MIT-Harvard Public Disputes Program -- Program on Negotiation (PON)

The Program on Negotiation (PON) is a university consortium dedicated to developing the theory and practice of negotiation and dispute resolution. As a community of scholars and practitioners, PON serves a unique role in the world negotiation community. Founded in 1983 as a special research project at Harvard Law School, PON includes faculty, students, and staff from Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Tufts University.

The MIT-Harvard Public Disputes Program is an internationally known center for action research committed to thinking about and resolving disputes in the public sector. The Public Disputes Program has ongoing research activities dealing with international environmental treaty negotiations, consensus building in the public sector, and ensuring that science is given its due in resource management decisions. In addition, the Program is focusing on the social responsibilities of multinational corporations, how mediation can be used to resolve values-based and identity-based disputes, and how recent findings in the communications field might enhance negotiation practice.