Hansa Patel is an attorney, mediator, and teacher.  As an attorney, Hansa zealously advocated for abused and neglected children or defended their parents’ rights in the San Francisco juvenile dependency court for fourteen years.  Hansa is passionate about serving the underprivileged community.  Feeling depleted by the court system, Hansa explored new ways to empower her clients to resolve conflict.  Mediation empowers Hansa’s clients to choose how they want to engage with conflict, co-create resolutions, and even transform a relationship.  In the USA, Canada, and Africa, Hansa teaches mediation, including integrating mindfulness skills into conflict resolution.  Hansa wants her clients to have the same tools she cultivates in her children:  a mindful approach to resolving challenges in life.

“The understanding-based model has been invaluable, enabling me to effectively navigate personal conflicts while providing professional support to families in need. This approach has enhanced my self-awareness and empowered me to advocate for my own needs, thereby fostering healthier relationships. By promoting curiosity about the experiences of others, this model paves the way for enhanced mutual understanding and meaningful resolutions. My profound appreciation for the transformative power of the understanding-based model motivates my unwavering support for the Center for Understanding and its mission to train other conflict professionals. Expanding access to this invaluable resource can empower individuals from diverse backgrounds to navigate conflicts constructively and foster harmonious relationships within their communities.”

Paula Duran is a retired nurse midwife who left her work as a healthcare provider in 2023 to pursue a new path in conflict resolution. She did her initial mediation training with the Center For Understanding in Conflict in 2024 and has deepened her knowledge of the understanding based model through attendance at the Self Reflection for Conflict Professionals Intensive in January of 2026.  She has served as a volunteer community mediator with The City of Mountain View since 2024 and has launched her own practice as a mediator and conflict coach. Paula enjoys travel, hiking and loves spending time with family and friends. She recently moved to South Lake Tahoe with her husband.

“My time with the CUC has shaped and built upon the core skills I developed as a nurse midwife: listen deeply, convey empathy, allow for tension and proceed by agreement. In addition, give anticipatory guidance but recognize that the parties in conflict are best equipped to find their own solutions. I have a profound respect for the understanding based model and I am honored to support the Center’s mission in this leadership role. I look forward to working alongside my fellow board members to help more people bring understanding and healing to divided spaces.”

Barbara Rothberg is a family and couple therapist, mediator and parent coordinator.  She has been in private practice for 40 years, completing mediation training in 2007. She has additional training in elder mediation and child inclusive mediation. She has taught  graduate couple therapy courses at both NYU and Hunter Schools of Social Work for 20 years and has lead numerous seminars and workshops on couple, family therapy and LGBT issues at conferences throughout the years. Barbara is a member of NYACP, NYSCDM, AFCC and FDMC where she is a Board member. She is also on the Advisory Boards of FamilyKind and The Gender Project at Ackerman Institute. She aims to help couples resolve their relationships with dignity, in whatever from that takes.

“I have been working with conflict for my entire career as a family and couple therapist, mediator, and parent coordinator. Throughout the years, I’ve had many trainings. I have to say that the CUC training has been one of the most valuable ones. The understanding-based model informs my work as a therapist and mediator. The approach helps clients better understand one another and step back from an adversarial stance, ideally arriving at a mutually satisfying conclusion. The understanding-based model has become a way of life in my professional and personal relationships.”

Ivan Alter is a collaborative attorney and mediator with offices in Westchester County and New York City. Practicing law since 1994, Ivan previously had a career as a commercial and matrimonial litigator before discovering the understanding-based model at the CUC. Since then, Ivan has focused all of his professional energies on practicing, promoting, and teaching mediation and collaborative law. He is member of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals, the Family and Divorce Mediation Council, the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals, and Northern Westchester Collaborative Divorce.

“Having a front-row seat to so many bitter disputes throughout my early career underscored how ineffective and unsatisfying the traditional, adversarial conflict resolution system is for most people. When I learned about the understanding-based model, I marveled at its simplicity and elegance but doubted that it could actually work. However, as I practiced the model, I learned how powerful and transformative it could be. When parties in conflict are empowered to stop advocating long enough to focus on increasing understanding, the entire nature of the discussion changes. Finding a resolution to difficult problems suddenly becomes possible. People want to find their way through conflict. Understanding can provide them with the opening they need.”