Empowering People to Navigate the Crossroads of Conflict
Interactive Workshop Session
Wednesday 23rd August | 3.30 pm
Speakers: Samantha de Coning, Kate Keddell, Emma Barker and Kate Haley
Outcomes:
‘Know Yourself in Conflict’ provides mediators with a practical tool they can use to assist people to identify (amongst other things):
the cost of conflict: time, resources and well-being. Also, the opportunity cost–what else could they be doing with their time and resources?
the circumstances and contributing factors including the wider family or organisational dynamics that lead to these costs.
the thought patterns that start to contribute to and perpetuate the conflict.
the possible good or even great outcomes from a mediation process, and what do they need to do in order for that to be possible?
to identify what is within their ‘sphere of influence’. What changes can they make, and what changes do other people involved need to make?
Overview:
The increasing complexity of mediation practice requires mediators to have a variety of tools which can be used to assist parties in developing capacity and exercising self-determination. Conflict contains a choice point, to behave badly, to have the courage to enter a conversation, or to acknowledge that every conflict is defined by a problem that we need to solve and that we don’t yet have the skills to do so1. (Ken Cloke, Crossroads of conflict).
Conflict literacy starts with a shift, the ability to see conflict as an opportunity for growth and positive change. It requires all of us to be open to doing things differently, to learn, practice and integrate new concepts and tools that empower us to work skilfully and confidently with conflict. For mediators, it starts with increasing our emotional agility and deepening our understanding of how emotions influence, and can be influenced by, our client interactions.
Following on from the ‘Panel Presentation’, this workshop provides an opportunity to be ‘hands on with one conflict management tool, the ‘Know Yourself in Conflict’ handbook. This tool starts the process of unhooking and unravelling people from the conflict in question, providing a sense of agency in the process and empowering people to shift their focus towards collaboration, instead of confrontation.
Samantha de Coning
Head of Practice, Fair Way Resolution
Samantha is the Head of Practice and a mediator, adjudicator and arbitrator with FairWay Resolution Limited. Her practice focuses on family (FDR and relationship property) and commercial (education, workplace) disputes. She is also a member of the Arbitration Panel for S47 Appeals under the Education and Training Act and lectures on conflict resolution skills.
As a mediator, Samantha has a particular interest in developing processes that enable parties to participate positively and provide the appropriate support and information for sound decision-making. Samantha initially studied law, where her interest was in Family Law. She completed her dispute resolution studies in 2016. Her qualifications include BJuris, LLB, TEFL, GradDipBusStud(Dispute Resolution) and she is a fellow of both AMINZ and the Resolution Institute.
Workshop session: Empowering People to Navigate the Crossroads of Conflict
Kate Keddell (formerly Hesson)
Senior Resolution Practitioner, FairWay Resolution
Kate is a Senior Resolution Practitioner in the Commercial Services team as an investigator, mediator and facilitator. She practiced as a commercial lawyer for nearly two decades and remains an enrolled barrister and solicitor. She has specialist knowledge in the seafood and education sectors and has experience as a director and trustee. Kate is often engaged by organisations when relationship issues emerge within the workplace or with wider stakeholders. She has a particular interest in challenging people in business to see how valuable mediation and facilitation are to prevent conflict from escalating beyond repair and ending in the courtroom.
Kate currently sits on the Council of AMINZ and on other boards. Her other professional memberships include the Association of Workplace Investigators, Dunedin Community Mediation, Institute of Directors, and Otago Women Lawyers Society.
Workshop session: Empowering People to Navigate the Crossroads of Conflict
Kate Haley
Resolution Practitioner, FairWay Resolution
As a Resolution Practitioner within the Commercial Services team at FairWay, Kate works across sectors, specialising in workplace and education disputes, focusing on early intervention and prevention. She practices as a facilitator, mediator, and investigator, and also provides training in conflict management to organisations. Kate advocates for collaborative and multidisciplinary processes that optimise mutual understanding and conflict resolution.
Kate’s analytical and client-centric approach comes from her experience with both the local and international pharmaceutical industry. More recently Kate has focused on conflict diagnosis and dispute resolution system design at a governance level within the education sector and has delivered conflict prevention and emotional agility training within workplace and community organisations.
Workshop session: Empowering People to Navigate the Crossroads of Conflict
Emma Barker
Resolution Practitioner, FairWay Resolution
Emma is an AMINZ-accredited Resolution Facilitator within the Commercial team at Fair Way, specialising in financial disputes and workplace disputes, especially focusing on workplace Kāpehu coaching, equipping people with practical tools and empowering them to resolve their own disputes. She practices as a facilitator, mediator, and workplace coach, and provides training to organisations in conflict management. Emma is a qualified Emotional Culture Deck practitioner as well as using other tools such as trust cards to assist teams to re-grow trust and build a strong emotional culture.
Emma is also an accredited family mediator. Her passion for assisting families comes from her experience working with young people as a Youthline phone counsellor and an Upside youth mentor. Her empathic and compassionate approach creates a safe process that focuses the parties on creating the best outcomes for the tamariki and rangatahi.
