There are many reasons for lawyers and litigators to consider mediation as a career move. And there are born mediators who may not have a professional legal background at all. Our goal in this episode is twofold: to make the case for mediation as a viable alternative to our over-burdened court system and to explore the role mediation plays in peace-, community-, and capacity- building on both the local and global scale. Pro-tip for seasoned professionals: mediation can also provide some relief for the feeling of burnout that can come from years of working in the adversarial system.

Julia welcomes Christine Kilby from the CBA Dispute Resolution Section. Christine and Julia introduce us to masters of mediation: Joy Noonan, Esther Omam, Mina Vaish and Archana Medhekar. Sponsored by the CBA Dispute Resolution Section: "Alternative" Dispute Resolution has never been so mainstream. 

Further links:

Canadian Bar Association - Dispute Resolution (cba.org)

neutralsolutions.ca 

https://mediatorsbeyondborders.org/what-we-do/working-groups/united-nations-working-group/women-in-mediation-action-group/

Mina Vaish, LL.M | LinkedIn

Ottawa Dialogue - Research & Action

Archana Medhekar - Mediators Beyond Borders International
 

Reach Out NGO | Cameroon (reachoutcameroon.org)

Esther Omam - Women Mediators across the Commonwealth

Esther Omam takes us on a deep dive into her work with Reach Out Cameroon during the Bakassi crisis on the border between Nigeria and Cameroon, and the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon's South West and North West Regions, still ongoing. For context: 

Bakassi conflict - Wikipedia

Anglophone Crisis - Wikipedia

Kilby Mediation