Professor David Dowling Spoke at World Mediation Summit in Spain

In July 2014, Chapman University Fowler School of Law Professor David Dowling attended the
World Mediation Summit
in Madrid, Spain. The event was hosted by Mediation International and attended mostly by those in the World Mediation Organization. Professor Dowling attended the summit for the opportunity to learn from experts around the world about mediation and conflict resolution. Specifically, he wanted to network with individuals working with juvenile and minors (young offenders) to gain insights for Fowler’s own Juvenile Hall Conflict Resolution Clinic (JHCRC), a subset of the
Mediation Clinic
.

“It was an exciting opportunity to share my ideas about working with juvenile offenders and teach them conflict resolution skills. I had an overwhelming response from the attendees. They were very interested in what I do and reached out to me to work with them on some of their projects.” – Professor Dowling

On the first day, he met with summit organizers to discuss the JHCRC. On day two, the organizers invited Professor Dowling to speak on a panel with mediators from Greece and Germany, with topics that ranged from mediation in Greece and India to his program in the United States. The scholars compared notes on the different approaches to conflict resolution and ways to start mediation programs.

“I figured I would go just as an attendee. I did not expect to present, so I was very happy to get the opportunity to present and have that platform to represent the Fowler School of Law to people from the Philippines, India, Latin America, West Indies, Australia, etc.” – Professor Dowling

Future Plans

Professor Dowling plans to connect with some of the mediators he met during the summit to help develop a novel new justice program that would allow mediators to meet with victims and offenders to address the crime and propose solutions. Professor Dowling plans to start this new program with Riverside County in the fall. This summit allowed him to share ideas with others already engaged in this unique program and to help brainstorm ways to make improvements. He has already received follow-up inquiries from counterparts in California, London and Greece.

David Dowling
is an associate clinical professor and director of the Mediation Clinic. Professor Dowling joined the faculty in 2007 as an adjunct professor working with the interscholastic competition teams in mediation, negotiations and client counseling. Most of his work is based in Riverside with the courts and juvenile detention center.