A workshop organized by IDDRI with the support of Sciences Po and the Région Ile-de-France (réseau R2DS)
Following the disappointment over the 2009 Copenhagen negotiations, Sciences Po, in partnership with IDDRI decided to ‘rewind time’ and organised in June 2011 the re-enactment of the negotiation « Copenhague : et si ça s’était passé autrement ? » (COP RW <<) ("What if Copenhagen had happened differently?"). As the field of international negotiation research seems to have generally maintained simulations in the strict role of pedagogical tools, this large-scale simulation was based upon the hypothesis that it was useful to explore the heuristic potential of such complex simulations for social sciences. Therefore, the experience aimed at identifying how a simulation can contribute to both research and practice of international multilateral negotiations, and whether an innovative research agenda can emerge from this type of simulation, thus enabling new bridges between simulations and research.
Building on this experience, IDDRI organises a workshop to identify new questions for research on simulation practice and negotiation.
The workshop will gather participants from research and academia, negotiation practice, and observers of the COP RW or other simulations from other perspectives (sociology of science, art, etc.).
It aims at:
- confronting hypotheses on the relevance of materials of the simulation for international negotiations with other perspectives of research, and particularly with the questions raised by sociology of sciences;
- questioning the heuristic role that simulation games could play in the dialogue between theory, practice and education, and between disciplines;
- reflecting upon what should be observed during complex negotiation processes and the corresponding observation methodology;
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identifying a research agenda for simulation and negotiation research.
