On returning from conferences or seminars, I find it natural to reflect on new insights and enjoy increased motivation in applying newly discovered approaches in practice.  One idea, among many others that particularly grasped my attention at “Focus Empathy 2016 Berlin”, was: “Learning to relate with other humans is more sustainable than any solution. We are good at recycling plastic, glass, etc., and that is wonderful. Our Planet needs recycling. But now it’s time to work on recycling conflicts. Each one of them- starting with your own inner and outer conflict situations. Recycle as they happen. It actually doesn’t take much time if you address it at the beginning” Arnold Mindell.

So simple, yet, so difficult.  There are so many conflict resolution strategies and training programs available, but the way we relate to each other seems to be getting worse. The paradox is that the skills to “recycle conflicts” are not tied to the knowledge of which conflict resolution method should to be used. Instead it is how I, as a human being, am feeling and experiencing the situation and learning to feel deep empathy for the “the other”, for a conflicts to be recycled into something beautiful – called human relationships.

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