At the IBA in Dubai last week, a three-hour session was held on “The Rise of Multiculturalism and Resulting Challenges of Managing Diversity in the Workplace.” While the subjects discussed were fascinating, the subjects not discussed might have been even more so. Read more »
The second film on the use of facilitated dialogue to ease corporate/community tensions has been posted online. It may be viewed by clicking here. Read more »
The irrepresible Michael Leathes is a collector of quotes. Little does he know that one of the early walks I had with him produced a quote of his own that I have always kept pinned on the corkboard of my mind: “It costs no more to think big than to think small.”
In a characteristically provocative and entertaining article, “Stop Shoveling Smoke!“, Leathes challenges our tolerance of vagueness in defining our own field. Why, he asks, is there no broadly accepted definition of the term “mediation”? Oddly for one so deeply steeped in cross-cultural subtleties, Leathes firmly believes not only that there is a universally applicable definition of “mediation,” but that it can be defined in seven words:
“Consensus facilitated by a trusted neutral person.” Read more »
At its recent meeting in Toronto, the ABA House of Delegates approved the Resolution on Public Civility, first proposed by the Section on Dispute Resolution, calling for civility in public discourse and urging state bar groups to take the lead in advocating respectful and attentive civil dialogue. Comes now Sara Hacala, a “certified etiquette and protocol consultant,” who has kindly offered the galleys of her forthcoming book, “Saving Civility: 52 Ways to Tame Rude, Crude & Attitude for a Healthy Planet.”
