
  Participants will simulate a national summit to bring together representatives from civil society and the government in the lead up to a massive civilian demonstration against the ongoing violence in Colombia. The purpose of the summit is to address the implications and repercussions of creating what could be the largest ever civilian demonstration on the streets of Bogota.


• Conflict Prevention in the Greater Horn of Africa
  Participants will simulate the work of the ad hoc OAU committee that the secretary general of the Organization of African Unity—Salim Ahmed Salim—organized to deal with the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea.


• Northern Ireland: One Step at a Time—The Derry March and Prospects for Peace
  The simulation deals with a specific issue in the Northern Ireland conflict: that of the marches which serve as a microcosm of the larger conflict between Catholics and Protestants.


• Peacekeeping in Kashmir: An American Choice
  This simulation focuses on a meeting of the U.S. National Security Council debating the possible use of peacekeeping forces on the ground in Kashmir. In this fictional case, the U.S. government must consider a peace proposal negotiated between India, Pakistan, and China and put forward by a former U.S. assistant secretary of state acting as mediator.


• Sri Lanka: Setting the Agenda for Peace
  Participants will simulate the meeting in Geneva to explore possibilities for the resolution of the Sri Lankan conflict and the subsequent reconstruction of Sri Lankan society.