This paper addresses the future role of the Ford Foundation in helping to improve society's capacity to resolve conflicts. Part I discusses the problem. In recent years America has had many sorts of conflicts and disputes. Examples are racial equality, energy allocation, environmental protection, consumer rights, and equal educational opportunity. Conflicts over these matters arise among interest groups, between interest groups and government, between levels of government, and between individuals. These conflicts are often very difficult to resolve because of the growing complexity, technological sophistication, and interdependence of society's problems. Part II examines current responses to the problem. The judicial process, the process used by administrative agencies, alternative third party intervention, and systematic reform are discussed. In part III promising alternatives are presented. These include strengthening the capacity of existing courts and agencies and alternatives outside the formal system such as arbritration, conciliation, and private initiatives. The publication concludes with a description in part IV of a Ford Foundation program to resolve conflicts. It is a systematic approach that expands our understanding of the larger issues in conflict resolution and takes account of the links between problems in different segments of the adjudicative and administrative processes. (Author/RM)