Scope of Services
We provide a broad range of services designed to help individuals, organizations, communities, tribes, and public agencies address issues involving land use and environmental issues and disputes through collaborative processes. These range from consulting with parties to better define issues to facilitating meetings to conducting formal mediations. We can be of the greatest assistance when we are involved at an early stage, but can help resolve disputes at any point. Our services always are tailored to effectively assist each situation.
Consultation and Advice
In any situation where parties sense that there is likely to be conflict, or where conflict already is occurring, it is important to explore whether a collaborative approach would be useful and how such an approach should be structured. Through consultation, we assist parties in preventing a dispute from escalating and in entering into discussions designed to reach a mutually desirable outcome.
Consultation may be useful for parties who are seeking to improve their ability to work effectively with one another, or with other interests, in addressing a common concern related to land use or environmental issues. Through both individual and joint sessions, we facilitate improved communications and relations, enabling the parties to be more effective in their negotiating, advocacy or organizing activities.
Consultation also is the first step in initiating facilitation or mediation. We can assist parties in defining the issues of concern and identifying the interests of all parties whose participation is critical to resolving the issues. This process may involve a combination of separate meetings with each of the parties and combined meetings involving all the concerned parties.
Facilitation
Many land use and environmental issues can only be resolved through broad participation among interested parties in open settings. These issues may be as limited as a problem within a single neighborhood or as broad as formulating a position on a major public policy issue. The process typically involves discussion as much as negotiation. As facilitators, we assist the parties in designing the forum, in identifying the stakeholders, in finding the interests which underlie public positions, in facilitating the discussions and negotiations, and in formulating agreements on actions to resolve the issue.
Mediation
We also conduct formal mediation between parties where they desire to resolve a specific dispute in a confidential setting to be embodied in a binding settlement agreement. Such disputes may involve a proposed development project, siting of an energy facility, a business activity which is seen as a neighborhood nuisance, or a controversial new governmental program, among others.
We serve as neutrals, assisting the parties in identifying issues, clarifying positions, identifying interests and drafting a settlement agreement. The mediators’ goal is to enhance the parties’ ability to reach a mutually agreeable resolution. This may take one or several sessions, depending on the complexity of the issues and the level of conflict among the parties, but it is far less costly to the parties in time or financial expense than engaging in litigation or contentious regulatory proceedings. It also frequently results in an improved long-term relationship among the parties in their future dealings.
We are available to discuss these options, and any variations on them, including both private and public solutions, in order to design and select the most appropriate process for each situation.
We provide a broad range of services designed to help individuals, organizations, communities, tribes, and public agencies address issues involving land use and environmental issues and disputes through collaborative processes. These range from consulting with parties to better define issues to facilitating meetings to conducting formal mediations. We can be of the greatest assistance when we are involved at an early stage, but can help resolve disputes at any point. Our services always are tailored to effectively assist each situation.
Consultation and Advice
In any situation where parties sense that there is likely to be conflict, or where conflict already is occurring, it is important to explore whether a collaborative approach would be useful and how such an approach should be structured. Through consultation, we assist parties in preventing a dispute from escalating and in entering into discussions designed to reach a mutually desirable outcome.
Consultation may be useful for parties who are seeking to improve their ability to work effectively with one another, or with other interests, in addressing a common concern related to land use or environmental issues. Through both individual and joint sessions, we facilitate improved communications and relations, enabling the parties to be more effective in their negotiating, advocacy or organizing activities.
Consultation also is the first step in initiating facilitation or mediation. We can assist parties in defining the issues of concern and identifying the interests of all parties whose participation is critical to resolving the issues. This process may involve a combination of separate meetings with each of the parties and combined meetings involving all the concerned parties.
Facilitation
Many land use and environmental issues can only be resolved through broad participation among interested parties in open settings. These issues may be as limited as a problem within a single neighborhood or as broad as formulating a position on a major public policy issue. The process typically involves discussion as much as negotiation. As facilitators, we assist the parties in designing the forum, in identifying the stakeholders, in finding the interests which underlie public positions, in facilitating the discussions and negotiations, and in formulating agreements on actions to resolve the issue.
Mediation
We also conduct formal mediation between parties where they desire to resolve a specific dispute in a confidential setting to be embodied in a binding settlement agreement. Such disputes may involve a proposed development project, siting of an energy facility, a business activity which is seen as a neighborhood nuisance, or a controversial new governmental program, among others.
We serve as neutrals, assisting the parties in identifying issues, clarifying positions, identifying interests and drafting a settlement agreement. The mediators’ goal is to enhance the parties’ ability to reach a mutually agreeable resolution. This may take one or several sessions, depending on the complexity of the issues and the level of conflict among the parties, but it is far less costly to the parties in time or financial expense than engaging in litigation or contentious regulatory proceedings. It also frequently results in an improved long-term relationship among the parties in their future dealings.
We are available to discuss these options, and any variations on them, including both private and public solutions, in order to design and select the most appropriate process for each situation.