WELCOME TO THE CUC CONNECT TRAINING LIBRARY

Have questions? Send an email to [email protected]

UPDATE 10-22-25

Dear CUC Connect Members,

We’re excited to announce a new benefit just for you:

Pay-what-you-can pricing is now available to CUC Connect members for all CUC programs – starting three weeks before the program begins.

This change reflects what we’ve heard from many of you: a desire for more flexible access to programs, support for full learning groups that benefit all participants and trainers, and a commitment to making this work more accessible to those for whom cost is a concern.

Here’s how it works:

  • Starting three weeks before a program’s start date, CUC Connect Members can register using a pay-what-you-can model by reaching out to [email protected]
  • Please note: This applies to tuition only. Venue fees (which cover food, lodging, and facilities) are paid separately and are not included in the pay-what-you-can option.

A few important things to keep in mind:

  • This benefit is not retroactive and only applies only to new registrations made within the three-week window by existing CUC Connect members.
  • Space is not guaranteed – programs may fill before this option becomes available.
  • CUC is almost entirely funded by program revenue. While we’re testing this new model, we invite you to consider how your contribution supports the sustainability of our nonprofit work.

We hope this makes it easier for more of you to participate, and we look forward to continuing to learn and grow with you.

Best regards,

James

[email protected]

www.understandinginconflict.org

With Pat Lau and Julia Myers

Live Webinar Recording – October, 2025

Discover the nuanced skills that separate effective mediators from the rest, using workplace conflicts as a lens to explore universal mediation principles.

This interactive webinar delves into challenging aspects of conflict resolution—including proven methods for restoring trust between parties, techniques for engaging unmotivated or resistant participants, and best practices for creating written agreements that actually stick. While focused on organizational settings, these strategies are directly transferable to family mediation, community disputes, commercial conflicts, and beyond. Whether you’re new to mediation or looking to refine your practice across multiple contexts, you’ll leave with actionable strategies for transforming any type of conflict into opportunities for stronger relationships.

The Other Chair Podcast

Looking for program recordings with Zen teacher Norman Fischer? Click the button below to visit the recording library.

Understanding-Based Fundamentals

Why Bringing People in Conflict Together Works

Developing and Framing Interests

Looping

The 6 Underlying Concepts 

Going Down the Why Trail

The Power of Looping in Conflict Resolution

The Driving Force: Unpacking Motivations

Looping the Dynamic

Inner Work

Inside Out: Self Reflection For Conflict Professionals

Inside Out: The Relationship between Inner and Outer

Being Yourself in the Room

Nine Practices to Change Your Awareness and Presence

Internal Experience: Understanding Ourselves to Authentically Connect Clients to Each Other

Harnessing Inner Awareness for Meaningful Conversations

In the Mediation Room

Preparing Parties for Mediation

Structuring the Process

Brainstorming and Evaluating Options

Judgments and Curiosity

Working in the Same Room and Dealing with a Request for Caucus

Mediator Advice: Is It Ever Appropriate?

Conflict Resolution Professionals: What to Do When You Are Stuck

Risky Moves: What to Do When You Don’t Know What to Do

Dealing with External Forces

Parties Understanding Each Other

I Knew What Would Happen

How Can Contracting Take a Whole Session?

Interest-Based Negotiation: Exploring Interests to Identify Opportunities for Compromise

Why We Don’t Tell People What to Do

Shifting Focus: All About Interests

Assessing the Ability to Participate in Mediation

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When Progress Stops: Navigating Impasse in Conflict Resolution

People and Personality

4 Things To Do When Emotions Flare

Emotions

Culture and Conflict Engagement

Gender and Conflict

Conflict Styles and Patterns

Real Talk

Being an Anti-racist Conflict Professional

Conflict through Race and Culture Lenses

Trauma and Conflict

The Bully

Intimate Partner Violence and Consensual Dispute Resolution

Disability Inclusion and Accessibility in Conflict Resolution

Interfering Influencers—What to Do About Them?

Climate of Conflict: Common Ground to Constructive Conversation in an Increasingly Divided World

Starting at Sorry: Apology to Accountability on the Path of Forgiveness

Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them

Neutrality and Objectivity

Power: Understanding or Coercion?

Power Imbalance: The Power of Personality and Patterns

Power Imbalance: The Power of Possessing

Power Imbalance: The Power of Position

Power Imbalance: Putting it all Together

Positive Neutrality

The End Game – How to Move to An Agreement

Endgame: Questions & Issues

The Storm Out: What to Do When It Happens

Working with Ground Rules

6 Underlying Concepts: Refining the Process

Messy Conflict: Transforming Toxic Disputes

Legal Consideration

3 Mistakes Lawyers Make that Keep Them (and Their Clients) Stuck in Conflict

Why Bring in the Law and How to Do It

When Lawyers Are In The Room

When Lawyers Are in the Room 2

Untying the Knot: Making Sense of Divorce Mediation

Webinar Effective Mediation in Small Claims Court

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Working with Lawyers in the Room – Part 1 (2025)

Working with Lawyers in the Room – Part 2 (2025)

In the Workplace

Taking the Plunge: How to Bring the Understanding Based Model Into Your Work

Finding Value in Conflict: Navigating Workplace Mediation

Conflict Resolution Through Workplace Mediation

Organizational Response: Avoid Exacerbating Conflict

Conflict Coaching: Practices and Principles

Conflict Coaching: Unlocking Solutions Through ADR

Constructive Conversations: Understanding-Based Workplace Applications

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Beyond the Heat: Practical De-escalation Skills for Work and Life

From Conflict to Collaboration: Workplace Mediation Lessons That Apply Everywhere

Practical Tools

The Business Side of Mediation

Top Tips for Starting an ADR Practice

Moving Mediation Online

Virtual Mediation Revisited

Spirit of Collaboration: Starting and Managing a Peer Group

Getting Started: Building an ADR Practice