Part of Conrad Grebel University College's Certificate in Conflict Management and Congregational Leadership, these workshops equip church leaders with practical skills for navigating conflict, fostering healthy relationships, strengthening leadership, and helping congregations focus on mission rather than division. Participants may take individual workshops or work toward a certificate designed specifically for ministry contexts.
November 18 - 20 & 24-27, 2026 (A total of 7 sessions)
This workshop presents the transformative approach for mediating interpersonal conflict. Transformative mediation cultivates positive changes in the way parties view their situation and it is particularly effective when the participants seem unwilling to engage in cooperative problem solving or are reluctant to accept “reasonable” solutions.
Since this workshop is also part of the training for volunteer mediators at Community Justice Initiatives (more details below) it draws on our 35+ year history of having trained hundreds of mediators who have gone on to successful complete thousands of mediations for CJI. As such, the focus is on developing practical mediation skills and it highlights how an experienced mediator’s style would differ from a beginner’s style.
Using a combination of presentations, interactive exercises, self-reflection, role plays, and discussions, this 28-hour workshop explores the following topics:
Four Aspects of Interpersonal Conflict that are Often Overlooked
Four Habits of Inexperienced Mediators
Empowerment and Recognition: Key Concepts in Transformative Mediation
Conflict Management and Mediation Styles: Strengths and Limitations
Directive and Non-directive Questions
The Risks of Being Too Directive
Common Habits that Hinder Communication
Effective Non-directive Questions
Six Key Mediation Skills
How to Build Understanding
An Easy Approach to Finding Common Ground
How to Deal with Disruptive Behaviour
Achieving Balance: When to Exert More or Less Control
The Phases of a Transformative Mediation Process
Contrasting Transformative Mediation and other Mediation Styles
The Pre-mediation Meeting: Case Development
The Caucus
Mediation Challenges: Power
Mediation Challenges: Cultural Difference
Next Steps