2014 Conflict Resolution Education Conference, George Mason University

After a wave of June storms swept through the D.C. area, Dr. Nina Meyerhof (President) and Kelly G. Ramer (training coordinator) arrived into the thick summer air that carried the weighty smell of lush vegetation, not exactly what you might expect arriving in the capital of the dominating world power. Yet acutely fitting for the intentions of sharing COE’s mission with academic counterparts at the upcoming conference; amid institutional stalwarts the fertile ground for planting seeds and building connection awaits.

Children of the Earth’s vision, work, and peacebuilding model of ‘Conflict Transcendence’ were shared at a conference on Conflict Resolution Education at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, USA. Much of the conference presentations focused on conflict resolution in school and community settings; and used the traditional approach of teasing out commonalities to find a compromise within a conflict. COE’s Conflict Transcendence model uses the wisdom that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’; meaning that our differences are inter-related parts of the whole and by working through them we find a greater and more holistic understanding than before. The presentation was held in a circle format, which aligns with COE’s much more fluidly than a lecture style. Some tools such as the circle process, ho’ohponopono, and creative visualization were used in the presentation as well to familiarize participants with COE methods. Many questions were asked, and good connections made. Another step towards sharing the good work and tools of Children of the Earth with our global community.