In this week's concluding entry, tiled "How Can We Promote a Sense of Global Community?", Coleman writes that Deutsch and colleagues "employed social psychological knowledge about groups and how they form, how they develop, and how individuals identify with them – to provide a framework for thinking about some of the issues related to developing a global community." Their suggestion: "that one of the first tasks for change agents promoting global community would be to identify a small group of 30–50 individuals who could initially serve to organize, coordinate, and provide leadership for the larger collection of potential change agents."

Other entries by Coleman have focused on Deutsch's theories for preventing thermonuclear war; his theories of conflict (including conflict's similarities to sex); and how to "interrupt" the growing gap between the haves and have-nots. The entire series can be view on Coleman's Psychology Today blog, The Five Percent.

Concluding his series, Coleman writes: "Mort Deutsch was an intellectual giant with a true moral compass, on whose shoulders many in the fields of peace, conflict and social justice stand today.  The foundation he has provided for our work is sound, lasting and ultimately promising and optimistic. His insight, passion and commitment today live on in all of us.?

Published Friday, Oct 13, 2017