Avoid is one of the three Strategies for Negative Risks or Threats(one of the tools and techniques of the Risk Response Planning).
Avoid is to eliminate the root cause of the risk/threat or change the project plan to eliminate/avoid the risk/threat. Project Risks can be avoided by properly documenting the project scope and requirements.
Example for Avoid, you plan to buy 150 Unix server model XXX during May 2008 to setup your UAT & Production environment. You hear from the hardware vendor that the XXX model server delivery may get delayed due to higher volume order and lower stock in warehouse. To avoid the delay in UAT & Production environment setup, you may plan to buy model YYY(similar or better configuration of model XXX) which is easily available. This will avoid the potential delay in UAT & Production environment setup.
-Posted by Dhana
Singapore Project Manager Forum 
Hi Dhana,
This is an interesting post. Can you give an example of the “Avoid” risk management technique in a more complicated situation? One involving conflicts, perhaps?
Projects are exposed to various risks and a good PM can foresee most of the potential risks during the project planning phase and register in Risk Register. Based on the identified risks, he/she will prepare the risk response plan to tackle the risks.
By applying the appropriote risk response plan, the PM reduces or eliminates the most of the risk and ensures the smooth sailing for the project. Avoid is one of such tools and techniques. The base idea is to handle or address the risk before it occurs.
If a conflict exists means a risk/issue/problem has already occured & its between few parties of the project stakeholders and we can’t apply the Avoid, instead we have to resolve the conflict by any of the following five ways.
1. Forcing
2. Smoothing
3. Compromise
4. Confrontation
5. Withdrawal
Thus I am unable to give example for Risk Avoiding which involving conflicts. I will give one more example for Avoidance.
One of your key milestone is to receive some important industrial equipments delivery by next week. The delivery trucks have to pass by east coast highway enroute to your destination. The latest weather forcast report predicts that a cyclone may hit the east costal area by next week. The PM can explore various options such as air cargo the equipment, choose a different route than east coastal to avoid the delay or damages for the industrial equipment and meet the project mile stone.