Bøger af Mark Umbreit

Drawing upon real-life stories from his extensive restorative justice work in many countries and cultures, Dr. Mark Umbreit illuminates the power we all have to make profound shifts in the troubles that rob our lives of zest, joy, meaning, and fulfillment. Using personal stories of anguish, trauma, and woundedness, Umbreit demonstrates again and again how he and others have transformed the toxicity of violation into its life-giving properties through restorative practices and facilitated dialogue.

Drawing upon real-life stories from his extensive restorative justice work in many countries and cultures, Dr. Mark Umbreit illuminates the power we all have to make profound shifts in the troubles that rob our lives of zest, joy, meaning, and fulfillment. Using personal stories of anguish, trauma, and woundedness, Umbreit demonstrates again and again how he and others have transformed the toxicity of violation into its life-giving properties through restorative practices and facilitated dialogue.

"Dancing with the Energy of Conflict & Trauma, Letting Go - Finding Peace" is about bearing witness to and learning from real life struggles with conflict and traumatic events - some from the author's life and many more from those he has worked with in numerous countries. The healing power of story is the book's guiding path. The supreme importance of humanizing one's adversaries and humbling ourselves is the book's guiding spirit. The focus is upon finding strength, compassion, and peace within our lives and others. One's peace need not be dependent upon individuals or circumstances one is in conflict with, unless one chooses to place power there. This book is about becoming aware of and working with the energy of conflict or traumatic events in a way that doesn't focus exclusively on the verbal expression of the conflict. Words of conflict and trauma can cause one to become stuck in the powerful emotions one is trying to avoid. "Dancing with the Energy of Conflict & Trauma" is neither a training manual nor a definitive textbook. It is offered as a collection of powerful real life stories about the search for meaning and wholeness in the midst of conflict and traumatic events, all of which have been part of Dr. Umbreit's life journey and his work for over 30 years with individuals and groups from more than 25 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America. "Dancing with the Energy of Conflict & Trauma" offers a window into what many would consider to be one of the most powerful, yet least understood approaches to dealing with severe conflict and trauma - that of embracing and working with the energy that is driving the conflict. The intent is to assist the reader in learning the importance of healthy release of toxic emotional energy that keeps us stuck in patterns of conflict, and learning to let go of our efforts to change other people or difficult circumstances with which we are faced. Learning to focus on the only thing we truly have power to change: ourselves and the energy we bring to what we experience, and learning practices that foster strength and peace within our souls. It means embracing life in its wholeness and nurturing our mind, body, and spirit. This book begins with several brief stories of how painful conflict and life threatening traumatic events in the author's life and others have been and continue to be his greatest teachers of life wisdom, compassion, and humility. The healing and release found in some stories is totally independent of a dialogue with the person who caused the harm or a cure of the traumatic event or diagnosis. Many other stories involve face-to-face dialogue between the person who was deeply harmed and the perpetrator. All of the stories bear witness to the incredible strength and resilience of the human spirit. "Dancing with the Energy of Conflict & Trauma" is an invitation to expand our awareness of the magic and mystery to be found in walking the path of authentic transformation and healing through directly facing our most difficult conflicts and traumatic experiences. Stories will come from workplace settings, families, within communities, and in war torn nations from Northern Ireland, to Africa, and the Middle East. These stories stretch the imagination of what can be possible in fostering our own healing. They provide powerful testimony to the strength of the human spirit; touching of the soul of humanity even in the presence of some of the most evil and violent behavior imaginable. It requires entering an unfamiliar yet deeply enriching state of being that all are capable of, despite our backgrounds, our woundedness, our culture, and our education. The book concludes with what can be learned from courageous individuals who offer many gifts of awakening that can enrich our lives and free our spirit. Practical tools for the journey of facing conflict and traumatic events are offered as well.

Description:Conflict is a normal and predictable part of life. How we respond to it, however, determines whether or not the conflict will be destructive. Mediating Interpersonal Conflicts is an up-to-date presentation showing how the techniques of negotiation and mediation can be applied in resolving a wide range of conflicts in families, communities, schools, and workplaces. Dr. Umbreit not only clearly outlines the communication, negotiation, and mediation skills involved in effective resolution of interpersonal conflict, he moves the reader beyond the mechanics of mediation to what he calls "a journey of the heart" through a humanistic mediation model that addresses the emotional context of the conflict. Endorsements:"Rather than a narrow 'techniques' approach to conflict resolution, Mark Umbreit provides readers with a broad understanding of the 'whys' of mediation. This is the heart and voice of a dedicated practitioner as well as a skilled observer."--Terry Amsler, Executive Director, The Community Board Program, San Francisco"An excellent introduction to mediation and a firstrate teaching device."--Lois Gold, M.S.W., Past President, Academy of Family Mediatorsauthor, Between Love & Hate: A Guide to Civilized Divorce"Clear, comprehensive and practical. Anyone working with people problems should have this book at their fingertips."--Dr. Thomas F. Christian, Unified Court System, State of New York, Director, Community Dispute Resolution Centers Program"In highly readable prose, Dr. Umbreit articulates a clear set of values for an approach to mediation that enhances the participants' humanity and educates and equips people for changed behaviors and transformed relationships."--Dean Peachy, Program Director, The Network: Interaction for Conflict Resolution, Waterloo, Ontario, CanadaAbout the Contributor(s):Mark Umbreit is the founding Director of the Center for Restorative Justice & Peacemaking at the University of Minnesota, School of Social Work. He also serves on the faculty of the Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee and on the faculty of the Center for Spirituality and Healing in the U. of Minn. Academic Health Center. He has served as a Fellow of the International Centre for Healing and the Law in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Dr. Umbreit is an internationally recognized practitioner and scholar with more than 35 years of experience as a mediator, trainer, researcher, and author of six books and numerous articles in the ¿elds of restorative justice, mediation, and peacemaking. He has conducted training seminars and lectures throughout the world. As a practitioner, he specializes in facilitating dialogue between family survivors/victims of severe violence, primarily homicide, and the offender. He is the author of Facing Violence: The Path of Restorative Justice & Dialogue, which reports on the ¿rst multi-site study of victim/offender mediation and dialogue in crimes of severe violence.

Provides a comprehensive foundation for understanding restorative justice and its application to social issues. It describes core restorative justice practices, including victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing, and peacemaking circles, as well as cultural considerations, emerging variations in a wide variety of settings, and the crucial role of the facilitator.