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>> ACR Update, May 3, 2002 <<
Published by the Association for Conflict
Resolution,
a merged organization of AFM, CREnet,
and SPIDR
http://www.acresolution.org
====================================
WELCOME TO ACR UPDATE!
ACR Update is sent on a regular basis
to share important conflict resolution
news and organizational updates with
our members. We encourage you to scroll
through the items listed below -- we
hope you'll find this information useful.
We look forward to your feedback!
OVERVIEW OF ARTICLES
May 3, 2002
[1] ACR Passes Resolution Concerning
the Uniform Mediation Act (UMA)
* Letter from ACR President and CEO
[2] ACR Conferences and Programs Update
* Fond Farewell to Janice Robertson
Pauline
* Register now for ACR Environmental/Public
Policy Conference: May 16-18, 2002
* Mark Your Calendar: ACR's Second Annual
Conference will be held August 21-24,
2002 in San Diego, California
* Call for Submissions: ACR's Second
Annual Conference Poster Exhibition
[3] Communications Update
* Voice of America interviews ACR Speakers:
Tune in on May 13, 2002
* Call for Submissions: Conflict Resolution
Quarterly
* Call for Submissions: ACResolution
[4] Membership Department Update
* Member-Get-A-Member Campaign
[5] Featured ACR Product
* Video: "Creative Options for
Mediating Support."
[6] Featured Article from ACR Learning
Center
* "Alternative Contract Delivery
Systems," by James H. Keil.
[7] Quotes
[8] Messages from Our Sponsors
*Colorado School Mediation Project's
11th Annual Violence Prevention in School
Communities Conference
* Management Development Institute:
New 360 Degree Conflict Management Skills
Assessment Instrument
==================================
[1] ACR Passes Resolution Concerning
the Uniform Mediation Act
==================================
LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT AND CEO
Dear ACR Member,
We are writing to let you know that
ACR has passed a Resolution concerning
the Uniform Mediation Act (UMA). ACR,
through our Official Observers, Gregory
Firestone and Dennis Sharp, has played
an important role in shaping the content
of the Uniform Mediation Act, which
was adopted by the National Conference
of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
(NCCUSL) in August 2001. Many of you
are familiar with the UMA and have followed
its progress over time. However, for
those of you who may be new to this
issue, the basic purpose of the UMA
is to support the growth and development
of mediation by promoting uniformity
across the states. A major focus of
the Act is the
creation of a privilege that provides
confidentiality of mediation communications
from use in future legal proceedings.
There are several
exceptions and a number of other points
contained in the UMA.
ACR has carefully reviewed the final
version of the UMA, based on ACR's eleven
UMA Principles that our official observers
articulated to the
drafters throughout this process. At
the April 20-21, 2002 Board of Directors
Meeting, ACR passed a resolution supporting
the UMA, with
conditions related to confidentiality,
impartiality, and child protection mediation
privileges. The complete text of the
ACR UMA Resolution is
available online at http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/UMAresolution.
If you have any questions concerning
ACR's position on and recommended amendments
to the UMA, please do not hesitate to
contact our two Official Observers,
Gregory Firestone (firestoneg@aol.com)
and Dennis Sharp(dsharp@jamadr.com).
To view the press release announcing
ACR's UMA Resolution, please go to:
http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/PR-UMAresolution.
To view the ACR UMA Resolution, please
go to: http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/UMAresolution.
To view the eleven ACR UMA Principles,
please go to:
http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/umaprinciples
To view the text of the UMA, please
go to:
http://www.nccusl.org/nccusl/default.asp
Sincerely,
Arnold Shienvold, Ph.D.
President, Association for Conflict
Resolution
David Hart,
Chief Executive Officer, Association
for Conflict Resolution
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[2] ACR Conferences and Programs Update
================================
ACR BIDS FOND FAREWELL TO JANICE ROBERTSON
PAULINE
ACR's Director of Conferences and Programs,
Janice Robertson Pauline, has left ACR
to assume the position of Director of
the Office of Conferences and Seminar
Management with the National League
of Cities (NLC). Janice was with SPIDR
for five years prior to the merger,
making her the "oldest" member
of the ACR staff. We wish Janice well
in her position and extend our heartfelt
thanks for her many years of service.
Conference Manager Erin Weiss (eweiss@acresolution.org)
is now the primary contact person for
any questions related to Conferences
and Programs.
ACR'S ENVIRONMENTAL PUBLIC POLICY SECTION
CONFERENCE
Register now for this exciting conference
to be held May 16-18, 2002 at the Ventana
Canyon Resort in Tucson, Arizona. The
conference will celebrate the 30-year
anniversary of environmental mediation
and look at lessons learned. The keynote
address will be given by Jerry Cormick
and Alice Shorett. The U.S. Institute
for Environmental Conflict Resolution
(USIECR) will hold their conference
just prior to the ACR Section conference
in the same location, creating a combination
that promises to provide a rich professional
development experience. Conference brochures
are available online at http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/conferences.
If you would like a copy of the brochure
faxed to you, please contact the ACR
Conferences and Programs department
by phone (202/667-9700 ext. 210) or
send your request and complete mailing
address to conferences@acresolution.org.
Please note that advance registration
is open until May 10, 2002. After May
10, please register on site!
ACR'S SECOND ANNUAL CONFERENCE
August 21 - August 24, 2002
Town and Country Resort & Conference
Center, San Diego, CA
ACR's second annual conference, which
will be held at the Town and Country
Resort & Conference Center in San
Diego, is sure to be one of the best
in the conflict resolution field. This
year's keynote speaker will be Arun
Gandhi, founder of the MK Gandhi Institute
for Nonviolence at Christian Brothers
University in Memphis, TN. The title
of Mr. Gandhi's remarks is "Everything
I Need to Know in Life I Learned from
My Grandfather." The four-day conference
will be packed with more than 200 workshops,
plenary sessions,
and special events. Plan now to join
us in sunny San Diego this summer, and
ask your colleagues to join us. The
conference brochures will be sent to
ACR members in mid-May and will also
be available online at http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/conferences.
Information regarding our many conference
partnership opportunities--including
advertising, exhibiting and sponsorship--is
also available online. If you would
like a hard copy of the conference or
partnership opportunities brochures,
please contact the ACR Conferences and
Programs Department by phone (202/667-9700
ext. 210), or send your request and
complete mailing address to conferences@acresolution.org.
We look forward to seeing you in San
Diego!
CALL FOR POSTERS: ACR's Second Annual
Conference Poster Exhibit
Missed the proposal deadline? Consider
presenting your research at the second
annual ACR conference poster exhibit.
A poster exhibit allows you to share
your research in an informal setting,
while receiving individual feedback
from conference attendees. If you are
interested in participating in the poster
exhibition, please send a one-page summary
of your research to the address listed
below. Please include your name, contact
information, and any audio-visual aids
you will need (the standard format will
include a cork-board, easel, or table-top
space). For the conference, the poster
should include a brief abstract outlining
the basic research questions, methods,
data sources, and conclusions. To make
your poster appealing, use visual aids,
such as graphs and charts to display
your findings.
DEADLINE for submissions: July 1st,
2002.
Attn: Susan Summers Raines
c/o Erin Weiss
Association for Conflict Resolution
1527 New Hampshire Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Or submit electronically:
conferences@acresolution.org or
sraines@kennesaw.edu
Tel: 202-667-9700, ext.210
Fax: 202-265-1968
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[3] Communications Update
===============================
VOICE OF AMERICA INTERVIEWS ACR SPEAKERS
On Monday, May 13th, three ACR speakers
will be featured in an hour-long interview
on Voice of America's program "Talk
to America." Talk to America is
a daily international call-in talk show
broadcast simultaneously on radio, television
and the Internet. Representing ACR will
be
David Hart (ACR CEO), Rosemary Romero
(ACR board member) and Gail Bingham
(ACR member). The interview will focus
on the use of mediation to address environmental
disputes both nationally and internationally
and will highlight the upcoming ACR
Environmental/Public Policy Section
conference in Tucson from May 16-18.
The program is carried live to more
than 100 million listeners from around
the world.
ACR international members are encouraged
to tune in to this program on their
local VOA stations at 1:00 pm Eastern
Standard Time. ACR national members
can hear the show on the internet at
http://www.voanews.com/talk (FYI --
If you miss the live broadcast, the
internet portion of the show is archived
for 24 hours.) Talk To America invites
you to be a part of their show by calling
them at 1-202-619-3111 or by sending
an e-mail or fax. Remember to reverse
the charges when calling. If you do
not have a system that permits collect
calls, place the call yourself and give
them your country code, city code and
phone number and they will call you
right back. If you can fax or e-mail
your phone number, they will try to
call you during the show.
Talk to America:
Telephone: +1-202-619-3111
Fax: +1-202-260-8572
E-Mail: talk@voanews.com
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Conflict Resolution
Quarterly (CRQ)
Conflict Resolution Quarterly (formerly
Mediation Quarterly), the journal of
ACR, publishes scholarship in the conflict
management and dispute resolution field
in order to promote more effective professional
practice. The defining focus of the
journal is the relationship between
theory, research and practice.
We encourage CRQ readers to send feedback
about the journal to Tricia S. Jones,
Editor-in-Chief, at tsjones@astro.temple.edu.
Readers may also send comments in response
to specific articles for publication
in the "Readers' Response"
section of CRQ -- a new feature of the
journal that will begin in volume 20.
For information about the format for
Readers' Response contributions, and
submission procedures for papers, please
consult the CRQ Call for Papers document
on the ACR web site athttp://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/CRQ-callforpapers,
or contact the editor at the above-noted
e-mail address.
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: ACResolution
ACR welcomes your contributions to the
following magazine sections:
* Balancing Act focuses on members
who are committed to conflict resolution
and developing themselves as whole persons,
both inside and outside the workplace.
Submissions of 150-250 words and photos
should highlight an after-hours activity
or hobby that enables you to feel centered
and grounded outside of your busy life
as a conflict resolver. Please tell
us about how this activity or hobby
revitalizes you, helps you achieve balance
in your personal life, feeds your intellect,
and nurtures your soul.
* What Would You Do? Ethical dilemmas?
Seemingly intractable conflicts? Trouble
"walking the talk" with colleagues,
partners, family members? Your own biases
and expectations getting in the way?
Please describe (in 250 words or less)
an experience that raised a question
for you regarding effective conflict
resolution practice. Senior practitioners
in the field will respond to your queries
with suggestions and advice.
* Voices is a one-page collection of
quotations about conflict resolution
and peacemaking that relate to a particular
issue's theme. Please send us quotes
related to our field that you find compelling
and educational.
* Letters to the Editor are welcomed
and encouraged as a means of enhancing
the dialogue between ACResolution and
its readers. (ACResolution reserves
the right to edit letters for space.)
If an article or column encourages or
frustrates you, we want to hear about
it!
Submissions for the following are encouraged:
Section and Chapter news, members in
the news (awards, personnel moves, etc.),
and calendar information (conferences
and other events related to conflict
resolution).
National and Regional Legislative and
Public Policy Updates. Please help us
raise member awareness by submitting
updates and highlights of conflict resolution-related
legislative and public policy news found
in the local, regional, and national
media.
Best Practices in Diversity and Conflict
Resolution -- New!
Starting with the April issue of ACResolution,
a new quarterly column on diversity
highlights practical strategies for
training conflict resolution professionals
in specific cross-cultural and diversity
skills, describes model approaches to
resolving complex disputes in various
U.S. subcultures and abroad, and presents
case studies of programs and interventions
in the field of diversity and conflict
resolution. Each "best practice"
chosen for publication will be introduced
by Dr. Benjamin D. Reese, Jr., who has
worked in the fields of race-relations,
cross-cultural communication, and diversity
training for more than 30 years. To
contribute to this new column, please
send 500- to 600-word descriptions of
innovative and successful strategies,
programs, models, or case studies that
further the practice of conflict resolution
and diversity, or the training of conflict
resolution professionals who work with
diverse populations. Submissions for
this column should be sent to Dr. Reese
at reesources1@aol.com.
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[4] ACR Membership Department Update
================================
ACR MEMBER-GET-A-MEMBER CAMPAIGN
Recruit five members by June 1, 2002
and receive special recognition at the
San Diego Conference.
Did you know that you receive a $10
discount on your dues for every new
member you recruit for ACR?
Simply ask the new member to list your
name as the referral source on his or
her membership application. When your
membership comes up for renewal, your
dues will reflect the reduced rate.
For example, if you're a general member
of ACR and you recruit one new member,
your dues will be reduced from $120
to $110 for the coming year. If you
can recruit one new member a month,
your dues for the coming year will be
paid in full!
Anyone who recruits five or more members
between January 1 and June 1, 2002 will
be listed in the final ACR 2002 annual
conference program and receive special
recognition at the President's Luncheon,
held during the annual conference. As
an added recruitment incentive, ACR
will award a free conference registration
for the 2002 annual conference to the
person who recruits the greatest number
of members. For more information, contact
ACR Membership Coordinator Fred Mangels
by phone at 202-667-9700, ext. 245,
or by e-mail at fmangels@acresolution.org.
=================================
[5] Featured ACR Product
=================================
ACR, and our founding organizations
(AFM, CREnet, and SPIDR), have developed
a number of conflict resolution products
that reflect the wide range of interests
and practice areas of our members. In
each ACR Update, we will feature one
of these products. This issue's featured
product is:
"CREATIVE OPTIONS FOR MEDIATING
SUPPORT"
This video, taped at the 1994 AFM Annual
Conference, features the mediation skills
of Chip Rose, Marilynn McKnight and
Laury Adams in three role plays designed
to demonstrate the mediation of support
issues involving a divorcing couple
with two children and a substantial
difference in present earnings. Narrated
by John Gartland, this video displays
three very different mediation styles,
making this an excellent training video.
Highlights include: examples of how
discussions of state child support guidelines
can act as a barometer when discussing
support issues, benefits of computer
programs in mediation, and how client
budgets raise questions and issues that
need to be addressed during this stage
of the mediation.
This 70-minute videotape (VHS format)
is available through ACR. To order,
please click here: http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/VHS-Options.
==================================
[6] Featured Article from the ACR Learning
Center
==================================
ACR is committed to educating our members
and the general public about conflict
resolution. Therefore, in each ACR Update,
we will feature an article from the
ACR Learning Center that we think will
be of value to our members. This issue's
featured article is:
"ALTERNATIVE CONTRACT DELIVERY
SYSTEMS"
by James H. Keil
An excerpt of this article follows:
"The construction industry has
been dramatically affected by numerous
changes to the laws and regulations
controlling it over the past three decades.
While these changes have been much more
drastic in some parts of the world than
others, few areas have escaped change
totally. Environmental considerations
alone have impacted not only individual
projects, but entire construction-related
industries, such as logging, transportation
and marine use projects, to name a few...
While we see tremendous progress in
quality and volume output of work on
projects that involve many computer
terminals tied together to link disciplines
in design and review, from a legal perspective,
the question of ultimate responsibility
for failures, should they occur, will
be more challenging than it has been
in the past, and may require the development
of new processes for adjudication of
issues."
To read the article in its entirety,
please click here:
http://www.acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/alt-contract
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[7] Quotes
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"The pure and simple truth is
rarely pure and never simple."
-- Oscar Wilde
"Not only are there as many conflicting
truths as there are people to claim
them; there are equally multitudinous
and conflicting truths within the individual."
-- Virgilia Peterson
"The great enemy of the truth
is very often not the lie -- deliberate,
contrived, and dishonest -- but the
myth -- persistent, persuasive and realistic."
-- John F. Kennedy
"We do not see the lens through
which we look." -- Ruth Fulton
Benedict
"When two texts, or two assertions,
perhaps two ideas, are in contradiction,
be ready to reconcile them rather than
cancel one by the other; regard them
as two different facets, or two successive
stages, of the same reality, a reality
convincingly human just because it is
complex." -- Marguerite Yourcenar
"Opportunity is missed by most
people because it is dressed in overalls
and looks like work." -- Thomas
Edison
=================================
[8] Messages from Our Sponsors
=================================
COLORADO SCHOOL MEDIATION PROJECT
11th Annual Violence Prevention in School
Communities Conference
"Safe and Peaceful Communities:
Now More Than Ever"
June 10-11, 2002 -- Denver, CO
Workshops on: Safe and Successful Learning
Environments; Diversity and Anti-bias
Approaches; Security and Crisis Management;
Just for Youth; After School Programs
and Community Collaborations; Restorative
Justice Strategies; Conflict Resolution
and Social/Emotional Skills; Violence
Prevention and Resiliency.
For: Counselors, Educators, Law Enforcement
Community, Youth, Mediators, School
Administrators, Parents, and Youth Service
Organizations.
Co-Sponsored By:
Association for Conflict Resolution
Colorado Department of Education
Colorado Forum On Community and Restorative
Justice
For more information contact the Colorado
School Mediation Project at 303-444-7671,
1-877-853-5402 or visit www.csmp.org.
NEW 360 DEGREE ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENT
TO IMPROVE CONFLICT MANAGEMENT SKILLS
The Management Development Institute
has released the Conflict Dynamics Profile
(CDP), a multi-rater feedback instrument
that organizations can use to address
conflict by identifying and changing
behaviors that lead to conflict.
The CDP produces a complete "conflict
profile" by providing feedback
on: what provokes an individual, how
that individual perceives the way he
or she responds to conflict, how others
view that individual responding to conflict,
and which responses to conflict have
the potential to harm one's position
in a particular organization.
Find out more about the CDP at http://www.conflictdynamics.org
or call toll free at 888-359-9906. Also
try our new Hot Buttons test on the
Web site to find out what triggers conflict
for you.
THIS AD COULD BE YOURS!
Reach 5,000+ conflict resolution enthusiasts
with your advertising message. Get more
details by clicking the link below:
http://acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/advertise
===========================
Encourage your colleagues and friends
to join the Association for Conflict
Resolution! Immediate Benefits: See
http://acresolution.org/research.nsf/key/reasons
===========================
As an ACR member, you are automatically
subscribed to the ACR Update.
To unsubscribe to the ACR Update,
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===========================
http://acresolution.org
Copyright 2002, Association for Conflict
Resolution
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