The voice on the helpline message for the Bar Association of San Francisco’s (BASF) Conflict Intervention Service quaked with fear: “Please help me. I’m an elderly gay man with HIV. My roommate brings a stranger home every night.

This article from Harvard's "The Practice," shines a light on ODR and its evolution using Colin Rule’s career as a guide.

Editor's Note:  In this article series, seven leading mediators and conflict resolution practitioners share their unique voices on three pressing issues:  the impact of COVID-19 on their practices, workarounds being attempted, and their visions for the future in a post-COVID (or on-going COVID) world. 

Facilitation can be an invaluable tool to promote a positive work environment and prevent escalation of employment disputes. In contrast to mediation, which focuses on disputes that have reached an impasse or resulted in filing of a formal complaint, facilitation may be used at the inception of an employment conflict. Facilitation is particularly effective in addressing workplace climate issues, such as incivility, bullying, harassment and disputes concerning promotion, salary and benefits.

Those of us who have been working for many years, not only in the academic field, but also in a practical way in On Line Dispute Resolution (ODR), that we call on line or electronic, feel that in these times "the future is here.”

Every Friday for the next seven weeks, Mediate.com is publishing a series of peer reviewed articles under the collective title Seven Keys to Unlock Mediation’s Golden Age. The objective of the Seven Keys is to encourage discussion among all stakeholders on navigating mediation’s best future.