Resilience: Is It Really About Bouncing Back? with Laura Smythe What is resilience?  When is it useful?  Many of us think of resilience as the ability to “bounce back” from difficult circumstances.  But, do we really want to bounce back from challenging moments?  What does the desire to “bounce back” suggest about the role of difficulty and pain in […]

It feels like there is an uncomfortable level of hate-mongering in the world today. And most of us are fairly comfortable assuming that we aren’t part of the problem. I, myself, was quite comfortable making that assumption until a few years ago. Now, I’m far less convinced about my innocence… Through this conversation we’ll explore […]

Have you ever wondered why it is so much easier to view strangeness with suspicion than it is to embrace it as a positive and exciting new experience? There are some biological reasons why this is so for humans.  And, as a species capable of self-reflection, I believe it is our responsibility to be aware […]

There are five primary responses to conflict.  All of us use all five of them in different contexts and for different reasons.  Our politicians, however, use a particular response to conflict as their dominant response to disagreements, in political campaigns, and during legislative debates.  It is this response, which they use so ubiquitously and so […]

Mediation is a term and a process that is increasingly being utilized in a variety of contexts and yet it remains poorly understood by many.  What is it? How does it work?  Who uses it?  When does it make sense to try it?  Regardless of your familiarity with the process, this talk is designed to […]