Developing Your Career in Mediation Course Has Launched
Edwards Mediation Academy has recently launched a new online course, Developing Your Career in Mediation. This course is for everyone who is considering a career in dispute resolution, as well as individuals who are seeking to enhance their existing career. Like all Edwards Mediation Academy Courses, the Developing Your Career in Mediation is taught by […]
Heroes and Capes
On March 18, 1997, 3 years after the Rwandan genocide officially ended, the Interahamwe militia from the Democratic Republic of Congo entered the Nyange Secondary School in western Rwanda as part of their murderous rampage and ordered the students to separate, Tutsi on the left and Hutu on the right. The students replied that there […]
Vivien Williamson – Mediating with Empathy
Attorney Vivien Williamson has been a mediator since 1987. She has helped resolve thousands of disputes, from employment to civil rights; earth movement to personal injury. In her employment law practice, she has mediated hundreds of claims of sexual harassment; disability, gender and age discrimination, among others. Vivien is known for her ability to take […]
It’s Time for Collective Reflection
I read with interest the recent article written by my friend and colleague Tom Stipanowich, The International Evolution of Mediation: A Call For Dialogue and Deliberation. In his article, Tom does a most credible job identifying divergent mediation perceptions and practices while also promoting the need for “collective reflection, dialogue and discernment” regarding recent trends. […]
Building a Golden Bridge and other lessons from Dr. William Ury
The hills above Edinburgh, Scotland were bursting in the monochromatic splendor of bright yellow flowers, announcing the arrival of spring. In their shadow sat the Scottish Parliament building, where we were assembled for the spring conference of the International Academy of Mediators. Dr. William Ury, noted author, speaker, and mediator of international conflicts, gave the […]
Turning Ideas into Action; Thoughts from Edinburgh
“Support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict and inspire hope where there is despair” Nelson Mandela During a recent conference of the International Academy of Mediators in Edinburgh, Scotland, I was asked to lead a discussion aimed at inspiring some of the world’s most successful commercial mediators to redirect their […]
Dana Curtis, Mediation as a Way of Rebuilding Relationships
Another one of our exceptional Edwards Mediation Academy instructors is Dana Curtis. Dana was among the first attorneys in the U.S. to devote her career exclusively to mediation, and she began her full-time mediation practice in 1991. She has been a teacher of mediation, negotiation and other conflict management programs for over 25 years, including […]
Solving Social Challenges Through Collaboration
This past week, I was fortunate enough to participate in Convergence Center for Policy Resolution’s leadership council meeting in Washington, DC. It was a truly uplifting and inspirational day of conversation. Founded in 2009, Convergence is a non-profit organization that uses mediation skills (respectful dialogue and listening for the most part) to build trust, identify […]
Champions of Peace
In the back of an old church, off the main square in a small village in Bosnia, sat a village elder. The year was 1999, and his unofficial role in war-torn Bosnia was resolving the type of local inter-ethnic disputes that had recently divided the former Yugoslavia. The elder had no way of knowing, at […]
Translating the American Experience
Following my recent post on teaching mediation skills in Austria, I received a number of similar responses, the central theme of which questions how I can translate the American mediation experience into a different cultural paradigm. The answer to this question begins with an understanding of the mediators mind and the concept that whether in […]