Advanced Training: Multi-Party Mediation and Group Facilitation

Objective

Mediators are being called upon to help in conflict situations that go beyond two or three disputants. Multi-party mediations involve more parties, more issues, more sessions, and new kinds of power imbalances. This workshop will prepare mediators for the challenges of facilitating and mediating multi-party disputes in a community setting. Some of the topics covered include: assessing the conflict & needs of the parties, designing & planning a process that meets the parties' needs, confidentiality and neutrality, adopting ground-rules and procedures, facilitating the process, defining the roles of the mediators/facilitators, and the role of the participants, educating the participants about the process and roles, dealing with power imbalances, dealing with difficult people, dealing with the media, identifying interests, clarifying issues, generating and evaluating options, building consensus, reaching closure, following-up, legal and ethical considerations for mediators/facilitators. The workshop is for experienced mediators. You must demonstrate that you have completed at least 24 hours of mediation training and mediated at least five disputes in order to register for this course. Completion of this workshop does not guarantee mediator competency or quality.