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OVERVIEW OF ARTICLES
March 3, 2006

1. 2006 Annual Conference: Philadelphia – Lots for Everyone!

2. Call for Proposals: ACResolution magazine Summer 2006 Issue

3. Join an Upcoming ACR Teleconference!

4. ACR Teleseminars Available on Audio CD

5. National Youth Violence Prevention Week: April 3-7, 2006

6. ACR Section News

7. ACR Chapter News

8. Quotations

9. Message from our Sponsor: Mediate.com

Plan to Join ACR in Philadelphia, October 25-28, 2006!

ACR’s Sixth Annual Conference will be held October 25–28, 2006 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Below is an excerpt from the latest installment of the series “Philadelphia, Here We Come!” which showcases the site of our 2006 Annual Conference. We look forward to seeing you there in October!

Philadelphia – Not Just Something for Anyone, But Lots for Everyone!

Visit a Livable 21st Century City and a History Museum in One Place (Part II)

by James A. Rosenstein

In last month’s thrilling installment of this series, I provided an overview of the city of Philadelphia and its surroundings as a living American history museum— much of it within easy walking distance of the Annual Conference hotel.  This month, I’ll introduce you to many of these opportunities in greater detail.

If you are a walker, you can get the greatest return on your investment of time and money by taking the self-guided “Constitutional Walking Tour” through Independence National Historical Park, including stops at the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and many of the other historically important buildings in or around the Park (less than 1.5 miles from the Annual Conference hotel).  You can easily combine it with the Lights of Liberty Show (at the Liberty Center, 6^th & Chestnut Street) if you allow yourself a full day.  In either case, start at the Independence Visitor Center (6^th and Market Street), where you can pick up self-guided tour information and tickets to attractions that require them. Don’t forget to include the National Constitution Center (a block away at 6^th and Arch Street).  Or you can just wander the wonderful streets of historic neighborhoods like Society Hill, Old City, Washington Square, Rittenhouse Square and Logan Square (the first three are in the immediate vicinity of Independence National Historic Park, while the others are less than ¾ mile from the Annual Conference  venue).  Of course, if you prefer, you can take any of a multitude of guided tours—on foot,  by candlelight, by horse-drawn carriage, on a double-decker bus or amphibious “duck.” Just ask the hotel concierge or at the Visitor Center!

To read about more Philadelphia highlights, please visit the ACR website where you can also read the first two articles in this series.

Call for Article Proposals: Summer 2006 ACResolution magazine

The Summer 2006 issue of ACResolution magazine will focus on the topic of International ADR. The editors seek proposals from people who would like to write articles on any aspect of ADR processes used in countries other than the United States. They seek diversity in authors and subject matter and authors do not have to be ACR members.

If interested, please include in your proposal:

• half-page description of your proposed article,

• title/headline for your article,

• your name and contact information,

• one to three lines of biographical information, including any affiliation with ACR, and

• whether you would like to write a major (3,000 words) or minor (1,500 words) feature.

Send your proposals via email to ACResolution Managing Editor at publications at ACRnet dot org  as soon as possible but no later than March 10, 2006.

An editorial advisory committee will review the proposals and choose 2 or 3 major features and 2 or 3 minor features. Authors will be notified by March 15.  If selected, completed articles will be due by May 1, 2006.

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Upcoming ACR Section Teleconferences:

Crisis Intervention and Restorative and Criminal Justice Sections: March 22, 2006

On March 22, ACR’s Crisis Intervention and Restorative and Criminal Justice Sections will host a telephone seminar featuring a new, practical framework for resolving crisis incidents.  The S.A.F.E. model of crisis/hostage negotiation will demonstrate strategies for spotting indications of worsening situations and effectively responding to them. This model can be used to resolve critical situations that arise in a wide variety of scenarios, from family and school violence to disgruntled employees, suicidal individuals, terrorists and cult activities.

The speakers will be Dr. Mitchell Hammer, president of Hammer Consulting, a critical incident management firm in Washington DC, and Major Robert Beach, former crisis/hostage negotiator with the Fairfax County Police in Virginia.

The teleseminar will take place Wednesday, March 22 from 1 to 2 p.m.  To participate, send an email to safeteleseminar at ACRnet dot org.  You will receive an automated response with instructions and call-in information. If you do not receive your confirmation please contact Anne-Marie Burton, ACR Sections Manager at aburton at ACRnet dot org.

Spirituality Section: “Seeing with New Eyes,” presented by Erica Ariel Fox, March 30, 2006, 3p.m. Eastern/12:00 p.m. Pacific

The Spirituality Section’s “Writers’ Teleconference Forum” continues on March 30, 2006 with a teleconference on “Seeing with New Eyes,” presented by Erica Ariel Fox.  Erica Ariel Fox is the Founder and Director of the Harvard Negotiation Insight Initiative (HNII).  She teaches negotiation at Harvard Law School and is working on her first book with Marc Gafni.

To participate in the discussion, send an email to neweyesteleseminar at ACRnet dot org. You will receive an automated response with the instructions and call-in information. If you do not receive your confirmation please contact Anne-Marie Burton, ACR Sections Manager at aburton at ACRnet dot org.

Interested in participating in a teleconference? Send an email to sections at ACRnet dot org to receive dial-in instructions.

Please note: most Section teleconferences are a Section member benefit. To join a Section, log in to ACR’s Online Member Center, click on “My Account History,” then “Add Sections,” and select the Sections you want to add.

Expand your Horizon with ACR’s educational Teleseminars on audio CD*.

You have the chance to hear a teleseminar in the comfort of your office, home, car or on your way to work.  For more information, please click on the names of the CDs below.

The following CDs are now available for purchase:

• “Violence in the Workplace: A New Way to Recognize Potential Explosions and effectively intervene,” presented by Marcus McElhaney.
• "Extreme Facilitation," presented by Suzanne Ghais.
• "The Devil is in the Details," presented by Jack Kelly.
• "The Anatomy of a Commercial Mediator," presented by Jeffrey Allen and Tom Oswald.
• "What Every Mediator Should Know About Current Trends in Arbitration," presented by Richard Dewitt, Esq.
• "The Spiritual Cost of Conflict," presented by Kenneth Cloke.
• "Why We Do What We Do By Accessing the Greater Vision of Our Work," presented by JoAnne Kellert.

To order a CD:

Pay by fax or mail:

Click to download a Product Order Form in PDF format and mail or fax it in to the ACR office with your check or credit card payment. Faxed orders should be faxed to the attention of Anne-Marie Burton at 202-464-9720. Mailed orders should be sent with a check to Anne-Marie L. Burton, Sections Manager, Association for Conflict Resolution, 1015 18th Street, NW, Suite 1150, Washington, D.C. 20036.

*Discounted prices for members of the Section that hosts the teleseminar.

April 3-7, 2006 is National Youth Violence Prevention Week

ACR is pleased to be a sponsor of National Youth Violence Prevention Week, an annual campaign to raise awareness and to educate students, teachers, school administrators, counselors, school resource officers, school staff, parent, and the public on effective ways to prevent or reduce youth violence.

Upcoming Section Mid-Year Conferences

Environment and Public Policy Section Mid-Year Conference: June 28–30, 2006 in Boston

Please save the date and spread the word!  The Environment and Public Policy (EPP) Section is gearing up for an enlightening and enjoyable three-day conference at the MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts on June 28–30, 2006. Chaired by Larry Susskind, Director of the MIT-Harvard Public Disputes Program and Harry Manasewich, President of Human Factor Dispute Resolutions, “Deliberative Democracy: New Directions in Public Policy Dispute Resolution,” will offer participants the opportunity to network while learning from top theorists and practitioners in the areas of public policy dispute resolution and deliberative democracy (democratic civic engagement without neutrals).

Keynote addresses and workshops will focus on: the intersection of theory and practice in resolving public disputes; the role of ADR practitioners in resolving intractable public policy disputes around social and moral issues such as abortion, corporate responsibility, governance; and rebuilding the Gulf Coast. We will also look at public dispute resolution as a business, leveraging data gathered from surveys of the top dispute resolution individuals and firms, and hear from a panel of professionals who work to resolve conflicts outside the United States.  

Interested in presenting? The request for proposals (RFP) is now available on the EPP Section website.  The deadline for submissions is March 24, 2006. For more information, please contact Anne Mansfield via telephone (802-831-1338) or email (eppinfo at vermontlaw dot edu).

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Family Section Mid-Year Conference: July 13–16, 2006
Plan to attend ACR’s Family Section Mid-Year conference, “Making Waves -- Breaking Barriers,” to be held on the shores of Cape Cod, July 13–16, 2006 with keynote speaker David Hall, the Provost and Senior Vice-President for Academic Affairs at Northeastern University Boston and author of the bestselling book, Search for Sacred Rivers. More information will be made available on the Family Section website.

Spirituality Section Mid-Year Meeting in San Francisco, CA, May 5, 2006

Plan to attend the Third Annual Spirituality Section Mid-Year Meeting, co-sponsored by ACR’s Spirituality Section and the Association of Dispute Resolution of Northern California. This exciting event will feature Gary Friedman, Center for Mediation in Law as keynote speaker and Barbara Ashley Phillips, North American Institute for Conflict Resolution. More information will be made available on the Spirituality Section website.

Request for Proposals: ACResolution magazine

The International Section is working with the editors of ACResolution magazine on the Summer 2006 issue, which will focus on International ADR. Article proposals must be submitted by March 10.  For more details please see item number 2 in this issue of ACR Update or visit the International Section website.  Please join us in helping make this issue an exceptional one. 

Save the date! The 2006 Annual Northern California Chapter (ADRNC) Conference will be held on Saturday, April 22, 2006 at Preservation Park in downtown Oakland, California! More information on speakers and programs will be forthcoming. Last year’s event was sold out, so stay tuned for details on how to register!

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