“It’s important that we reach out to them, and see it from their perspective.” “We need to be able to speak up, express our emotions, and say what’s on our mind.” “Let’s reflect on that option. I’m sure that with a bit of creative re-jigging, we can find a better solution.” Those are all constructive […]
LADDERS: A Model for Scaling Constructive Behaviours in Your Organization
The technological future of conflict management is a mixed bag of goodies: My 2018 findings
Having spent many years in the information technology business, I retain a soft spot for technology. Once I thought technology was the Holy Grail for furthering social justice. That dream has faded somewhat over the decades. Nevertheless, promise holds external… here are ten of my favourite technology-oriented conflict management findings of 2018: Are men talking […]
Black and White: The Colours of Conflict [A Poem]
[Last Thursday night I attended Poems of Colour, an evening of local poetry, where I live, that celebrates diversity and explores the themes of race and ethnicity. There were many young poets reading. The MC was Victoria’s Youth Poet Laureate, Argutu Ali. The event was sponsored by the City of Victoria, and held at at […]
Apply the Science of Friendship to your next Community Collaboration
Work, and life, is more rewarding when it happens with friends. Reflecting back on my four decades (and counting) in the workforce, many of my most treasured work memories are time spent with co-workers who were also friends. We didn’t start out as friends. It happened organically, over time. Whether over coffee breaks, lunch hour […]
3 Mutual-benefit strategies to reduce conflict and improve the land-use application process
Land-use applications are a rich source of conflict, almost everywhere. That’s certainly my experience, here in Victoria. Too often, the interests of developers, public administrators and community members are in conflict, especially when a rezoning, or amendment to the Official Community Plan, is required. It’s not uncommon for changes proposed by a developer to be […]