Apologies

  The world of mediation today is far from the embryonic world I joined in the late 1980s. It has been wonderful to be part of the journey. From time to time there are major ‘disruptions’ – the…

"The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice". Dr Martin Luther King, 1956 Readers from New Zealand who are of a certain age will remember the headline corporate promise that…

You are usually at a disadvantage for you will take over the boat in midst of the conflict storm without having the chance to prepare the crew and to check on the ship. Yet you are charged to…

In some mediations, I ask myself why people so resolutely retain their anger, their bitterness, or their hurt for such long periods of time. Often mediation takes place only after a conflict has…

I doubt if there is anybody who has reached a certain age who has never wished for forgiveness from another person. That certain age is certainly not high. Forgiveness from school friends, family…

It is perhaps rare for a piece of legislation to receive enthusiastic cross-party support in any legislature. However, that is just what has happened in Scotland with the very recently passed…

From the documents I had been given beforehand, I knew he had substantial assets so I was suprised at his appearance when we met at the start of the day. He was an old man - I guessed well into his…

On the last day of the year, like many of you, I find myself reflecting on the events of the past 12 months, the highs and lows, the tensions and the takeaways. Here is one of the takeaways. In…

  I have written before on this blog about ‘mediating from the neck up’: my conviction that I was taught (and teach) a rationalistic, even cerebral, process that privileges thought over emotion and…