Books: The Consensus Building Handbook

Jennifer Thomas-Larmer coedited, with Lawrence Susskind and Sarah McKearnan, The Consensus Building Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide to Reaching Agreement (Sage Publications, 1999).

(Lawrence Susskind is a professor of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT and the president of the Consensus Building Institute. Sarah McKearnan is a strategic policy advisor for the city of Seattle's interagency salmon team.)

The Consensus Building Handbook is a 1,100-page reference guide to building agreement in groups. It contains:

a "Short Guide" summarizing the essential steps and procedures involved in building consensus, intended for use as an alternative to Robert's Rules of Order,

17 chapters that describe the phases, facets, and forms of consensus building, including "how-to" explanations for reaching agreement, and

17 case studies, with expert commentaries, that illustrate the variety of settings in which consensus building can be successfully employed.

"The editors of this monumental book demur that it is meant 'as a reference, like an encyclopedia.' They do not 'expect that very many people will read it from cover to cover.' They have seriously underestimated their achievement. Yes, The Consensus Building Handbook serves as a comprehensive resource into which one may dip from time to time, from topic to topic. However, it also reads extremely well. Indeed, despite the possibly daunting physical size of this book, The Consensus Building Handbook invites the reader to share a thoughtful and enthusiastic weekend with wise colleagues–meeting them in the well-written chapters from cover to cover.... [T]he book [is] a landmark achievement, essential for any personal or professional library." From a review by Phyllis Bernard, published in the American Bar Association's Dispute Resolution Magazine

The Consensus Building Handbook won the 1999 Book Prize for Excellence in Alternative Dispute Resolution from the CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution.

More than 50 leading authorities and internationally recognized experts contributed chapters or cases to the Handbook, including: Max Bazerman, David Brubaker, Chris Carlson, Susan Carpenter, Nike Carstarphen, Sarah Connick, Kate Connolly, Jarle Crocker, Norman Dale, Peter Driessen, John Ehrmann, Michael Elliott, David Fairman, Juliette Falkner, Michele Ferenz, Patrick Field, John Forester, Dwight Golann, Michael Hughes, Judith Innes, Mark Kishlansky, James Kunde, David Laws, Michelle LeBaron, Gianni Longo, Jane Mansbridge, Judy Mares-Dixon, Daniel Markovits, Scott McCreary, Julie McKay, Carrie Menkel-Meadow, Sally Engle Merry, William Moomaw, Carl Moore, Christopher Moore, Connie Ozawa, Patsy Palmer, John Parr, Scott Peppet, Susan Podziba, William Potapchuk, Howard Raiffa, Colin Rule, Charles Sabel, Edward Scher, Melinda Smith, Barbara Stinson, David Straus, Jan Jung-Min Sunoo, Eric Van Loon, Irene Weiser, and Peter Woodrow.

Click here to order The Consensus Building Handbook.