Leadership

In the early 2000's, I was new to the alternative dispute resolution field.  I had been volunteering as a mediator for Mediation Services of Maui, getting experience and hours to both serve the community and build my own competency. 

As is typical for me, I wanted more.  I wanted to connect with others who were dong peace work, building a profession, making an impact AND I wanted to shift from volunteer to "professional".  Most likely it was a Google search that connected me to the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR).  This find and subsequent membership changed my life. 

On October 13th, 2017, I became the president of ACR.  For whatever reason, my fellow board members and the membership saw leadership capacity in me.  I can only hope to under promise and over deliver.  It won't be easy.  We are a volunteer association with a part-time executive director.  Whatever time we can commit has to compliment our "real jobs", family and other commitments.  One thing that we all have in common are  commitments to alternative dispute resolution and a passion for ACR. 

ACR is an umbrella organization.  This means that it is an inclusive organization that has a space for all things alternative dispute resolution.  While we seem to be predominately mediators, mediators encompass a wide range of practice areas; from family, community, workplace, international, environment and public policy, spirituality, health care, and education (to name a few).  We also have attorneys, arbitrators, educators, researchers, students, facilitators, trainers and more.  The benefit of being inclusive is the opportunity to learn from each other, share best practices and commit together, collectively, to building a world that allows for access to justice to all. 

As I took my 10 minutes to address the 250+ members attending the Presidential Luncheon in Dallas, I felt gratitude to all those that came before me, hope for the future as I looked out at our ADR students and mid-career professionals seeking a meaningful change in their professional lives, and at the leaders before me that could truly empathize and understand all the emotion that I was feeling at that moment. 

Will I make an impact for ACR in 2018?  I don't know.  I am only one person but I have an amazing team of fellow board members, section chairs and chapter leaders that are all counting on me to lead.  I am committed to doing my best, to helping actualize the vision of those that came before us and created ACR 17 years ago, and to being an association that can respond to, drive and actualize access to justice that is inclusive to everyone.