Greetings.
I am a writer, mentor, father, leader, mediator…. .
"Repairing the world" (in the Jewish Talmud) and "Blessed be the peacemakers" (in the Christian Bible) have been the guiding light in my professional life. Hungry for meaning in my life, I gravitated to those people, movements and ideas that nourished me. I yearned for whatever was uplifting and life-affirming. Conversely, as a child of parents who escaped the Holocaust, I had a keen sense of smell for evil. So I saw society, as did C.S. Lewis, as a battleground where "every square inch, every split second, is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan."
Not surprisingly, I became a lifelong student of conflict and how to transform it into respect, forgiveness and sometimes even love. It taught me that “God" and "Satan" were not "out there" somewhere in Heaven and Hell; that "Right" and "Wrong" were often interwoven; that "Good" and "Evil" dwelt in my own heart. As I became better acquainted with these two archetypal forces, I became known as a mediator, someone who "stands in the middle" in order to prevent violence and foster compassion and understanding.
Working in conflict zones between conservatives and liberals, men and women, North and South, rich and poor, or pro-American and anti-American, I became a believer in bridges rather than walls. As Sun Tzu wrote in The Art of War: "Know your enemy." We can only do that by opening our mind and heart to the "Other," whoever they may be. In every mediation, I have learned a basic truth: we are far more interdependent than our minds will admit.
Only in that awareness of wholeness can we find peace, both in the world and in ourselves.
I grew up (4 years old, on the right) on the eastside of Indianapolis in the 1950s, one of the most conservative places at one of the most conservative times in recent history.
I was the first graduate of my high school to attend Harvard College, one of the most liberal places at one of the most revolutionary times in recent history.
Raised amidst conflict, both in my personal life and in the world, I naturally became a mediator, dedicating my professional life to building bridges across divides in America and around the world.
Over the years, I witnessed the profoundly contradictory parts of human nature, from the instinctive to the intellectual to the sacred — and was humbled by the complexity of the world we created.
I became a grandfather at the age of 50 (here with my first grandson) and am now blessed to have eight... and three great-grandchildren, of all sizes and skin colors and skills.
As I glimpse my 80s over the horizon, the tree of life stuns me with its beauty. All I want now is to experience it with reverence and the pleasure of sharing what I have learned with those who might benefit from it... and to in turn learn from them.
Graduated from Harvard College in his early twenties magna cum laude and was awarded a four-year fellowship to the University of Chicago.
Published his first book, The Whole World Is Watching, which became a bestseller and launched a six-decade literary career that continues today.
Contributed to cutting-edge public policy on child development while serving on the staff of the Carnegie Council on Children, a policy thinktank at Yale University focused on children and families.
Served as Co-Founder and Managing Editor of WorldPaper, an international newspaper with a circulation of over one million distributed across four continents.
Became President of Mediators Productions, a media company in Los Angeles developing film and television projects that deal with significant social issues ranging from racial justice to nuclear war.
Shifted to nonprofit activism by serving as Founder and President of Mediators Foundation, which has incubated and supported scores of bridge-building and civic innovation projects for over forty years.
Founded the Entertainment Summit, which brought together top Soviet and American filmmakers to deescalate the Cold War.
Established his own consulting firm, Global Mediators Associates, which provided leadership development and conflict transformation services worldwide.
At the invitation of Peter C. Goldmark, built a team of social entrepreneurs called Global Partners, that provided a multinational, multicultural forum for tackling tough global issues.
Shifted to domestic conflict resolution by founding The Common Enterprise, a Rockefeller Foundation initiative helping diverse American communities build common ground by incentivizing local cross-partisan collaboration.
Based on his work in American communities, wrote A House Divided: Six Belief Systems Struggling for America's Soul.
As a result of his work and writing, was retained by the US House of Representatives Bipartisan Congressional Retreats to design and faciliaite the historic off-site Retreats in Hershey, Pennsylvania
Designed and presented workshops and trainings for organizations including Harvard Kennedy School, the Faith & Politics Institute, the Council on Foundations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Executive Institute, the American Association of School Superintendents, and many other diverse public and private sector clients.
Founded the Conflict Transformation Collaborative, connecting practitioners from across the globe to create an independent voice for peacemakers.
Partnered with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to strengthen global networks of conflict transformation practitioners.
Served as a Distinguished Fellow at the EastWest Institute and launched the Global Leadership Consortium, bringing together leading international think tanks to develop cross-boundary leaders.
At the invitation of Harvard Business School Press, wrote and published Leading Through Conflict: How Successful Leaders Turn Differences into Opportunities (2006), a foundational book on mediation.
Consulted on and was profiled in the award-winning documentary, The Reunited States, bringing his bridge-building perspective to film festivals, PBS and now streaming on Amazon Prime.
In partnership with the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, co-founded Philanthropy Bridging Divides, a private ongoing dialogue between philanthropic CEOs from across the political spectrum.
To foster awareness of the psychological obstacles to conflict resolution, researched and published American PTSD, which identifies the underlying collective trauma that undermines collaboration and outlines six paths toward civic healing and political renewal.
Career Highlights
Mediators Foundation Story
A Brief History 1986-2018
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