WELCOME TO ACR UPDATE—the monthly e-newsletter sharing important conflict resolution news and organizational updates with ACR members. Your feedback is welcome!

To view this issue online, go to: http://www.ACRnet.org/publications/acrupdate.htm

OVERVIEW OF ARTICLES
November 3, 2006

1. 2006 Annual Conference Report
2. Call for Proposals: ACResolution magazine Spring 2007 issue
3. ACR Store: ACR Marketing Teleseminar CDs for Sale
4. Introducing the ACR Master Calendar
5. Quotations
6. Message from our Sponsor: Dina Beach Lynch, ADR Practice Builder

Thank you to the sponsors, exhibitors, presenters and attendees who helped make ACR’s Sixth Annual Conference, “Celebrating our Past, Shaping the Future,” such a success. Attendees participated in over 200 workshops, meetings, receptions, facilitated dialogues, mini-plenaries and other events. Early arrivers enjoyed pre-conference sessions, International Day and—new this year—the Advanced Commercial Mediation Institute, as well as an opening reception at the Franklin Institute.

The opening plenary, on Thursday, moderated by Josh Stulberg, featured reflections on the growth and change in the conflict resolution field. Before the discussion began, ACR President, Terry Wheeler, recognized the contributions that departing CEO, David A. Hart, made during his five year tenure at ACR. Thursday concluded with the Welcome Reception and Silent Auction in the Exhibit Hall, where some 40 exhibitors offered information, products and services for the conflict resolution community and musical entertainment was provided by the Philadelphia Mummers.

At the Presidential Luncheon on the final day of the Annual Conference, previous recipient Chris Carlson presented the Mary Parker Follett Award to Gail Bingham for her pioneering work in environmental conflict resolution. Nina Meierding, last year’s honoree, presented the John M. Haynes Distinguished Mediator Award to founding ACR president, Arnie Shienvold, for his passionate service to the field of mediation. President Terry Wheeler selected two honorees to receive the 2006 Presidential Award – Marya Kolman, for her dedication and enthusiasm as a two-time Annual Conference Program Committee Chair, and Nina Meierding, for her outstanding ACR membership recruitment efforts. Annual Conference program chairs Perri Mayes, Jim Rosenstein, Mark Welge and Marya Kolman were thanked for their outstanding coordination of the Philadelphia conference.

During the luncheon, Terry Wheeler officially passed the ACR President position to incoming president Ray Lanier. Wheeler and Lanier each thanked members of the Board of Directors whose terms were coming to an end: John Conbere, Richard Fincher, Larry Fong, Marvin Johnson, Peter Maida and Anne B. Thomas. The Diversity & Equity Network recognized Marvin Johnson for his contributions. Keynote speaker, Morris Dees, Jr., closed the Annual Conference with an address. Dees is the co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama and has been a pioneer in civil rights work.        

Thank you again to gold sponsors Kennesaw State University and Nova Southeastern University and silver sponsors Antioch University and Complete Equity Markets, Inc.

ACR’s Seventh Annual Conference will be held October 24–27, 2007 in Phoenix, Arizona. We look forward to seeing you there!

ACR Marketing Teleseminar CDs Now Available!

Each CD is just $12.00 for ACR Members ($18.00 per CD for non-ACR Members). All shipping charges are included. For a short time only, ACR members can order all three CDs for only $30 (shipping included). Ordering information is included below.

“Entrepreneurship for Neutrals” by V. Michelle Obradovic

In this interactive presentation, V. Michelle Obradovic speaks about the vast array of experiences that have gone into building her successful mediation practice. Michelle covers a variety of topics in this hour-long program, including: identifying your market, what to anticipate as you begin your practice, and the ups-and-downs of the entrepreneurial cycle.

“A Mediator’s Approach to Marketing” by Forrest Mosten and Diana Mercer

This hour-long program was originally presented as a teleseminar by Forrest Mosten and Diana Mercer on June 15, 2006. Listen as Forrest and Diana—both authors of articles in the Spring 2006 issue of ACResolution—discuss their time-tested methods of marketing, suggest strategies for building a successful mediation practice and share tips for attracting new clients.

“Ten Ways to Promote Your Mediation Practice Inexpensively, Ethically and with Dignity” by Bruce Blitman

In an hour-long teleseminar that aired on July 7, 2006, Bruce Blitman presents his top ten tips on marketing your mediation practice. Listen as Bruce shares anecdotes from the thousands of mediations he has conducted, recommends strategies and approaches to promoting your practice, and addresses questions submitted by listeners.

How to Order Marketing Teleseminar CDs: These CDs will be available soon in the ACR online store; in the meantime, please download and fill out a product order form and mail or fax with payment information to: Association for Conflict Resolution, 1015 18^th St. NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20036, or call the ACR office for assistance: 202-464-9700.

Don’t forget to check out ACR’s other store items, including books, reports, training videos and ACR merchandise: http://www.acrnet.org/library/catalogue.htm .

Want to know what events are taking place in your community or in your field?  Check out the ACR Master Calendar!  http://www.ACRnet.org/webcalendar

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.

The ACR Master Calendar is the place to find out what events are taking place.  Find regional Chapter happenings, professional interest Section events and all kinds of ACR functions.  Find out what is going on in your neighborhood. Get involved!

Check out the ACR Master Calendar at www.ACRnet.org/webcalendar

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