2012 Year in Review

Happy New Year, Community Mediation!

2013 marks NAFCM's 19th year as the Voice of Community Mediation, and we're planning to take that voice into some pretty exciting new directions! Before we do, however, let's take a look back at some of our notable 2012 accomplishments... countdown style!  

10. New Member Benefits

As a member-supported organization, NAFCM is always seeking ways to support those who support us. Our growing package of member benefits is one way we're pleased to say "Thank You!" In 2012, we added several new options, including the ability to secure professional email addresses for all NAFCM members and the continued discount on Mediate.com's Case Manager for program members.

9. Community Calendar

Community mediation happens. When and where it does, NAFCM has it scheduled! This past year we continued to expand our Community Mediation Calendar by freely promoting over 600 local community trainings, gatherings, and celebrations. 

8. Conference Circuit

Each year brings a new slate of exceptional international and regional ADR conferences. This past year we had the pleasure of connecting with community colleagues at the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution, ACR, and SCMA annual conferences. We're planning even more gatherings for 2013! 

7. Webinar Series

2012 was a smashing success for NAFCM's new Community Mediation Webinar Series. We hosted over a dozen sessions on all manner of topics, most of which were FREE for current members! Moving into 2013, we'll continue to expand our offerings, including access to recordings from many of our archived events.

6. Publications Revisions

Early in 2012, NAFCM concluded the monumental task of completely revising many of our key publications. Thoroughly updated to reflect the field's evolving wisdom, NAFCM now offers the most up-to-date set of community mediation guides available anywhere. Moving into 2013, many of these will be available digitally to current program members! 

5. PeerMediators.org

Constructive youth-focused conflict resources are a must-have in today's schools. This past year, NAFCM collaborated with APADRC and Wendy E. H. Corbett to develop a new set of peer mediation resources that are now freely available to schools and community mediation programs everywhere. Available at PeerMediators.org, these training manuals, implementation guide, and digital resources, have already been shared with colleagues literally across the globe!

4. New Board Members

NAFCM is driven by the creative energies and dedicated work of its exceptional Board of Directors. This past year, NAFCM grew its Board by 50%, adding five inspiring field leaders and plenty of new energy to our continued renaissance. Our Board now includes representatives from 12 states and D.C. 

3. Outreach & Policy Committee

Capitalizing on the increased size and energy of the NAFCM Board, 2012 saw the establishment of our Board-level Outreach & Policy Committee. This committee will tackle some pretty important issues, including a number of pressing community mediation advocacy and public awareness initiatives. New Committee members are always welcome!

2. State of Community Mediation

For the first time in nearly a decade, NAFCM has outlined the contours and complexity of our field in its State of Community Mediation report. This extensive review included the contributions of over 100 field leaders and includes dozens of never-before-reported statistics about who we are and what we help our clients and our communities achieve. The entire report is freely available online and has been the subject of numerous presentations throughout the preceding year.

1. NAFCM Clearinghouse

One of NAFCM's top focus areas for 2012 is about to make 2013 unbelievably exciting! The NAFCM Clearinghouse, a digital, crowd-sourced collection of 6,000+ resources for and about community mediation, is now ready for its grand debut! Stay tuned to NAFCM's discussion group for release details and take a sneak peek at all that we've included.

Here's to an amazing year ahead!

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

Conflict Resolution Education Activity Calendar

Our colleagues over at the Association for Conflict Resolution's Education Section (and friends) have pulled together another exceptional calendar for school and youth program administrators. The Conflict Resolution Education (CRE) Activity Calendar, now in its 3rd edition, is a month-by-month trove of resources and activity ideas bringing CRE to life in engaging and instructional ways for youth of all ages.

From the Calendar:

Any change we wish to see in our world will have to be lived-out in our classrooms, schools and families. This calendar is offered in appreciation and recognition of the important work done every day by educators and youth leaders who plant seeds of knowledge and skills essential to a civil society and a peaceful, just world. Designed as a supplement to any curriculum or professional development program, the calendar is chockfull of ideas, activities, web resources, featured dates, inspirational quotes, poetry and powerful images -- all chosen to make the integration of conflict resolution education easy; all chosen to make conflict resolution everyone’s healthy habit. [more]

To adorn your own walls and enhance your classrooms' conflict competence, order a physical copy of the calendar today. You can really share the love by placing a bulk order (30+) for an entire school or district!

Many thanks to the ACR Education Section and Conflict Resolution Day Committee, CREducation.org, and the JAMS Foundation for making this wonderful resource so accessible to teachers, youth program administrators, and the youngsters they serve.

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

SCMA 2011 Annual Conference

Sun, Surf, & SCMA! Hosted on the incomparable Pepperdine University Malibu campus, the Southern California Mediation Association's upcoming 23rd Annual Fall Conference on November 4-5 has all the fixings for a combo professional development/personal rejuvenation opportunity bar none!

Featuring such ADR all-stars as Ken Cloke, Tom Kosakowski, Forest (Woody) Mosten, Colin Rule, and many others, this conference will abound with brilliant minds offering the latest insights into our field. The complete schedule [pdf], including two pre-conference sessions, a visionary keynote speaker, a time-traveling plenary, ten engaging panel presentations, and an attendee reception round out this year's can't-miss Southern California conference.

Heeding our own endorsement, NAFCM is thrilled to be participating in this exciting event! We will have Board members on-site to greet volunteer mediators and others at our Exhibitor booth during November 5th. We invite all those in attendance to stop by and learn more about the rich community mediation field and NAFCM's role as its active convenor and proud voice.

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

OMA 2011 Annual Conference

With over two decades under their belt hosting exceptional conferences, the Oregon Mediation Association's upcoming Silver Anniversary Fall Conference is sure to be a grand event! Taking place November 4-5 in Portland, OMA has announced an impressive lineup of speakers and events, including Keynote Speaker Ray Shonholtz, former ten-year President of Community Boards in San Francisco.

Appealing to the varied professional focuses represented amongst OMA's membership, the conference offers  a particularly promising time for community mediation folks. Program administrators from throughout the broader Pacific Northwest will have access to informative sessions on community reconciliation, cross-cultural alliances, public policy engagement, restorative justice within the government sector, and entire program-relevant tracks, including mediator skills development and quality assurance. All told, OMA has crafted an accessible soirée offering eleven hours of professional development with plenty of opportunity for re/building personal connections thrown in for good measure.

Of further import to community-oriented attendees will be the presentation of OMA's Shannon Stewart Award of Excellence and its distinguished kin, the Brian Johnston Award of Excellence, which, respectively, honor notable volunteers and staff members at community dispute resolution centers and other public-benefit entities.

Gleefully correcting a too-long absence from PNW ADR events, NAFCM will proudly be in attendance! We look forward to reconnecting with our friends and colleagues working in one of the most active and consistently impressive regions of the country. We invite all in attendance to visit us at our Exhibitor booth where you can score your very own "Community Mediator" conference ribbon and check-out the latest community mediation resources. Be sure, also, to plug-in to NAFCM's Facebook and Twitter accounts, which will feature a stream of real-time, community-focused ideas and resources during the event. Following the conference, we'll post a conference recap to "The Community Mediator," NAFCM's blog.

Hope to see many of you in Portland this Fall!

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

ACR 2011 Annual Conference

Join NAFCM and community mediation colleagues from across the globe at the Association for Conflict Resolution's 2011 Annual Conference in San Diego, during October 12-15. Now celebrating its 10th successful year, ACR is preparing to host another exceptional conference featuring cutting edge presentations, field-renowned speakers, and ample opportunities to re-connect with colleagues from every geographic and professional corner of our diverse ADR landscape.

Community mediation colleagues, specifically, have a lot to look forward to at ACR this year. First, the organization's Community Section will host a half-day pre-conference session on Wednesday, October 12th, entitled "Surviving and Thriving in these Tough Economic Times" [pg. 19], featuring informative presentations by Karmit Bulman, Cheryl Cutrona, and Caroline Harmon. The Section will also host a lunch meeting providing its members with an update on the Section's recent activities, including the always helpful collection of Conference Accessibility Resources. 

During the regular conference, community-focused practitioners will be able to choose from amongst a large number of illuminating and provocative sessions. Community programming that focuses on conflict coaching, large-group facilitations, peer mediation, police/citizen conflicts, and prisoner re-entry; performance-based evaluation; various restorative practices;  and community training models are but a few of the tantalizing topics entreating this year's attendees.

Throughout the conference, NAFCM will be on hand to connect with friends new and old. We invite you to stop by our exhibitor booth where you can catch-up, snag your own "Community Mediator" conference ribbon, and explore all the latest community mediation resources we'll have on hand. Plug into our Facebook and Twitter accounts during the conference to receive real-time updates with fresh resources and pithy quotes from around the conference. Daily community-focused recaps are also on tap for our Blog 'The Community Mediator'. Finally, we invite you to connect with several NAFCM staff and Board members who will be on-site. Take the opportunity to reconnect and share your feedback on how we can continually grow as your professional resource.

With so much in store for community mediation program administrators and volunteers, we hope to see many of you in San Diego this October! And following the conference, be sure to register for our free Conference Recap Teleseminar scheduled for November 29th and featuring all the best of take-aways for community mediation practitioners.

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

Website Wednesdays - Community Mediation Calendar

Each Wednesday (or as close thereto as our schedule allows) we will highlight a particular feature of NAFCM's website worthy of your review.  By highlighting specific components of our website, we're hopeful you'll become better equipped to take full advantage of all the resources we've packed into our mighty site.  Once you've checked out this week's feature, we invite you to continue clicking and discover even more!

  

This week's "Website Wednesday" feature: Community Mediation Calendar

Community mediation happens.  NAFCM has it scheduled.  

Need to promote your next event?  Planning your conference schedule for the year?  Interested in comparing your program's training rates and PR materials with those of colleagues?  NAFCM's Community Mediation Calendar is your new resource for all this and more.

Visiting NAFCM's new website will quickly get you connected with the latest events happening across your state and around the globe.  Whether its an international or regional conference, basic or specialized mediation training, volunteer mediator in-service training, teleseminar, fundraiser, call for proposal, or other community mediation related event, you can discover and promote them all using the field's new Community Mediation Calendar.  

This resource truly is the community's calendar.  In just over one month since launching, the Community Mediation Calendar has grown to over 40 events representing 20 different community mediation programs in over a dozen states.  We're working hard to ensure all events sponsored by or of significant interest to those working in community mediation are featured.

Now, we want to promote your events, as well!  If you are planning, presenting at, or simply looking to further promote a community mediation related event, share the details with the entire world by sharing them with NAFCM.

Adding your community mediation event is as easy as sending an email to events@nafcm.org.  In your message, be sure to include the event's sponsor, title, location, and a flyer or website where those interested can learn more. If you have PR or registration materials but haven't yet uploaded them online, we'll do that for you and add them directly to your event listing.  And to make this calendar accessible for all, we're offering this service to our community for FREE! 

Get involved.  Get noticed.  Get scheduled using NAFCM's Community Mediation Calendar.   

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

NAFCM's New Website!

We are thrilled to unveil 

NAFCM.org 

NAFCM's new website!    

Developing this website has been a substantial labor of love (emphases definitely appropriate!). We have tried to pull the best from our former site and combine them with an extensive array of new features we're pleased to introduce.  You can still find much of NAFCM's historic materials on our new site, but can now also easily connect and share resources in exciting new ways.  With our redesign and continued enhancements, we look forward to serving as the online portal for all things community mediation.

Here are just some of the exciting features we are pleased to provide in our brand new website:

1. LOCATE A CENTER! - This feature has been the number one request of visitors to our website.  Previously, visitors could find programs by searching for their state and scrolling through lists of various lengths to hopefully find a nearby program.  Now, finding a center is as easy as zooming into an interactive Google map!  Place markers identify community mediation centers, their address, and basic contact information.  We encourage programs to search for their current listing and notify us of any additions/corrections using the link directly below the map.  We anticipate making numerous corrections in the early days of this feature, so welcome your feedback to making this feature as accurate and accessible as possible.
2. NEW DISCUSSION GROUPS - Join one of the many new community mediation discussion groups hosted by NAFCM.  These groups, centered around geographic and topical interests, are an interactive way to connect with colleagues, share resources, and stay on top of the latest developments.  These groups act as a listserve for those interested in participating via their email, and as an online community space for those who want to login, upload profile pictures, and engage the conversation directly through their browser.  Get connected, join a group today!
3. COMMUNITY MEDIATION CALENDAR - Community mediation happens.  NAFCM has it scheduled!  We are now hosting a centralized calendar of events relevant to our field. Whether its a conference in California, a gathering in Grand Rapids, a training in Tucson, or a teleseminar or online event, we'll publish your event details for all to see.  Adding events couldn't be easier.  Simply send an email to events@nafcm.org.  We'll also be adding a simple online form for additions soon.  
4. COMMUNITY MEDIATION SEARCH - Looking for just the right resource, but can't quite put your fingers on it?  Now, you can use NAFCM's custom Community Mediation Search Engine to quickly find resources directly related to our field.  Using the drop down box at the top of our new website, you can choose to search NAFCM's site, the entire Web, or perform a custom "Community Mediation Search."  This last option allows you to target your search to community mediation programs' websites and related resources.  We have indexed hundreds of websites and thousands of webpages to help you quickly find the best community mediation information and resources directly from NAFCM's website.
5. PUBLIC TESTIMONIALS - Mediation programs are too often referred to as their communities' 'best kept secrets.'  Now, through NAFCM's website, those we serve can also serve us by sharing their experience.  Visitors to NAFCM's website can choose to leave a general or program-specific testimonial by completing a quick online form, conveniently submitting a letter of support, or recording an audio message to be featured on our website.  These testimonials will help inform and encourage others to consider community mediation services for their own conflicts.  (For quality assurance and confidentiality reasons, all submitted testimonials will be reviewed prior to sharing to ensure their appropriateness for public posting.)

Those are just some of the exciting new features we've been working on, but there's more.  We're going live this week with a big list of additions yet to be unveiled.  Here are some of the features we look forward to releasing over the next month:

1. MEMBER LOGIN - NAFCM's members are dedicated professionals who are asked to do a lot with very little.  We're working to make their work easier by providing a members-only area that houses a crowd-sourced clearinghouse of countless resources, enhanced program member profiles to be included in future map releases, and other resources to help members better connect and enhance their centers.  As we continue building this members area, you can get an early start by beginning to share resources to the new online community mediation clearinghouse using our simple upload gadget or by sending your files to share@nafcm.org.
2. NEW CONTENT - While our new site isn't old enough to have collected any dust, not all pages and features may be completely polished either.  We're working hard to quickly upload the latest content about NAFCM, the field, and our members.  As we do so, we appreciate any feedback you have about new material you would like to see included. Share your ideas, additions, corrections, or comments about new content today!

We hope you enjoy NAFCM's new website.  It is an incredible pleasure to build and publish a site featuring the truly remarkable achievements of so many working and volunteering in the community mediation field.  We hope you find our website a fitting online portal for those in conflict and those working toward its constructive engagement.

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM