CIDR Posts Agenda for 2026 Symposium at Saint Paul University

The Centre for Informal Dispute Resolution at Saint Paul University in Ottawa has announced the agenda for its 2026 annual symposium. The hybrid virtual and in-person event, "Navigating Crises: The Evolving Role of ADR Practitioners and Ombuds in Turbulent Times," is set for May 11-12, a beautiful time of year in Ottawa. 

Here is the agenda:

11 May 2026

Welcome, Patrick Leroux, Rector, Saint Paul University

Opening Remarks, Jean-François Rioux and Brent Epperson, Professors, Saint Paul University

Keynote

• Bernard Mayer: “The Neutrality Delusion — Intervening in Conflict During Perilous Times”

Concurrent Sessions

• PANEL 1 – RETHINKING NEUTRALITY AND OMBUDS ETHICS: Shirley Nakata, Ombudsperson for Students, University of British Columbia: Let’s stop saying we’re “neutral”; Markus Seethaler, Austrian Student Ombuds Office: Should Ombuds Take a Stance? Impartiality in David and Goliath Conflicts; Chair: Heather McGhee-Peggs, Director, JustEquitable

• PANEL 2 – INCLUSION AND EQUITY IN MEDIATION / INCLUSION ET ÉQUITÉ EN MÉDIATION: Valérie-Clara Roswell, Praticienne en résolution de conflits: Accompagner les clients confrontés à la discrimination: l’importance du rôle du praticien en gestion de conflits et de l’ombudsman dans ces situations; Solange Nankam, Gouvernement du Canada: L’approche inclusive des médiateurs accrédités en matière de diversité, d’équité, d’inclusion et d’appartenance (DEIA); Chair: Jean-François Rioux, Professor, Saint Paul University

Lunch

Concurent Sessions

• PANEL 3 – TECHNOLOGY, AI, AND THE FUTURE OF ADR: Whitney Barrett, Ombudsperson, University of Waterloo: GenAI and Higher Education: Stories from a University Ombudsperson; Shawn Quinn, IT Specialist and student in Conflict Studies, Saint Paul University: Integrating Private Ethical AI into ADR Practice; Évelyne Poisson, Gestionnaire, enquêtes, Investigations Bureau de l’ombudsman à Postes Canada: Les outils d'IA en gestion de conflits; Chair: Julie Boncompain, Director, Just Equitable

• PANEL 4 – RESILIENCE AND HUMANCENTERED OMBUDS PRACTICE: Nadia Ferrara, Ombuds Office, Indigenous Services Canada: Cultivating Resilience In The Face Of Systemic Conflict; Doretta Charles, ICR Practitioner: Moving towards Transformative Change-ICR and Anti-Black Racism Strategies; Chair: Carolina Garcia, Professor, Saint Paul University

Plenary Session

• PANEL 5 – FROM PRACTICE TO THEORY TO A MORE ROBUST PRACTICE: THE VALUE OF INSIGHT MEDIATION IN TURBULENT TIMES: Dr. Cheryl Picard, Professor Emeritus, Carleton University; Dr. Kenneth Melchin, Professor Emeritus, Saint Paul University; Elizabeth Sterritt, Accredited Family and Intergenerational Mediator (OAFM) 3; Robyn Holland-Ayoub, Director, Office of Conflict Resolution and Employee Support Office, at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC); Chair: Natalie Dupuis, Professor, Saint Paul University

12 May 2026

Concurrent Sessions

• PANEL 6 – ETHICS, CARE, AND REFLECTIVE PRACTICE IN ACTION: Jan Galkowski, Professor, University of Rzeszow, Poland; Guest researcher, Saint Paul University: Reframing Ombuds Ethics Through the Lens of Care Ethics; Ian Renaud, Trainer and consultant: Leading from Within: How Practitioners' Internal Work Transforms Conflict Resolution; Brenda Waugh, Esq., Waugh Law & Mediation, Virginia: Becoming a Restorative Lawyer; Chair: Laura Armstrong, Professor, Saint Paul University

• PANEL 7 – STUDENT PANEL: EMERGING VOICES IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION: Shannon Gallagher, Doctoral Candidate, Saint Paul University; Alice Tracey, MA Candidate, Saint Paul University, Experience for Students in Ombuds and Mediation Field; Chair: TBA

Concurrent Sessions

• PANEL 8 – OMBUDS PRACTICE IN ACADEMIA: Wayne Marriott, Organisational Ombuds (Certified), Director IOA: If you are not at the table, you are probably on the menu – Ombuds programmes assisting academia to manage psychosocial risk through raising conflict competence; Jorge A. Ribeiro-Pereira, PhD Candidate in Public Policy and Political Science, University of Aveiro, Portugal; Guest Researcher, Saint Paul University: Ombudsman Institutions Models in the European Higher Education Area; Chair: Jean-François Rioux, Professor, Saint Paul University

• PANEL 9 – TRANSFORMATIONS IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION: Laura Armstrong, Ph.D., C.Psych, Professor, Clinical Psychologist, Saint Paul University, and Brent Epperson, Professor, Conflict Studies, Saint Paul University: University Wellbeing: Mental Health Promotion and Conflict Management in Ombuds Practice; Natalie Dupuis, Professor, Conflict Studies, Saint Paul University, ADR Pracademics: the nexus of research, practice, and forming the next generation of practitioners; Chair: Emilia Pech, Department of Justice, Ottawa

Lunch

Concurrent Sessions

• PANEL 10 – Conflict Systems, Governance, and Large-Scale Intervention: Richard Moore, MDR Associates Conflict Resolution Inc, Ottawa: Large Group Conflict Transformation in Today’s Organizational Environments: A Practitioner’s Bird’s Eye View; Frank White, Ph.D. Student, Conflict Analysis & Resolution, HCAS SGA: Layered Conflict Governance: A Systems Framework for Understanding the Strategic Role of Organizational Ombuds in Institutional Crisis; Chair: TBA

• PANEL 11 – Ombuds Work Evolving: Heather McGhee Peggs, Director, JustEquitable, and Ellen Miller, Executive Director IOA: Investigating Fairness: A discussion about informality & Ombuds inquiries; Tristan Benson and Rachelle Kouassi, Systemic Examination Officers, Office of the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson (Government of Canada): Proactivity and Systemic Examinations; Chair: Brent Epperson, Professor, Saint Paul University 

Concurrent Session

• Coffee with Bernie: Informal Roundtable with Dr. Bernard Mayer; Chair: Amanda Dean, Ombuds for Faculty and Staff at Austin Community College

(CIDR 2026 Info.)

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