The following list represents those organizations in British Columbia which offer education and training in conflict resolution and mediation. While we have attempted to make the list comprehensive, the field of conflict resolution is a rapidly growing one and we may not have included some organizations which could be of interest to our readers. If you know of any other education or training opportunities in mediation in British Columbia which you believe should be included in this list, please contact us.

You can find information about one-time or special course offerings on our Upcoming Events page.

1. British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute (BCAMI)
2. College of New Caledonia
3. Community Justice Initiatives Association
4. Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia (CLE)
5. D.R. Innovation Society
6. Justice Institute of B.C.: Centre for Conflict Resolution
7. Justice Institute of B.C.: Corrections and Community Justice Division
8. Langara College
9. Northern Lights College
10. Okanagan College
11. Peacemakers Trust
12. Royal Roads University: Peace and Conflict Management
13. Thompson Rivers University
14. University of British Columbia, Faculty of Law: Program on Dispute Resolution
15. University of British Columbia, Sauder School of Business – Executive Education
16. University of the Fraser Valley
17. University of Victoria: Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution
18. Vancouver Island University

British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute (BCAMI)

The British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute (BCAMI) offers courses throughout the year. Arbitration courses: Basic Law for Arbitrators (3 days), Conduct of Arbitration Proceedings (3 days), Arbitration Workshop (2 days). Mediation courses to be announced. The BCAMI as an affiliate of ADR Institute of Canada provides C. Med (Chartered Mediator) and C.Arb. (Chartered Arbitrator) accreditation for certification.

BCAMI also provides public seminars and commercial arbitration and mediation handbooks. For the Institute's course calendar phone, fax, write, e-mail or visit BCAMI's web site.

College of New Caledonia

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of it courses in conflict resolution through the Lakes District, Mackenzie, Nechako, Prince George, Burns Lake and Quesnel campuses of the College of New Caledonia. For more information, contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

Community Justice Initiatives Association

Fraser Region Community Justice Initiatives Association (CJI) has more than 20 years of experience providing Restorative Justice based conflict resolution services in a variety of situations, including criminal justice settings, workplaces, communities, institutions and businesses, as well as in private dispute situations.

CJI offers presentations and training courses in Restorative Justice, conflict resolution, mediation, conferencing and group facilitation, with a speciality in victim-offender situations. The latest addition to its roster of training presentations is Restorative Action in Schools, based on CJI's experience implementing a Restorative Justice based program in local schools. CJI's trainers have an in-depth understanding of theory combined with valuable hands-on experience, resulting in a training approach that is both insightful and practical.

Training materials developed by the agency are available, including Inviting Dialogue: Restorative Justice and Victim Offender Mediation, a secondary school curriculum Conversation Peace, and an elementary school classroom resource Talking Peace.

Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia (CLE)

The Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia offers a Dispute Resolution Curriculum that provides outstanding access to expert training. The courses are taught by experienced mediators and lawyers who are engaged in full time mediation practices.

D.R. Innovation Society

Who We Are:
The D.R. Innovation Society (DRI) is a not-for-profit society formed in 1998 to provide dispute resolution (DR) services in B.C. The former name of this organization was the “British Columbia Dispute Resolution Practicum Society,” or “DRPS.” The name changed to DRI in March, 2009.

DRI is an innovator in the dispute resolution field in British Columbia, providing leadership in building capacity in collaborative dispute resolution services by:

• Providing training for dispute resolution professionals; and,
• Creating and providing affordable dispute resolution services.

DRI’s mandate is to enable innovative dispute resolution processes to produce consistently positive outcomes.

What We Do:
DRI operates a combination of dispute resolution programs and tailored dispute resolution services. DRI’s programs include:

1. The Court Mediation Program (“CMP”):
   &tab;The CMP provides a practicum for individuals equipped with formal training in mediation but who have little or no mediation experience. Practicum participants mediate actual cases from designated Provincial Court Small Claims Registries. In addition to its practicum services, the CMP provides mediation services to resolve claims filed in the designated registries which refer cases to the CMP to be mediated, free-of-charge.
2. The Family Mediation Practicum Program (“FMPP”):
   The FMPP is celebrating its fifth (5th) year of providing family mediation practicum opportunities for mediators. New mediators gain experience working with families undergoing transition such as separation and divorce. The practicum participants assist clients who are experiencing conflict and/or restructuring family life and who are seeking mediation to develop strategies that promote family harmony. The new Comprehensive Practicum offers experience in mediating the financial separation by assisting clients with the process of property division. The FMPP also offers child inclusive mediation.
3. The Child Protection Mediation Program (“CPP”):
   The CPP offers a mediation practicum that provides opportunities for individuals to develop their Child Protection mediation shills in a hands-on environment. The CPP program is open to Aboriginal applicants and applicants residing in under-served communities in the province of B.C.

How to Contact:

Justice Institute of British Columbia: Centre for Conflict Resolution

The Centre for Conflict Resolution has been one of the top training programs in North America in the field of conflict resolution for over two decades. Comprehensive, experiential training in interpersonal, interest-based conflict resolution, negotiation and mediation is offered at the main JIBC Campus in New Westminster, at the downtown Victoria campus, in downtown Vancouver, in Kelowna and at 18 other locations across British Columbia. The Centre also delivers a range of training and conflict management services to local, national and international organizations.

The Centre's Certificate in Conflict Resolution is internationally recognized for excellence in dispute resolution training. The Centre offers four specializations, with varying course and assessment requirements, to meet individual needs: Conflict Resolution/Negotiation, Mediation/ Third Party Intervention, Restorative Practices* (*offered on contract only), and Family Mediation (joint program with the Corrections and Community Justice Division of the Justice Institute - see below). In addition two Associate Certificates are offered - Associate Certificate in Workplace Conflict and Associate Certificate in Leadership and Conflict Resolution.

The Centre for Conflict Resolution offers two online courses: Theoretical Foundations of Dispute Resolution and Civil Procedure. For details, see the program calendar.

The Centre also holds a variety of special events. Information about these can be found on their website at: www.jibc.ca/conres.

Program calendars are posted online at: http://www.jibc.ca/conres . For a free hardcopy, you can call or e-mail the Centre.

Justice Institute of British Columbia: Corrections and Community Justice Division

The Corrections and Community Justice Division of the Justice Institute of B.C. offers online courses for individuals interested in mediating family disputes. Offerings include Family Violence: Impact on Separation and Divorce, Introduction to Family Justice Services in B.C., Effects of Separation and Divorce on Adults, Effects of Separation and Divorce on Children, Substance Use Issues in Family Justice, Multicultural Issues in Family Justice, Mediated Agreements and Related Court Orders, Child Support Guidelines and Custody and Access Report Writing. The Corrections and Community Justice Division also offers a face-to-face course which prepares participants for Family Mediation Canada Certification.

A Family Mediation Certificate is available, as a joint offering from two divisions of the Justice Institute: the Centre for Conflict Resolution and the Corrections and Community Justice Division. The 20-credit certificate is 280 hours or 40 days long and the Certificate is awarded upon successful completion of all classroom and on-line course requirements plus the successful completion of an assessment. The goal of the Certificate in Family Mediation is to provide quality education and training in mediation within a family context that may be applied toward the minimum training requirements of Family Mediation Canada for certification as a Family Relations Mediator.

Langara College

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of it courses in conflict resolution through Langara College in Vancouver. For more information, contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

Northern Lights College

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of its courses through the Dawson Creek and Fort St. John campuses of the Northern Lights College. For more information contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

Okanagan College

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of it courses in conflict resolution through the Penticton, Kelowna and Salmon Arm campuses of Okanagan College. For more information, contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

Peacemakers Trust

Peacemakers Trust offers occasional presentations, seminars and other continuing education opportunities for those working in the field of dispute resolution, conflict transformation and peacebuilding. Peacemakers Trust also has an extensive resource web site with bibliographic resources, lists of journals in the field of conflict studies, and listings of university based educational programs and a bulletin board of news and events.

Royal Roads University: Peace and Conflict Management

Royal Roads University offers both a Master of Arts and Graduate Diploma in Conflict Analysis and Management, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Justice Studies. The programs are delivered through a combination of short, intensive residency periods and Internet-based distance learning, generally over two years.

The Bachelor of Arts in Justice Studies trains justice service workers by teaching applied knowledge/skills in social work, philosophy, law, and sociology. A substantial portion of the program is devoted to social work skills, namely communication skills, human identity, cross-cultural communication skills, mediation training (40 hours), ethics for alternative dispute resolution practitioners, and the application of these skills in other related fields such as facilitation, coaching, sentencing circles, and family group conferences.

The Conflict Analysis and Management programs provide the theoretical background and real world approaches for people in their professional roles as managers, negotiators, facilitators, and consultants. By applying cutting edge ideas in communications, culture, and systems thinking, students learn to identify and analyse the complex forces at work in conflict situations, then to address and manage conflict at points of greatest leverage in a variety of situations.

For more information, visit RRU’s School of Peace and Conflict Management webpage here.

Thompson Rivers University

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of its courses through the Kamloops campus of Thompson Rivers University. For more information contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

University of British Columbia, Faculty of Law: Program on Dispute Resolution

The Program on Dispute Resolution ("PDR") is an interdisciplinary team of scholars from law, psychology, sociology, anthropology, community and regional planning, fine arts and evaluative research.

The PDR is a research and teaching program that offers an integrative curriculum of theoretical and skills-based dispute resolution education for law students at the Juris Doctor, LLM and PhD levels. Current PDR research includes multidisciplinary studies into cross-cultural dispute resolution in the Asia-Pacific and the arts as vehicles for addressing cultural conflicts. PDR is currently collaborating on a research study into the use of mediation in administrative tribunals in British Columbia.

University of British Columbia, Sauder School of Business – Executive Education

The Executive Education Division at UBC’s Sauder School of Business offers seminars on Negotiations and Conflict Resolution from leading-edge practitioners and researchers. See a full description of these and other courses at our website.

Strategies, Skills and Tactics of Negotiations: A comprehensive introduction to negotiations. The objective is to help you prepare for, open, bargain, and close any type of negotiation more effectively. To ensure practical relevance and develop critical negotiation skills, you will apply the content in actual negotiation exercises.

Advanced Negotiations Skills workshop: This course offers an opportunity to improve your negotiation skills associated with both competitive and collaborative styles. You will focus on developing specific negotiating behaviours through exercises and individual feedback.

Resolving Conflict in the Workplace: Gain valuable insights into the nature of workplace conflict, learn how to avoid conflicts and resolve them in a fair and considerate manner. You will leave with an action plan for applying a conflict resolution process in your organization.

University of the Fraser Valley

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of it courses in conflict resolution through the University of the Fraser Valley. For more information, contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

University of Victoria: Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution

An interdisciplinary Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution Program is offered at the University of Victoria through the Faculty of Human and Social Development. It is administered by the School of Public Administration. The program focus is on public policy dispute resolution, and applicants should have relevant professional experience. It is a full-time program that offers a thesis or a non-thesis option, and a Co-operative Education (Co-op) program. The application deadline is December 15 for international applicants, March 15 for domestic applicants; the program begins in September of each year.

Applicants not in the degree program may be allowed to take dispute resolution courses, provided there is sufficient space in the course and they meet admission requirements.

Vancouver Island University

The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers some of it courses in conflict resolution through Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo. For more information, contact the Centre for Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.