It Unfolded Quite Wonderfully
A history of the Certificate in Conflict Resolution at the Justice
Institute of British Columbia 1983–1993
Dr. Nym Hughes, M.Ed., Ed. D.

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND

KEY FINDINGS:

The Conflict Resolution Certificate Program was created in the
Community Programs branch of the Justice Institute of British
Columbia’s Educational Services Division in January 1986. It
was the first public registration and the first post-secondary
program in Canada. By 1990 it was the undisputed leader in
conflict resolution training in British Columbia, the Yukon, and all
of western Canada. The goal of this doctoral research was to
understand how and why the Certificate emerged so successfully
where and when it did. It was my hope that lessons learned from
the first decade of the Certificate’s life might inform its third
decade.

The Certificate in Conflict Resolution at the Justice Institute of
British Columbia was a manifestation of a North American conflict
resolution movement that started in the 1970s. Some JIBC
institutional characteristics facilitated its emergence: a broad
interpretation of the mandate, a high level of divisional autonomy, a
culture of educational experimentation and a requirement for
generating income. The other crucial factor was the work of two
visionary women, Pat Ross and Marje Burdine.
The Certificate’s first decade was marked by exponential growth.
Its practical content, short course format and highly ‘experiential’
teaching methodologies contributed to its popularity. Creating
enough trainers to teach all the courses was a major project of the
first decade and required the new trainers to self-create an identity
as mediators, at the same time as ‘becoming’ conflict resolution
educators.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS
 What shaped the emergence of conflict resolution as a field
of practice?
 What was the inter- relationship between the JIBC
educational program in conflict resolution and the field of
practice in British Columbia?
 What was the influence of the Certificate’s location in a
public post-secondary institution, the JIBC?
 What ideas about teaching and learning informed the
instructional approaches of the program?
 What ideas about conflict and the resolving of conflict
influenced the content of the JIBC conflict resolution
education program?

METHODS
This inquiry was historical and interpretive. It was shaped by a
narrative inquiry approach and drew on eighteen interviews with
Certificate founders and early trainers, archival documents such
as JIBC reports and Certificate course manuals, the relevant
literature and my own professional experience to create a multivoiced text telling the story of what facilitated, influenced,
informed, and constrained the practice of conflict resolution
education at the JIBC between 1983 and 1993.

The first graduating class of the Certificate in
Conflict Resolution 1987.

With the formation of a new Conflict Resolution
Certificate Program, the first of its kind in
Canada, the Justice Institute is responding to the
demand for comprehensive training in conflict
resolution, anger management, mediation and
negotiation skills. (Extension Programs
Calendar, January - March 1986, p. 3)

We stepped into a momentum that was gathering
and gave it a framework and gave it a voice, and
gave it a place to really work. (Joan Balmer,
personal interview, January 26, 2007)

JIBC trainers, administrators and students made substantial
contributions to the development of a field of practice provincially
and nationally through forming mediator associations, communitybased mediation programs and introducing new forms of practice.
Certificate course content was based on ideas from
communication, psychology, game theory and organizational
relations. By 1991 a JIBC conflict resolution model had coalesced:
a perceptual definition of conflict paired with a four-stage
resolution process. Other elements were an emphasis on defusing
anger in self and others, as well as active listening and assertive
speaking skills.
The early years of the Certificate are remembered as a time of
excitement, collegiality and creativity. By the early 90s program
growth required the hiring of a new generation of trainers, and
competition for training days and mediation cases intensified.
Collegiality eroded. Core course content, teaching practices and
relationship patterns all solidified in the early 90s. This research
recommends as a corrective the integration of newer, more
contextual theory and practice developments.

JUSTICE INSTITUTE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA