of Northern California Association for Dispute Resolution

Time	Agenda	Location
8:30 – 9:00	Registration and Breakfast	Sunset Building
9:00 – 10:15	Opening Session, Video Contest and Gil Lopez Award
10:15 – 10:30	Morning Break and Coffee
10:30 – 11:50	Session 1A: “Conflict Resolution and Peace” – Nancy Hanawi
	Session 1B: “What Every Mediator Needs to Know About Psychology” - Stephen H. Sulmeyer, J.D., Ph.D
	Session 1C: “Exciting Trends in Community Mediation” – A Panel Discussion Moderator: Cynthia Spears – Placer County Panelists: Jen Bullock -– Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center Christine DaSilva Byers – Conflict Resolution Programs Barbara Kob – Marin County Mediation Martin Eichner – Project Sentinel
12:00 – 1:00	Keynote Address: From Animosity to Understanding: Creating Conditions for Dialogue” - Robert R. Stains, Jr, MEd, LMFT
1:00 – 2:15	Lunch and Networking
2:15– 4:15	Session 2A: “Cultivating Readiness: Preparing the Ground for Constructive Conversations” - Robert R. Stains, Jr, MEd, LMFT
	Session 2B: Culture and Conflict: A Self Exploration – Edith Ng and Denise Oldham
4:15 – 5:00	“Meet the Speakers” Reception
5:00	Conference Conclusion
10:00 – 4:00	Networking Room - Small area available to meet with colleagues

“Take One” table available: Bring your marketing materials for free distribution!

From Animosity to Understanding: Creating Conditions for Dialogue

What might enable us to speak from the heart with those whom we define as “enemy”?

What conversations could invite us into the deep listening and full speaking that lead to understanding?

The Public Conversations Project has been working to answer these questions since its inception in 1989. It brings together opponents in conflicts experienced as intractable to see if new conversations –and fresh understandings- are possible when it is clear that positions on issues will not change. Some of the premises that shape that work will form the heart of this talk. These premises include:

· The ways we speak with each other expand or narrow our experience of ourselves, the other, and what we believe possible in relationship.

· Shifting conversational practices can shift relationships and open possibilities for new understanding

This talk will address specific ways that the Project has put these premises into action and invite reflection on how this work may be extended.

Robert R. Stains, Jr, MEd, LMFT., is the Program Director for the Public Conversations Project in Watertown, MA, and is also is on the faculty of the Family Institute of Cambridge. He trains and consults to practitioners and national and international organizations on creating openings for constructive conversation in the midst of conflict. He maintains a private mediation, consulting, and training practice in Beverly, MA.

This workshop will explore these questions: What does conflict resolution (CR) have to do with peace? When we practice conflict resolution are we part of a larger effort of peace building and social change? Do people with conflict resolution expertise have a special role to play in promoting a culture of peace? What have we learned from conflict resolution that might help the peace movement become more effective?

Nancy Hanawi is co-president of the Center for Social Redesign (CSR), a non-profit consulting organization. She also teaches in the Conflict Resolution Program at Sonoma State University and is currently the co-chair of the Board of the Peace and Justice Studies Association.

In this workshop the presenter will talk about psychological fundamentals that are essential for the effective mediation of disputes. Topics to be covered include:

Stephen H. Sulmeyer, J.D., Ph.D is a lawyer, psychotherapist, and mediator in Marin County, California. He is currently chairperson of the Marin County Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, and a member of the Association for Dispute Resolution of Northern California (ADR-NC), as well as numerous legal and psychological organizations

This workshop will feature a moderated panel discussion on what new programs and approaches community mediation centers in the region are taking on and the role these centers play in developing and promoting the field of ADR.

Session 2A: “Cultivating Readiness: Preparing the Ground for Constructive Conversations”

What happens before a meeting is often what makes constructive conversations possible among people who feel locked in contentious opposition. Yet this critical preparatory stage is frequently overlooked, or structured to benefit practitioners only.

The Public Conversations Project's thoughtful, comprehensive approach to preparing people for difficult conversations is grounded in more than 15 years of experience facilitating dialogues on divisive public issues.

“Cultivating Readiness” examines the vital role that exploratory, contracting and collaborative design phases can play in influencing the course of conversations. Participants in this workshop will gain practical experience with personal, reflective and procedural approaches that support participant ownership and constructive participation.

The areas to be covered will include: role of the practitioner in fostering a constructive, intentional conversation; inquiry as a means of opening reflection on experience and purpose; the use and misuse of invitation; collaborative design of intentional conversations; shared responsibility for process and outcome.

Modes of engagement and teaching will include structured experiences, review of case material, presentation, handouts and discussion.

Robert R. Stains, Jr, MEd, LMFT., Robert R. Stains, Jr, MEd, LMFT, is the Program Director for the Public Conversations Project in Watertown, MA, and is also is on the faculty of the Family Institute of Cambridge. He trains and consults to practitioners and national and international organizations on creating openings for constructive conversation in the midst of conflict. He maintains a private mediation, consulting, and training practice in Beverly, MA.

What is our understanding of culture and its relationship to conflict resolution? Is understanding cultural difference necessary for understanding conflict? Can mediators truly be neutral when they have their own cultural assumptions, values and biases? This interactive workshop will explore our own cultures, worldviews and beliefs as a starting point for better understanding the relationship between culture and conflict.

Edith Ng is Director of Staff Diversity and Equity Services at UC Berkeley and lecturer in Peace and Conflict Studies, focusing on multicultural conflict resolution. She has over 30 years of experience working in higher education, including 13 years in the diversity field.

Denise Oldham is the Equity Program Manager and Discrimination Complaint Resolution Officer in Staff Equity and Diversity Services, UC Berkeley. She manages equal employment opportunity and affirmative action programs for staff on campus, including a program for resolving discrimination-related complaints and conflicts.