The new head of the Centre for Tenancy Peace, which operates under the Finnish Mediation Forum, has been appointed as Miriam Attias (MA, MSocSc). She will begin her duties on 15 June 2026.
Miriam Attias is moving into the role with a strong interest in developing social mediation and restorative justice in Finland. She describes her thoughts on her new role as follows: “I am happy and grateful to be joining the expert team at the Mediation Forum and the Centre for Peaceful Coexistence to consider and develop the place of social mediation and restorative justice in Finland. Societal pressures are directly reflected in interpersonal relationships, and current legal remedies do not always support societal peace in a way that would meet the needs of our time. For me, peace does not mean the absence of conflict, but the ability to have difficult conversations. Conflicts are part of living together – and when handled correctly, they can also generate new understanding and momentum.”
Attias particularly highlights the themes of safe and safer spaces, along with the challenges of their practical implementation: “In recent years, I have thought a lot about safe and safer spaces. Their value base is important, but when principles are violated, a gap often arises between values and practical processing. This is precisely where unsafety emerges. Restorative justice offers a structure and significant untapped potential for developing genuinely shared psychological safety – the kind that arises from people’s ability to encounter, learn, and repair.”
His thinking also emphasises the significance of conflicts as a societal resource:
“Following Nils Christie's thinking, conflicts are the common property of society. When their management is entirely transferred to the authorities, we lose the opportunity to learn together and to examine norms and their effects on people.”
A very warm welcome, Miriam!
