Mediation: Roots in the past with projection in the future

Abstract

When talking about mediation and other methods of conflict resolution based on peaceful, constructive and cooperative management of disagreement, we would seem to be talking about new systems for conflict management. Looking back at our history shows us how this is not the case however. Despite innovation in its theorisation and more professional application over the last thirty years, there is an underlying philosophy in these systems that could well be as old as human beings’ ability to reason. Thus, mediation, whether carried out by professionals or informally by friends and relatives, is no new discovery, but rather the fortunate recovery of techniques based on ancestral principles rooted in people’s ability to understand and dialogue.