Contact: Sharon Pickett, phone: 301-365-9307, e-mail: sharonp@igc.org

Conference in Tucson Reviews 30 years of Environmental Mediation

What Have We Learned? Who Benefits? Are Negotiated Settlements Good for the Environment?

May 16-18, 2002 – Tucson, AZ

The conflict resolution profession is rapidly expanding, and nowhere is this trend more prevalent than in the area of environmental dispute resolution. Mediators, arbitrators, and other conflict resolution professionals are increasingly in demand to help resolve tough environmental struggles involving multiple stakeholders. The skills that they bring to their jobs have an enormous impact on both communities and the ecosystem.

From May 16-18, environmental mediators from across the country will gather at the Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson to share lessons learned and discuss ways to improve and expand the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Participants are members of the Environment and Public Policy Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution, a nonprofit organization representing more than 6000 conflict resolution professionals. The ACR conference will immediately follow a conference by the U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (USIECR) in the same location. Media are invited to attend. Interviews are available on request.

Topics for Discussion:

• What are the key lessons learned since the landmark 1972 Snoqualmie mediation?
  

• Who should monitor the field of environmental and public policy conflict resolution? Who will determine best practices? Under what authority? With what (if any) sanctions?
  

• Have agreements produced through mediation been implemented? Are they working?
  

• What do various stakeholders (agencies, environmental advocates, community members, etc.) see as the pros and cons of negotiated settlements?
  

• People from different cultures often hold very different values and views about their relationship to the environment. Are there strategies that can help different groups find common ground?
  

• What factors should be considered when deciding whether or not to mediate an environmental dispute? How does the process of mediation affect decision-making? What is the role of the mediator?
  

• Collaborative processes are now used by many federal programs including the EPA, Bureau of Land Management, US Forest Service and others. What types of disputes fall under these agencies? What are the unique challenges facing the mediator and disputants in such agencies?

Available for Interviews:
Rosemary Romero is a mediator in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and a board member of the Association for Conflict Resolution. She has extensive experience in environmental mediation including negotiating forest management, land use, water planning and watershed management issues for various agencies.

Other speakers (US Forest Service ranger, environmental activist, community leader.) are also available to discuss their experience with environmental mediation.

05/16/2002