Bike Auckland’s new mediation offering for cycling advocates
Bike Auckland’s Volunteer and Events Manager Phoebe Balle shares her experience attending a skills-intensive mediation training last month with the Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand I Te Mana Kaiwhakatau, Takawaenga o Aotearoa (AMINZ) and the launch of Bike Auckland’s new mediation service for bike-minded people.
My pulse was pounding, but not because I’d just biked up a hill. I was seated at the head of a table, with two grey-haired men sitting either side in stony silence. I took a breath. “Now I’ve explained the role of a mediator, I’d like to offer each of you the chance to summarise the issue you want resolved today. Jack, would you like to start?” Silence. The wait felt familiar – the kind when you’ve accidentally ridden over glass shards on the road and are listening grimly for the hiss of a puncture. Waiting. Waiting. Jack cleared his throat. “Well I’m here because I want to build a fence, and my neighbour Jo refuses to pay his fair share of the costs…” We were on our way, without a bang. Yet.
So, this whole scenario was actually a role-play, but it sure felt real. My two ‘parties’ in conflict were other mediation students, and I was completing the last big hurdle of my training: mediating a dispute from start to finish in 90 minutes. I was there for professional development, wearing my Bike Auckland hat. But what does mediation have to do with bikes???
Mediation is a process to resolve disputes. A mediator helps people in conflict identify issues, develop options, consider alternatives, and reach an agreement everyone can live with. Bike Auckland’s mission is mobilising people-power for a better city on bikes. As an organisation centred on people and transforming our transport system, we witness our fair share of disputes. Mostly disputes between people who do and don’t want our city to be safer for people on bikes, but also sometimes within the bike advocacy community. While conflict can be transformative, unresolved conflict diverts energy away from our shared goals.
Mediation training tips for resolving disputes
If you’re in a dispute, or know someone who is, here are my top take-aways from the AMINZ Mediation Skills Intensive (AMSI) that might help get you through:
Choose a specific time and a place
Mediation does not happen on the road when a driver has just nearly hit a cyclist, or when a cyclist’s pannier bumps the side of a sports car while gliding towards a red light between two lanes of stopped cars (guilty!), or at a Local Board public meeting. Mediation is a semi-formal process that needs to be agreed to by both parties. Deciding on a time and place helps set it apart from the way the conflict has been handled so far.
Make an agenda for your conversation, together
Trying to resolve a dispute can be a messy process. The conversation can swerve all over the place, like a new rider learning how to look behind them. A key step in the mediation process that helps people stay on track is to work out what the key topics for the conversation need to be, together, before getting bogged down in the details. Whether you have a mediator or not, find a pen and paper, and together build a list of the different talking topics you need to cover to get things sorted. If you veer off course, the agenda will help pull you back to where you want to be.
Shut up and listen
Most people hope that mediation will help the other party understand where we’re coming from. But give and take is a cornerstone of a successful mediation. So when the other party talks, listen. When you want to interrupt, hold your tongue. A key cause of conflict is when people don’t feel heard or understood. Actively listening doesn’t mean you agree with what they are saying, but it can help you learn where they are coming from. You need to understand how each other are thinking and feeling before you can chart a path towards agreement.
Don’t commit to a solution too quickly
Potential solutions to the dispute may emerge throughout a mediation process. But beware! Focusing on one particular solution too soon can trap the mediation in a particular lane when you haven’t yet explored all the possible options. You don’t want to ride on a busy open highway with trucks without checking whether there’s a quieter country lane alternative. Jot down any solutions that come up throughout the conversation, but don’t commit to any one before you feel you’ve brainstormed all the possible solutions.
Launching Bike Auckland’s new mediation service
If these tips aren’t enough to get your dispute resolved, we might be able to help! Bike Auckland is launching a free mediation service for Bike Burbs, Bike Auckland volunteers, and other cycling advocates. Mediation could be the tool you need to patch up those inevitable punctures of dispute and keep the wheels turning towards a better city on bikes! If you think mediation could be right for you, contact Phoebe (phoebe@bikeauckland.org.nz)
A big thank you to the educators who delivered the training, particularly Nicola Hartfield, and a shout out to AMINZ for their generosity in supporting me to attend the AMINZ Mediation Skills Intensive training. If you don’t fit the criteria for the Bike Auckland mediation service, you can find other mediators through the AMINZ website.
