Log in & Sign up
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Community Mediation Free & Available
posted by Elaine Rosenberg at 9h04
Volunteer Community Mediation is a free conflict-resolution service offered through the West Island YMCA to West Islanders, and to the communities of Lachine, Ville St. Pierre, Côte St. Luc, Hampstead, N.D.G. and Montreal West.
The objective of the service is to help communities resolve neighbourhood disputes and interpersonal conflicts through mediation. Two volunteer mediators are appointed, and their role is to bring a neutral presence to the table, help the two parties voice their needs, to aid in communication and to establish the facts in the situation.
Through this interaction, the two parties work at understanding the situation more fully, and the mediators help them find common ground to develop mutually beneficial solutions.
Mediators in the Volunteer Community Mediation (VCM) program receive a comprehensive training in the mediation process. Some group members are also trained in civil and commercial mediation, psychology and non-violent communication procedures.
This service offered by VCM, as part of the West Island YMCA’s Impact program, is an important one, as it helps those involved in a conflict to express their own concerns and arrive at a solution that is acceptable to both parties.
This free community service is linked with the Regroupement des Organismes de Justice Alternative du Québec, a group of 37 organizations which are part of a system of alternative justice in the province.
If you would like to take advantage of VCM’s free service, call 514-630-9864, ext. 323, and leave a confidential message with your name and telephone number, and a mediator will contact you. Alternatively, you can send an e-mail to mediationpointeclaire@gmail.com. For more information, please go to VCM’s website at www.pointeclairemediation.com.