In March 2014, CONCUR Principal Scott McCreary presented a mediation training to Commissioners at the New Zealand Environment Court. The Environment Court is a specialist institution within the New Zealand Court system with jurisdiction to determine a a broad spread of resource management cases.
The Environment Court encourages participants in a dispute to pursue Alternative Dispute Resolution, and offers mediation services facilitated by its Commissioners. CONCUR teamed with Senior Mediators and colleagues to present a training course to Commissioners. Lecture and role plays covered several topics including: the role of the mediator, mapping stakeholder interests, establish a work plan or agenda, creating a climate for joint problem solving, capturing agreements in a single document, distinguishing between positions and interests, preventing escalation and entrapment, and the importance of signaling intent with a negotiation or facilitation strategy. The workshop also included an opportunity to reflect on incorporating Best Practices into the ongoing work of Environmental Court mediators.