February 15th 2008 • Printer version

Conflict and Dispute Resolution Master's Program Co-Sponsors Free, Two-Week Series on Forgiveness

"Realms of Forgiveness: An Opportunity for Dialogue," a two-week series of free presentations, workshops, panel discussions and short films exploring the topic of forgiveness, will be held at several venues in Eugene from Friday, Feb. 22, to Friday, March 7.  The program will be anchored by an exhibit of The Forgiveness Project's The F Word: Photos and Stories of Forgiveness, on display at Fenario Art Gallery.

Highlights of the series include keynote addresses by Azim Khamisa, whose son was murdered, and by former gang member, Aqeela Sherills.  Sherills' address, Wounds to Warriors: Healing the Trauma of Social Violence," will be held Saturday, Feb. 23, from 7 to 9 p.m., at the John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts, and Khamisa's address, "Restorative Justice: A New Paradigm for Social Transformation," will be held Friday, Feb. 29, from 7 to 9 p.m., also at the Shedd Institute.
 
Presentations will also be made by Dr. Mark Umbreit, international speaker, professor and early founder of the restorative justice movement, and Tim Hicks, director of the University of Oregon's Conflict and Dispute Resolution Master's Program. 

Dr. Umbreit's presentation, "The Paradox of Forgiveness: What Family Survivors of Homicide Have Taught Us," will be held Saturday, March 1, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., at the Shedd Institute.  Dr. Umbreit is the founding director of the Center for Restorative Justice and Peacemaking at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work.  As a practitioner, he specializes in facilitating a dialogue between family survivors/victims of severe violence, primarily homicide, and the offender.   

Professor Hicks' presentation, "Forgiveness and Climate Change," will be held Saturday, Feb. 23, from 3 to 5 p.m., at the Shedd Institute.  Hicks was as a mediator in private practice for 14 years before joining the Oregon Law faculty.  As a mediator, he worked in three primary sectors -- family and divorce, workplace/organizations, and multi-party environmental/public policy, and also consulted and provided training for businesses and organizations in conflict management.

For more information and a complete schedule, visit the "Realms of Forgiveness" Web site. 

The series is co-sponsored by the University of Oregon's Master's Degree Program in Conflict and Dispute Resolution and Community Mediation Services of Eugene.