The 2009 Mediators’ Institute of Ireland Annual Conference took place in the St Helens Radisson Hotel, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin, on 14th and 15th November. In excess of 160 delegates attended, selecting from a programme of workshops on a variety of themes relevant to Mediators and the different fields of mediation.
Peter Adler, renowned Mediator and author specialising in multi-party problem solving and consensus building, presented the keynote speech “The End of Mediation: Why the Field will Fail and Mediators will Thrive over the Next Two Decades” focusing on where mediation enterprise has been, where it is now, and where it seems to be going. Adler also presented two extremely well received workshops, one on Saturday exploring mediation styles based on four human impulses, and one on Sunday, where he explored the parallels between Mediators and leaders.
How Mediators and lawyers can work together more collaboratively was the subject of a workshop by Kaye Ronayne and Mary Condell. Eimear Hayden, with the help of Ann Walsh presented a follow-on workshop on the new Code of Ethics and Practice that focussed on the complex issues of ethics and confidentiality in mediation. Other generic focused workshops included an exploration of mediation and the neuropsychology of conflict by Julie McAuliffe and Delma Sweeney’s workshop on the potential of Gestalt theory in informing mediation practice.
There were a number of workshops focusing on specific themes. Colm Nagle explored the financial challenges of separation/divorce where there are substantial business interests. Dermot McEvoy focused on how to deal with specific issues that arise in commercial mediation. Also in the commercial arena, David Richbell explored some of the more challenging issues which can arise in commercial mediation and the strategies to address these challenges.
Mediation in organisations was viewed through a systemic lens with comparative views of internal and external mediation by Treasa Kenny and Anna Doyle. Sue Corbett also took a workplace focus presenting a model for facilitating resolution of workplace bullying disputes. Addressing local community tensions and the role of community Mediators was discussed by Peter O'Reilly of Mediation Northern Ireland. Restorative justice initiatives in an educational setting were the subject of a panel discussion by Niamh Cunningham and Paddy O’Connor.
Mary Rafferty, Chair of the Education and Training Committee.
July 2009