Family gatherings can bring feelings of warmth, excitement and joy. Like most of us these days, you may also be bracing yourself for dreaded toxic political conversations. A couple of my peers and I wondered what happened to simpler times, when people had healthy debates on front porches. From those musings, we developed a project called Porch Talks, to guide conversations from toxic to healthy. I have lifted some of those ideas to share six simple ways to prevent family gatherings from being derailed by politics.
Reimagining the Future of Peace: The Power of Mediation and Restorative Justice
Have you ever heard of restorative justice and wondered about how it applies to mediation? In this article, we introduce Dr. Vahit Bicak, who is a leading promoter of restorative justice and its application in mediation. As both a Turkish legal practitioner and scholar, Dr. Bicak’s insights reveal the power of mediation to transform legal structures to more effectively serve citizens.
As the founder of the Just and Fair Mediation Centre in Turkey, Dr. Biçak has mediated more than 200 disputes in Turkey in the last eight years and is known to be an expert mediator for employment, commercial, consumer, energy and mine, and health disputes.
Give an A in Conflicts: The Art of Possibility
During a global crisis, it can be difficult to find the goodness around us. The Covid-19 pandemic has forced us to encounter the harsh realities of its medical, financial, and emotional toll on us. There’s a distant nag to focus on opportunities that will arise from a seemingly never-ending season of isolation. Some of us may feel guilty about seeking silver linings, but they may just be key to getting us through crises. Before the pandemic brought everyday life to a halt, Interaction Management Associates started a book club. We began reading The Art of Possibility. This timely book provides practical steps for readers to increase their ability to identify and act upon possibility.