The Mediation Center of the Pacific “The Center Letter” is out This year the MCP Volunteer Recognition and Holiday Gathering will take place Friday December 11, 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. The Hawaii Federal Credit Union
ACR Hawaii member Thomas DiGrazia’s new book Light On Peacemaking: Appropriate Dispute Resolution and Mediating Family Conflict has just been published, and is now available on Amazon.com and directly from the publisher Business Expert Press ~~~ Many books have been written about the practice of peacemaking, and few, if any, deal with the non-violent, spiritual side of this ancient science, discipline, practice and art form. This book will speak to that lack and explore the spiritual, non-violent element in peacemaking as it applies to mediating family law disputes. Universities will find the book helpful as a textbook in their peacemaking and mediation degree and certificate programs, most particularly, in those courses that stress a pragmatic, spiritual, eclectic and educated approach to non-adversarial, peaceful conflict resolution. The book is intended for the professional peacemaker, mediator, lawyer, law student, conciliator, and dispute neutral. Everyday people who wish to improve their own communication skills and strengthen their primary relationships will profit greatly from this book. These individuals, particularly those in the family law field, will find much benefit from the peacemaking processes, and family counseling psychology. Mental health family practitioners, who are often called upon to act as default, if not formal mediators and neutrals, will find useful the mediation and peacemaking experiences, techniques and literature related here. Light On Peacemaking also offers the Yoga practitioner a very practical avenue, through example in the legal field, for engaging in seva or service to humanity.
State of Hawaii Proclamation signed by Governor David Hige and Lt. Governor Shan Tsutsui City and County of Honolulu Proclamation signed by Mayor Kirk Caldwell Certificate signed by all Honolulu City Council Members County of Hawaii Proclamation signed by Mayor Billy Kenoi County of Kauai Proclamation signed by Mayor Bernard Carvalho, Jr.
When and Where Friday, December 4, 2015 – 5:30pm to 7:30pm Fresh Cafe – 1111 Nu’uanu Ave – Honolulu Parking Chinatown Municipal Parking, 27 N. Beretania St. between Nuuanu and Smith, $3 after 5 p.m. Also Mark’s Garage, Diamond Parking Services, Chinatown Gateway, Walmart, or Street Parking. Please Note: We do NOT validate Menu Fresh Cafe’s excellent pizzas, pupus, and fresh salad. Drinks can be purchased at the bar, but the event includes a tasting of fabulous wines, compliments of Silvert & Saibene Wines LLP Live Music Starts at 7:00 p.m. with Grant Peacock and “Imagine Jazz” featuring hit songs from 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s Cost FREE for ACR Hawaii members – $20 Guests ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING – AGENDA Call to Order Approval of Minutes November 2015 2015 Financial Report – Bruce McEwan 2016 Officers and Directors Election – Cindy Alm – Nominees 2015 Recap – Anne Smoke Incoming President’s Remarks – Lisa Jacobs Adjournment GUEST SPEAKER Our distinguished Guest Speaker is Peacemaker and ACR Hawaii member Tom DiGrazia, who will talk about his new book Light On Peacemaking: Appropriate Dispute Resolution and Mediating Family Conflict Register by November 27, 2015 – Click Here
In honor of Conflict Resolution Day, an annual International celebration sponsored by ACR and held every third Thursday in October, ACR Hawaii and the Matsunaga Institute for Peace present a list of books on conflict resolution recommended by Hawaii’s top scholars and practitioners These books are available at: Barnes & Noble – Ala Moana Barnes & Noble online at Barnes & Noble The University of Hawaii System Libaries The Hawaii State Library (Downtown) University of Hawaii Manoa – Bookstore
The Matsunaga Institute for Peace and Accord Consultants 3.0 present “Science, Politics and Governance: Constructing Better Dialogues and Producing Better Results”, a 2-day conference which will take place on November 12 & 13, 2015. This event is co-sponsored by ACR Hawaii and Scholars Strategy Network Hawaii Chapter. For more information and to sign up click here
In honor of Conflict Resolution Day, an annual international celebration sponsored by the Association for Conflict Resolution and held every third Thursday in October, Ku‘ikahi Mediation Center is hosting an Open House from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 15. The event is free and open to the public. “The highlight of our Open House is our one-hour Brown Bag Series simulation from 12 noon to 1:00 p.m. We will conduct a mock mediation session so that the public can see a live-action demonstration of a mediation in process,” said Ku‘ikahi Executive Director Julie Mitchell. Various other activities are interspersed throughout the day. The morning line-up includes a 9:30 a.m. showing of the video “Mediation: An Alternative to Court,” a 10:00 a.m. live demonstration of “Got Conflict? What Happens When You Call Us For Help!” and a 10:30 a.m. presentation on “Foreclosure Mediation Program.” Afternoon activities include a 1:30 p.m. panel with volunteer mediators on “Why Do You Mediate?”, a 2:30 p.m. presentation on “5 Principles of Mediation,” and a 3:00 p.m. presentation on “Youth Peer-To-Peer Mediation.” On display will be proclamations in honor of Conflict Resolution Day 2015 from Mayor Billy Kenoi and Governor David Ige. “The public is invited to meet our staff, watch mediation videos, listen to mediation PSAs, browse literature, explore the office, make a donation, and more,” Mitchell stated. Open House visitors will also have a chance to sign the “Hawai‘i Mediation Pledge,” an aspirational document stating that signers will strive to resolve all disputes outside of litigation using alternative dispute resolution processes such as negotiation, mediation, ho‘oponopono, or other appropriate non-legal process. “We hope community members, parents, teachers, professionals, social service agencies, businesses, civil servants, and others will join us at our Open House,” said Mitchell. Conflict Resolution Day promotes awareness of…
In December 2014, the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR) Education Section received a 2-year grant from the JAMS foundation for a project called Online Peer Mediation Platform (OPMP). Virtual Mediation Lab, an online mediation project sponsored by ACR Hawaii, is one of the four organizations who participate in this innovative project, whose 4 goals are: Show how children from ages 10 to 18 can learn online how to become peer mediators. This feature will be available in 2016. Show how children can practice their peer mediation skills online with the assistance of qualified mentors. This feature is available now. Show how children can offer online peer mediation services. This feature be available in 2016. Provide anyone who is interested in peer mediation extensive information on this topic; for example, standards, useful links, research on peer mediation effectiveness, policies and laws, resources (e.g. curricula and videos). This feature is available now. The OPMP website (with the two features already available) will be launched during the upcoming ACR Annual Conference in Reno, Nevada – October 7-10, 2015
ACR Hawaii proudly supports the 2015 ACR Conflict Resolution Day 5th Annual Poetry Contest. Students – grade categories: 3-5th, 6-8th, 9-12th – interested in conflict prevention and resolution can win cash prizes by submitting a poem on “Building Peace”; for example: >> What is peace? >> Where is peace? >> How can I inspire peace? >> How can I build peace through conflict resolution? From October 1 to October 31, 2015 poems (maximum of 20 lines) can be submitted online, and must be in English. For more information you can view/print this flyer
Message from Bryan Hanson, Lead Tri-chair ACR 2015 ~~~ The 2015 annual conference for the Association for Conflict Resolution commences in three short weeks. This year’s conference will take place Wednesday, October 7th through Saturday, October 10th, 2015 at the Atlantis Resort and Spa in beautiful Reno, NV. I hope that we will see you there for this wonderful opportunity to connect with and learn from the leading practitioners and scholars in the field of conflict engagement. This year’s program has been crafted with the wisdom in mind provided by Dr. John Haynes concerning the importance of “thinking about our thinking.” You will find a detailed list of the programming that has been established on the interactive conference website . I invite you to explore the site and share it with your friends and colleagues as this conference promises to be rich in substantive content and opportunities to connect with your colleagues. You may listen to some of the conference previews here Keeping within the lines of this theme, ACR 2015 is excited to bring Ambassador Prosper as the keynote speaker for this year’s annual conference. AMB. Prosper is the former US Ambassador-at-Large in charge of the Secretary of State’s Office of War Crimes Issues. He will share how his capacity to work constructively with the existing dynamics of conflict were critical to his success in this role. It will be an inspiring presentation you will not want to miss. Please check out his information here There were many individuals who helped support the development of this year’s program including ACR 2015 Conference Tri-chairs Clare Fowler and Jeff Thompson . The results of these efforts provided a schedule with over seventy-five sessions in four full days of programming. Beyond the educational aspect of this program, the networking activities promise to be lively…