Mediation Center

09/24/2026

My heart is so full today.

For two nights, we celebrated Mediation Center's 45th anniversary, first online and then in person. It felt like a family coming home. Old friends picked up right where they left off, new friends joined the circle, and the stories kept coming.

Thank you to our wonderful co-hosts, Hamline University Conflict Studies (Ken Fox) and Mitchell Hamline School of Law's Dispute Resolution Institute (Sharon Press). Thank you to A Peace of My Mind for helping our guests share their stories in their own words. Thank you to our team and volunteers for making it all happen, to everyone who came to celebrate, and to everyone who sent love from afar. We felt you there too.

Here's to the next 45!

09/22/2026

Come celebrate with us!

09/21/2026

Tomorrow we begin celebrating 45 years of Mediation Center, and you’re invited.

Join us Tuesday evening for our virtual anniversary conversation, Wednesday evening in Saint Paul for our 45th Anniversary Reunion, or come to both.

We’d love to see former students, mediators, trainers, colleagues, friends, and anyone interested in mediation and conflict resolution.

There’s still time to join us. RSVP through the link in our latest post.

09/21/2026

Tomorrow we begin celebrating Mediation Center’s 45th Anniversary, and we’d love for you to be part of it.

Since 1981, thousands of conversations, classes, mediations, friendships, and professional relationships have grown out of this community. This week we get a chance to reconnect, share some stories, and celebrate the people who have helped make Mediation Center what it is today.

You don’t need to be a mediator or a past student to join us. If you care about conflict resolution, have crossed paths with Mediation Center, or would simply like to meet the community, you are welcome.

Tuesday, September 22 | 7:00-8:30 PM CDT
Virtual Anniversary Conversation via Zoom

Wednesday, September 23 | 6:00-9:00 PM CDT
45th Anniversary Reunion
Anderson Center, Saint Paul

Come to one or both.

It’s not too late to RSVP:
https://luma.com/mediationcenter

Please also share this with someone who has been part of Mediation Center’s story. We’d love to see some familiar faces, and meet some new ones too.

07/14/2026

A shouting match in a supermarket parking lot left Mediation Center Executive Director Tobin Lay thinking less about who was right and more about what was happening beneath the surface.

In conflict, the visible argument is often only a small part of the story. Underneath the words may be fear, dignity, belonging, grief, mistrust, or the need to be seen.

That is why leaders who move too quickly toward resolution can miss the conflict beneath the conflict.

In his latest article, Tobin explores:

• what conflict can reveal beneath the stated grievance
• the difference between positions and interests
• why curiosity can change the direction of a difficult conversation
• how leaders can slow down without avoiding decisions

The turning point in a difficult conversation often comes when someone stops preparing the next argument and becomes genuinely curious about what has not yet been understood.

Read the article, then share in the comments a time when you realized a conflict was not really about what you were fighting over. Your insight may help someone facing a difficult conversation today.

A few weeks ago, I pulled into a supermarket parking lot and found myself right in the middle of a heated shouting match. I got there in time to hear the older veteran man shout at a group of young Hispanic women “go back to Mexico” and the women shouting back with their own angry slurs, stating...

07/10/2026

This Fourth of July, we are celebrating two milestones at once.

Our country turns 250 years old, and Mediation Center marks 45 years of helping people find their way through conflict toward resolution. Both anniversaries are about the same thing at their core: people choosing to work things out together instead of walking away from each other.

Since 1981, we have believed that disagreement does not have to mean division. That belief has guided our work in courtrooms, boardrooms, and community meetings across Minnesota for four and a half decades.

Wishing you and your family a safe and happy Independence Day.

04/17/2026

Have you ever wished you could get a closer look at a place that has a major impact on your community?

For the past four years, we’ve had the honor of working with the Community Advisory Council to Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend Refinery in Dakota County. One thing that continues to stand out is that serving on the CAC gives local residents a real opportunity to learn, ask questions, share concerns, and help bring community perspectives into the conversation.

The CAC brings together residents and refinery leaders to share information, discuss issues, and make recommendations related to refinery operations, including environmental, health, and safety topics. It is a thoughtful group that takes its work seriously and models the kind of respectful, informed dialogue communities need more of.

If you live in Inver Grove Heights, Rosemount, Nininger Township, Coates, Empire Township, Hastings, or Vermillion Township, I hope you will consider applying. It is a meaningful way to serve your community and participate in important conversations that affect it.

Applications are now being accepted, and interviews will begin soon:
https://lnkd.in/gCW7kXKt