Logo
  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter



This website is authored by Lester Levy, Esq.
a founding member of JAMS.

  • About
    • About Lester Levy
  • The Basics of Environmental Mediation
    • What types of Environmental Cases can be mediated?
    • The Benefits of Environmental Mediation
    • The Environmental Mediation Process
    • Insurance Company Involvement
    • The Mediation Outcome
  • Case Studies
    • Case Study 1: Objectivity as Resolution Tool Provided Through A Neutral Expert
    • Case Study 2: Working Together
    • Case Study 3: Swift, Fair and Efficient: Awarding Compensation to Toxic Tort Victims
    • Case Study 4: Sequenced Regulatory and Insurance Negotiations
    • Case Study 5: How Communication Both Causes and Ends Conflict
  • Blog
  • In the News
  • Contact
You are here: Home / mediation / NY Peace Institute Police Mediation Trainings

NY Peace Institute Police Mediation Trainings

May 9, 2016 by Lester Levy Leave a Comment

Police Mediation TrainingsI just returned from the annual JAMS owners’ meeting where we were treated to a presentation from Brad Heckman of the NY Peace Institute.  Brad and his colleagues are conducting a series of mediation trainings for the New York City Police Department.  The training program teaches policemen how to mediate community-related disputes.  The police are given the discretion to try to resolve certain conflicts they encounter in their jobs on the street through mediation, rather than issuing citations or arresting those involved.  The JAMS Foundation, which provides grants to community based mediation organizations and trainers, is a funder of these trainings.

I learned a lot from Brad.  One of the most interesting stories he told was of a hardened New York City cop who attended one four-day training.  For much of the first three days, the officer sat arms crossed with little outward expression.  Brad could not tell what he was thinking about the training – whether he was just biding his time or found it at all interesting.  On the fourth day, the officer thanked Brad and told him that the mediation training had given him “a weapon as powerful as the one I carry at my side.”

This statement from an experienced and street-wise police officer reminded me of one of the first blogs I wrote about Nelson Mandela’s comment that “the best weapon is to sit down and talk.”  Mandela, similarly, had lived a lifetime filled with episodes of both violent and peaceful conflict resolution, not to mention his twenty odd years spent in prison.

Neither of these men, the New York City police officer or the champion of civil rights, was afraid of conflict.  Both of them had been put in harms’ way many times over many years and had witnessed all kinds of physical and emotional violence.  Yet both came to believe, through different life paths, that negotiation and mediation – really just talking to one’s adversary – can be more powerful than confrontation.   

Amazing stuff.  Thank you, Brad, for your good and important work.

Share this:

  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email

Related

Filed Under: mediation Tagged With: alternative dispute resolution, mediation, negotation, role of mediator

inter-generational-theft-Brexit-climate-change

The inter-generational theft of Brexit and climate change

In last week’s Brexit vote results, there was a tremendous divide between age groups. 73% of voters under the age of 25 voted to remain in the EU, while about 58% over the age of 45 voted to leave. This generational gap is among the many parallels … Read More...

drinking-water-regulation

Our Drinking Water Regulation Is So Weak Even Flint’s Water Got A Pass

WASHINGTON — Federal drinking water rules are so relaxed that not even the city of Flint, Michigan, has been cited for a violation, even though many Flint residents have been relying on bottled water for drinking and cooking since last year. The … Read More...

Environmental Mediation: A New Paradigm for Resolving Multi-Party Disputes

Some of you may already have seen a copy of my new ebook, in which I propose a new paradigm for resolving complex, multi-party environmental disputes. It relies on mediation -- not as it has been compromised and incorporated into standard litigation … Read More...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Tweets by @environmentadr

Environmental Mediation Newsletter

Sign up to receive my environmental mediation newsletter on a monthly basis

Tags

ADR agriculture alternative dispute resolution Apple Apple phones big data Bio diversity Brexit class actions climate change contamination data data analysis eco-friendly environment environmental clean up environmental disputes environmental mediation environmental technology EPA farmed fish Flint global water challenge green living infrastructure legal strategy litigation alternative mediation mediation process mediation vs. litigation nature negotation New Jersey pollution oceans protected areas recycling renewable energy role of mediator settlement sustainability technology toxic tort water water contamintation water summit

About Me

lester-levy

I strongly believe in the value of mediation – said another way, environmental mediation really works. I would go even further: I believe that environmental disputes are perfectly suited to the mediation process – perhaps more so than any other area of legal practice. I have formed these views after mediating environmental cases for more than 20 years, throughout the United States, and having worked with thousands of lawyers, companies, insurance carriers, regulatory agencies and courts. My … Read more

My Latest Posts

  • The inter-generational theft of Brexit and climate change
  • Our Drinking Water Regulation Is So Weak Even Flint’s Water Got A Pass
  • Environmental Mediation: A New Paradigm for Resolving Multi-Party Disputes
  • Flexibility Is Key to Success in Mediation
  • Leaving the EU would put our environment at risk

Connect with Me

Lester Levy

JAMS- New York
620 Eighth Ave. (NY Times Building)
34th Floor
New York, NY 10018
P (212) 751-2700

JAMS- San Francisco
2 Embarcadero Center
Suite 1500
San Francisco, CA 94111
P (415) 982-5267

Copyright 2016-2020 Lester Levy | Site developed by Good2bSocial