Intercultural Negotiation is as easy as 1-2-3, or is it? (10/12/09)
Steve Mehta
It’s as easy as 1-2-3 you say. Well that may not be so easy if you are dealing with intercultural communications. I recently read some research on that highlighted the importance of intercultural communications. Negotiations are often fraught with problems anyway. Adding the additional element of intercultural differences can make it extremely difficult to deal with.

Mediation Ordered in Case of Christian Teen Who Ran Away from Muslim Family (10/06/09)
Keith Seat

Significant attention has focused on the case of an Ohio teenager who claims her Muslim father threatened to kill her for converting to Christianity. The girl ran away to a church in Florida in July. A Florida judge ordered that the girl and her parents should participate in mediation, and ruled that the girl would remain in foster care until the matter is resolved.

CNN.com (September 4, 2009)

Mediators Support President’s Beer Summit (9/08/09)
Keith Seat

Various mediation organizations and mediators spoke out in favor of mediation of the conflict between Professor Henry Gates and Sergeant James Crowley or of President Obama’s specific efforts to bring the men together in an effort to improve their communication and understanding of each other. However, while food or beverages can benefit a mediation, beer was questioned as a general purpose mediation tool.

Newsplex.com (July 30, 2009); Forbes.com (July 30, 2009); Wall Street Journal Law Blog (July 24, 2009); Boston.com (July 24, 2009); Settle It Now Blog (July 24, 2009)

Johnsons Win Diversity And Equity Award (9/03/09)
ACR
The Rev. Nelson Johnson and Joyce Johnson have won the Marvin E. Johnson Diversity and Equity Award from the Association for Conflict Resolution for their commitment to restorative justice, truth and reconciliation efforts in Mississippi.

The NYPD & The Three C’s: Communication, Community & Cricket (8/23/09)
Jeff Thompson
Often when I speak about conflict and dispute resolution I mention three words that I consider to be my mantra in regards to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Communication, Understanding and Peace are what I strive to create in all my interactions, be it as a mediator, conflict coach, consultant, or as a police officer in the New York City Police Department.

Beer Summits And Presidential Mediations (8/10/09)
Colin Rule
I've wanted to post something on Obama's Beer Summit for some time, but I thought it best to let the dust settle before weighing in. The racial hot buttons made it harder to focus on the conflict management approach behind the engagement. I think now the time has come to process what happened.

How President Obama Gets To Yes (8/03/09)
John Sturrock
President Barack Obama's willingness to acknowledge that he had chosen his words badly in his response to the incident involving Harvard professor Henry Gates and a Massachusetts police sergeant – and his suggestion that all three of them meet up at the White House for a "beer summit" – marks him out yet again as a man who is able to act in a way which is different to that which we often expect of politicians.

The Beer Summit (8/03/09)
Jan Frankel Schau
Here's to President Obama and his brave and wise staff who understood the power of mediation this week as he invited the Harvard Professor to confront and discuss his arrest with the Cambridge Police Chief at the White House.

The Cop The President The Professor And Civil Harassment Mediation (7/27/09)
Victoria Pynchon
It's merely coincidental that I volunteered to mediate civil harassment petitions for the first time during the same week as Gatesgate.

Gender Justice In Ghana Through Court-Connected ADR (7/20/09)
Senyo M. Adjabeng
Women and children have mostly been the most vulnerable when any form of trouble befalls a group of people. In ensuring that the vulnerable especially women and children obtain speedy and effective justice, Court-Connected (Court Annexed) ADR may be considered as an explorable opportunity and alternative for reaching a mutually acceptable resolution in some cases of abuse or potential abuse.

Do Generation Y And Baby Boomer Lawyers Need A Mediator? (7/06/09)
Diane J. Levin
I’ve written often here about the fault lines in the ADR profession - the deep rifts dividing facilitative and evaluative mediators, the line in the sand between attorneys who mediate and professional mediators who are not lawyers. These dividing lines damage our collegiality and pose harm to our credibility as dispute resolution professionals; if we are unable to face and address our own differences, how can we be relied upon to assist others?

Race, Gender, and Class: How Much Of A Role Do They Play In Mediation? (6/29/09)
Elizabeth Moreno
Recent studies have come to life as to the role race, gender and class of the mediator plays in mediation. Does race play any discernible role in mediation compared to gender or socioeconomic class?

Success Leaves Clues: A Profile Of Elder Decisions (6/22/09)
Tammy Lenski
“There is a great deal of opportunity to create a niche in your community once you have the training and if you are willing to put in the time to market your practice and develop the network of referrals you will need in order to grow,” say Arline Kardasis and Rikk Larsen of Elder Decisions, which scored a major marketing success with National Public Radio in April.

The Sovereignty Claims Of Indigenous Peoples (6/22/09)
Larry Susskind
Think about it from their perspective. Assume you are part of a group that has inhabited a place for at least a thousand years. Your ceremonies and traditions date back a lot farther than those of the interlopers who now control every aspect of your life. Your people have been connected to that particular place for all of recorded history. Yet, now, the national government that surrounds you wants to dictate what you can and cannot do with your land and how your children should be educated.. That national government has sold the mineral rights out from under you (and kept all the money), polluted the waters you depend on, and stripped the forest that has always been your primary source of food. Wouldn't you be angry?

Mediation And Equal Justice For The Poor (6/15/09)
William S. Harralson
Throughout the history of America, justice and injustice have co-existed in a fierce struggle to determine which contender would emerge in victory. Money and the lack of money remain decisive factors in determining the extent to which an individual will have access to our civil court system. Alternative means of resolving disputes, most notably mediation, have gradually positioned themselves as attractive options especially for those who live in a condition of poverty. This brief essay will explore the extent to which mediation serves to advance or impede the goal of achieving equal justice for every American.

Negotiating Justice: Anchoring, Bias, Dad And Sotomayor (6/15/09)
Victoria Pynchon
The fact that people are still questioning whether a woman, an African American, a Latina or (gasp: clearly for a more equitable society) a gay, bi-, Lesbian or transsexual, jurist will be "biased" by his or her unique perspective is dispiriting to say the least.

The Greatest Generation (6/08/09)
Phyllis Pollack
I know that mediation skills are useful in everyday life, and I have often used my own life experiences to build commonality, and trust with parties, but, to see it played out with such southern charm, sincerity and empathy was something entirely else. In all of my mediation training, I have not seen these skills so well displayed and exemplified. They are skills that only a member of The Greatest Generation could have. Us baby boomers aren’t there yet.

Should Age Matter? (6/08/09)
Jeff Thompson
Is it ok to ask for age specific facilitators? Over at the wonderful NY-DRC listserv hosted on the CUNY John Jay servers (see below on how to join the listserv), there has been many comments on the following request.

Negotiating Disability (3/09/09)
Diane J. Levin
Last summer an online magazine for entrepreneurial women elevated form over substance when it advised its audience to accessorize for that big negotiation and mimic the “look” of the person on the other side of the table. I responded with a post criticizing the undue focus on physical appearance:

Environmental Justice (2/03/09)
Larry Susskind
We care about environmental justice because it doesn't seem fair that poor communities of color should suffer disproportionate health risks. If we can demonstrate that companies have purposely located polluting facilities in minority neighborhoods, the law provides a remedy. When we can't prove intent, though, it's hard to make charges of environmental racism stick.

Class-Action Discrimination Claims Against Dating Service Sent to Mediation (1/07/09)
Keith Seat

A California case alleging discrimination by the dating service eHarmony for refusing to extend its services to gay and lesbian customers was certified as a class action and sent to mediation. A similar case in New Jersey was just settled, with eHarmony agreeing to open a new website for gay customers, which the company asserts should resolve the California case as well.

PC Magazine (November 21, 2008)

Delaware Joins EEOC’s Universal Agreement to Mediate (1/07/09)
Keith Seat

Delaware is the second state to enter into a Universal Agreement to Mediate with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, following New Mexico in October. Based on Delaware’s formal agreement to resolve disputes through mediation, all eligible discrimination charges filed with the EEOC naming Delaware as respondent will be sent to the EEOC’s mediation unit.

US State News (November 19, 2008) (Subscription Required)

New Mexico First State to Join EEOC’s Universal Agreement to Mediate (12/02/08)
Keith Seat

While over 1,200 employers have entered into Universal Agreements to Mediate with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, New Mexico is the first state to do so. With New Mexico’s formal agreement to resolve disputes through mediation, all eligible discrimination charges filed with the EEOC naming the state as respondent will be sent to the EEOC’s mediation unit.

Bizjournal.com (October 31, 2008)

A Glimpse into the Separation of Two Gay Couples (11/24/08)
Dr. Lynne C. Halem
Gay couples, not unlike straight couples, have different stories to tell, different issues to resolve. Yet since Massachusetts’s legalization of gay marriages, the “divorcing” population can be divided clearly into two distinctive sets: one group “living together outside of marriage” and the other “married.”

Mpho Tutu Receives First Marvin Johnson Divesity & Equity Award from ACR (10/07/08)
The Rev. Mpho A. Tutu, an Episcopal priest and founder and executive director of the Tutu Institute for Prayer and Pilgrimage, has received the first Marvin E. Johnson Diversity and Equity Award from the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR).