by James Dykeman | Aug 7, 2025 | Book Review, Top
Melinda Blau’s Families Apart is an invitation to transform what can feel like the end of a relationship into the beginning of a new kind of partnership. Written with warmth, clarity, and realism, this book speaks directly to parents who are navigating the complex...
by James Dykeman | Jul 17, 2025 | Book Review, Top
“Never Split the Difference” by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz is a gripping and engaging book that brings the reader into the high-stakes world of hostage negotiation – and then challenges us to apply those same principles in our everyday professional and personal...
by James Dykeman | Jul 10, 2025 | Blog, Top
For many people called to mediation and conflict resolution, the journey begins with a question: How can I support people in pain, confusion, or disagreement in finding a way forward that honors their humanity? It’s not about fixing others or offering quick...
by James Dykeman | Jun 17, 2025 | Blog, Uncategorized
Not long ago, conflict resolution lived mostly in courtrooms. When problems flared – in business deals, families, or neighborhood disputes – the default response was often legal action. Mediation emerged as a quieter alternative, inviting people to sit down, talk, and...
by James Dykeman | Jun 5, 2025 | Blog, Book Review, Top
Jay Rothman’s Resolving Identity-Based Conflict in Nations, Organizations, and Communities offers a deeply thoughtful and human-centered exploration of conflict rooted in identity. For practitioners of the understanding-based approach, this book is both familiar and...
by James Dykeman | May 29, 2025 | Blog, Top
In the field of conflict resolution, where the work is deeply human and often solitary, it is easy to become untethered from the very qualities that first drew us to it. We are trained to listen carefully, to remain grounded in difficult moments, to create a space...
by James Dykeman | May 29, 2025 | Blog, Book Review, Top
David Liddle’s Managing Conflict: A Practical Guide to Resolution in the Workplace offers a refreshingly human-centered roadmap for resolving disputes that is deeply aligned with the principles of the understanding-based approach. For those of us who work in...
by James Dykeman | Apr 17, 2025 | Blog, Top
Nonprofit organizations are often described as the backbone of civil society—trusted to care for communities, elevate marginalized voices, and respond to needs where government or market systems fall short. But today, that backbone is under immense strain. Recent...
by James Dykeman | Apr 9, 2025 | Book Review, Top
Tim Hicks’ Embodied Conflict offers a compelling and timely lens into how our brains and bodies participate in, perpetuate, and potentially release us from conflict. For anyone practicing or studying the understanding-based approach to conflict resolution, this book...
by James Dykeman | Mar 28, 2025 | Blog, Top
There was a time when the very idea of people in conflict sitting down together—not to argue, not to convince, but to truly understand one another—felt almost impossible. When Gary Friedman and Jack Himmelstein introduced what became known as the Understanding-Based...
