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We would like to recognize and congratulate program coordinator Carolina Garza on her recent graduation from the Cal State Dominguez Hills graduate program in Negotiation, Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding. Carolina now holds a Masters degree and she finished her program with a 4.0 GPA. The APADRC family is very proud of Carolina’s accomplishments.
We would also like to say good-bye to two staff members that are leaving their positions with APADRC. First, Lisa Chong, development coordinator, was contracted to organize Conversity, APADRC’s annual fundraising dinner/reception. She worked tirelessly to put together a great celebration for our 20th year anniversary. Thank you Lisa for your efforts in putting together a successful celebration reception.
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Social-Entrepreneurism Facing Conflict
"Most recently our Community and Intergroup Conflict department was presented with a case in which two social/community activists set out on a joint business endeavor..."
By Carolina Garza
Funding News
"APADRC is excited to receive for a second year in a row a grant from the South Asian Bar Association of Southern California (SABA-SC) Public Interest Foundation to continue and expand its South Asian Mediation Program..."
Opportunities in Nonprofit
"Smart Career Steps Panel and Community Fair Shines Light on Public Service as Profitable Career Choice..."
by Rick Eng
Year-End Wrap Up
"As the school year comes to a close, our Peer Mediation students are ready to reflect on the past year and look forward to a new future. In many ways, the past year was no different..."
By David Ayala |
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Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center Hosts Panel Discussion on Cross-Cultural Conflict Resolution
 On May 11th, The Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center (APADRC) invited a panel of nationally recognized experts to join the discussion of cross-cultural conflict resolution with the graduating LLM candidates from Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at the Asian Pacific American Legal Center. Five guest speakers and more than 16 LLM candidates from various legal backgrounds discussed methods and challenges of cross-culture conflict resolution. Discussion topics included international and domestic ethnic conflict, and cultural competency for peace makers.
New Crew of Conflict Resolution Specialists Has Arrived
Ten new Conflict Resolution Specialists (CRS) just finished the 30 hour training provided by APADRC for mediation and cross-cultural conflict resolution and are ready to serve the community with their newly acquired skills. All the new CRS are from various different backgrounds making them able to provide services using different foreign languages including, Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Hindi, Tagalog and Persian.
Basic mediation training in cross-cultural conflict resolution takes place at APADRC three times a year. The next training will be held in September 2009. For more details, please contact Kent Zhu at kent.zhu@apadrc.org
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Obama’s Cairo Speech as a Guide to a Mediator’s Opening Statement
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On the 4th of June, President Obama made good on his August 2007 campaign promise to “travel to a major Islamic forum and deliver an address to redefine our struggle.” He chose to speak from Cairo, a former capital of the Muslim world and a bridge between the U.S. and Muslim countries, and between Asia and Africa. He spoke from a university, not a government building and welcomed the co-sponsorship of Al-Azhar, where reformer Sheikh Muhammad Abdu preached a century ago. He acknowledged civilization’s debt to Islam: “It was Islam -- at places like Al-Azhar -- that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe’s Renaissance and Enlightenment.” He began his speech saying, “For over a thousand years, Al-Azhar has stood as a beacon of Islamic learning; and for over a century, Cairo University has been a source of Egypt’s advancement.” The care he chose in selecting a place to honor the past and encourage progress is shown throughout his speech.
You’ve probably seen the video or read the text, and heard numerous pundits analyze it. From the substance and structure of the speech itself and choice of location to the format of distribution and its effect on wide audiences, it was thoughtful and deliberate. On a world stage, Obama adopted methods used by mediators to establish a tone of respect and understanding, focus on solutions and a higher purpose, establish credibility and show cultural fluency. The Cairo speech is an example of what is possible in mediation, and specifically, in a mediator’s opening statement to parties.
R. Olivia Samad is the Chair of the Board of the Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center. She is an attorney for Southern California Edison where she works on energy related matters before the Public Utilities Commission. Prior to joining SCE, she was a litigator at Kirkland & Ellis LLP where she worked on intellectual property and commercial cases. She also negotiated or mediated settlements in over 200 preference and reclamation actions as debtor’s counsel. Her interests include mediation and diplomacy.
Copyright R. Olivia Samad. All Rights Reserved. |
Executive Director’s Message
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When you are personally embroiled in a conflict, it is very hard to be objective and maintain a clear perspective. Anger, hatred, jealousy, hurt feelings all can get in the way of communicating effectively with someone we are having a conflict with. This is just the way that human emotions work. This is also why mediation is a process that can be very effective in resolving conflicts. Having someone neutral facilitating the dialogue will ease the tension and help to alleviate any imbalances in power. The mediator can set the tone so the disputants can calm down and talk rationally. They can also reframe the problem in a way that shows some possible paths to resolution.
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Contact Us
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Hours of Operation
Monday - Friday
9:00am to 5:00pm
Open weekends & evenings by appointment only
Phone: (213) 250-8190
Fax: (213) 250-8195
E-mail: minkyung.suh@apadrc.org
1145 Wilshire Blvd., Suite #100
Los Angeles, CA 90017 |
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