Mediation in Public Affairs & Legislatures 

(Sen. Lindsey Graham in Egypt)

Chuck Newman- There was an article on the NY Times first page today (Sun, 8/18/13) about the US's failed efforts to have a good effect on the turmoil in Egypt.  THIS POST TAKES NO POSITION on what any Egyptians are doing, nor on what US policy should be about events in Egypt.  The Times article is here (sign-in may be required; free with subscription or if you have had few views so far this month):
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/18/world/middleeast/pressure-by-us-f...

You may recall that Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham went to Egypt to try to intervene in the aftermath of the military having removed the democratically elected President.  Before traveling, they had taken the position that the military's removal of Pres. Morsi, an "Islamist" member of the Muslim Brotherhood, was a coup.  One of the US's efforts to play a positive role was the Senators trying to negotiate with the military and the government installed by the military.

Sen. Graham told an interviewer about his effort to defuse the situation: "You could tell people were itching for a fight,...  The prime minister was a disaster. He kept preaching to me: 'You can't negotiate with these people. They've got to get out of the streets and respect the rule of law.'

I said: 'Mr. Prime Minister, it's pretty hard for you to lecture anyone on the rule of law. How many votes did you get? Oh, yeah, you didn't have an election. "  Let's suppose that, improbably, that's literally what Sen. Graham said to the new PM.

Read more [HERE]

Stories Mediators Tell

Werner Institute Blog Guest writer Glen Parker is presenting at the 2013 ACR Annual Conference

Story telling is the glue that holds a community together. It is also how we express ourselves. How we learn. From Homer to Scheherazade to Shakespeare to Twain, storytellers relay the heights of human endeavor, the foundations of a common culture, and the depth of our emotion. They help us find the humor and lightness in the darkest of circumstances. And at its core, a good story reflects our humanity.

...Stories Mediators Tell is a collection of mediators’ first-hand accounts of their experiences in mediation. Some of the stories illustrate the best (and worst) practices of mediation, others highlight outcomes that are uniquely achievable in a mediation context, and others share the transformational power that mediation can have on a conflict and the people involved. Some stories are full of humor, others will make you cry. They all shed light on the role of mediator and how special and helpful that role can be during difficult and challenging conflicts.

Jacqueline N. Font-Guzman- This is an invitation to a World Café Dialogue in which we will be exploring ways to raise awareness, share perspectives and knowledge on dying an advance care planning, and hear narratives that Nebraskans may wish to share.

It will take place on August 24, 2013 between 9:00am and 12:30pm at the Harper Center Room 3029, Creighton University. The event is free of cost. RSVP required.

Hostage & Crisis Negotiators: Nonverbal Communication Basics

Mindfulness In The Midst of Conflict, TEDx Talk

News, Articles, & More

Emotional Skills and Competencies (ESaC) course New Jersey

Monitoring and Evaluation: Key Techniques for NGOs

Truancy Mediation- What You Should Know

Role of an Organizational Ombudsman with Dr. Belinda Newman [Confli...

TAKING STOCK

Which Video Conferencing Software ADRHub.com and Virtual Mediation ...