In community conflicts, social tensions lead to a lack of contact and dialogue between people and groups. Community mediation - and dialogue - takes place when the conflict cannot be clearly defined - for example, when there is a bad atmosphere in a housing association, when people complain a lot and often about each other, or when people or groups are fighting in a particular area. Community conflicts are often complex and usually require a professional mediator.
The Centre for Neighbourly Mediation, which preceded the Centre for Residential Peace, set out to develop processes of community mediation to address tensions between asylum seekers and the host population. In 2018Forssa modelwon a competition organised by the European Crime Prevention Association (ECPA) to resolve inter-ethnic conflicts through community mediation.
The Centre for Residential Peace will also continue to address situations affecting the wider neighbourhood and tensions between population groups, such as disturbances caused by young people in residential areas. These types of processes, which we call community dialogues, are very flexible and are always tailored to the situation. They often involve close cooperation with a wide range of other actors involved in the situation.
Since then, the Centre has developed the co-mediation process to suit the more traditional extended conflicts of housing associations. The process involves a survey of all residents of the property, the creation of a summary and the convening of a residents' evening where a mediator leads a discussion based on the principles of restorative mediation. Often the property manager is involved in the discussion.
