The programme, aimed at practitioners, researchers and postgraduate students, ran for five days and included specialist lectures, small group role plays and simulation games. The course gave participants theoretical and practical insights the complexities of mediation in the context of civil wars and international conflicts. This year, we were joined by representatives from the Cameroon High Commission and the Religious Society of Friends as well as mediation professionals in private practice.
Convened by leading International Relations scholar Prof Nicholas Wheeler and Political Psychology expert Dr Tereza Capelos, the course included contributions from gender and counter-radicalization specialist Dr Katherine Brown, nuclear non-proliferation expert Prof Paul Schulte, and Leverhulme Research Fellow Dr Naomi Head. Conflict transformation practitioner Dr Joan McGregor led a two-day workshop on 'Practical Skills for Transformative Mediation,’ for many the highlight of the course. Our keynote speaker this year was Gabrielle Rifkind, Director of Oxford Process and Middle East conflict resolution specialist.
The programme culminated in a Harvard Role Play on 'The Future of Hebron', in which participants assumed the identity of competing Israeli-Palestinian groups to negotiate a complex set of agreements involving land rights and border controls. The course as a whole provided a unique learning environment for both students and practitioners to benefit from a balance of academic theory and practical training.
The next programme will run in April 2020. Further details to be announced in due course. If you would like to be kept informed of future events and training opportunities, please join our mailing list.