Attention Commercial Section Members   If you missed the Section's live teleseminar presented by Robert Benjamin on "Predictable Irrationality" held on January 21, 2010, or want to hear it again, here is what you can do.  Send us an e-mail with your name and we will send you the link to download the seminar.  The download is available to ACR members only and is free of charge.    For non-members, you are encouraged to become a member of ACR and enjoy its many benefits for professionals by clicking on this link, which will qualify you to receive this free seminar download. ___________________________________________________________________   New! Read the January 2010 edition of International Focus to learn why international Mediators need culture. Message to Members of the Commercial Section From the Advisory Board Dear Commercial Section Members: Your Co-Chairs, Kurt Dettman and Frances Mossman, welcome you on behalf of the Advisory Board to an exciting year ahead for the Commercial Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR). We want our Members to know how much we appreciate your continued membership in our Section. Our top priority is to give value back to you. We ask you to join us in our initiatives to ensure that the Section is focused on issues that are valuable to you—and, because they also are great ways to network within the commercial sector in which you work. The following are some of the activities we have planned for 2009--2010:   Web Site—Our web site has been re-vamped and now provides up-to-date information and current events of the Commercial Section. We have posted information, such as past Newsletters and articles about topics that are relevant and interesting to our Members.   Teleseminars—Teleseminars will continue to be offered approximately every two months. The Teleseminars explore cutting-edge topics presented by leaders in the field of ADR. CDs of some past Teleseminars are available for purchase at a nominal cost.   Advanced Commercial Mediation Institute (ACMI)—The ACMI, which is offered each year with the cooperation of the American Arbitration Association, will continue to present experienced speakers addressing cutting-edge topics in the field of commercial mediation. ACMI will be held again in conjunction with the ACR Annual Conference in September 2010 in Chicago.   Newsletter—The Newsletter will be published on a quarterly basis. Each one will have a lead article on current issues in the field of commercial ADR, as well as two on-going columns: one by Mel Rubin on mediator ethics issues and another by Tammy Lenski on marketing issues. We always welcome suggestions for articles from Commercial Section members.   International—The International Committee launched a special feature on the Section’s web site this year to provide news, articles, events and networking opportunities for our members on a global basis. We will expand our geographic coverage in the next year. You are encouraged to visit International Focus frequently and submit materials and comments. We are planning several joint initiatives with ACR’s International Section. This international emphasis will add options for extending your commercial practice into an increasingly globally based arena.   Committees—We welcome Section members to join Committees of interest to them—we have openings on the following committees: Membership, Newsletter, Programs and International.    We look forward to working with all of you in the coming year. If you have any questions or suggestions for us feel free to send us an email to kdettman@c-adr.com (Kurt) and fmossmanmediate@earthlink.net (Frances).   Sincerely,   Kurt Dettman and Frances Mossman, Co-Chairs   November 2009