The Rob Williams Award for Emerging Environment and Public Policy Leaders

Rob Williams emerged as a leader in the field of environmental conflict resolution even as he continued to grow as a practitioner. He was an active member of the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR) Environment and Public Policy Section (EPP), serving on the EPP Leadership Council. In particular, Rob is remembered for his role in helping develop a community of practice for mid-level mediators across the field. He worked with others to organize the first EPP-wide mid-level training opportunity at the 2006 EPP Section Conference, as well as the Mentoring Workshop and mid-level session at the 2009 conference. These events have also led to other opportunities for mid-level practitioners to collaborate, learn, and build relationships.

Award Purpose: To provide a developing practitioner with a platform to build relationships with peers in the field and become involved with EPP, with the goal of creating a future leader in the Section and Association. It is an explicit assumption in giving the award that recipients will utilize the platform to make long-lasting contributions to EPP and its members.

Who Should Apply: Environmental and public policy practitioners with 3-8 years of experience in the field and an interest in future involvement in EPP are encouraged to apply. The chosen applicant must demonstrate leadership potential and interest in contributing to future ACR and EPP activities such as conference planning, the Leadership Council, or other Section and Association activities. Preference will be given to applicants who would be first-time ACR and EPP members. Applicants will be asked to submit a short statement, résumé, and two professional references. Applicants must be available and committed to attend and participate actively in the EPP Section Conference and United States Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (USIECR) Conference, May 21-24, 2012 in Tucson, AZ. The complete application is available here.

Award: The 2012 award recipient will receive the following:

1. One-year membership in ACR and EPP
2. Scholarship (waived conference registration) for the annual EPP and USIECR conferences, taking place this year on May 21-24 in Tucson, AZ.
3. Stipend to offset partial cost of traveling to the annual conference (up to $500)

Selection Process: Applicants should fill out the application form, including two professional references. Applicants are also asked to attach a current résumé, an interest statement about ACR and EPP leadership and a 500-word (maximum) statement sharing your ideas on one or more of the following topics:

• An emerging challenge facing the profession, how it impacts entry- and mid-level practitioners, and approaches for addressing that challenge over the next five years
• Partnering and alliance building efforts that can benefit the profession in general and mid-level professionals specifically
• Opportunities for increasing the diversity of practitioners in environmental and public policy dispute resolution
• A conference training, workshop, or panel discussion to engage leaders from diverse backgrounds and share lessons that dovetail with the core values of the EPP Section and its members
• Web-based tools and techniques that can be developed or adapted for and utilized by mid-level and other EPP professionals to support consensus building efforts
• An initiative that benefits entry-level and mid-career professionals engaged in environmental and public policy dispute resolution
• Roles that individual firms/organizations and the EPP Section can provide to advance the development of new and mid-level practitioners

Please submit completed application form, résumé, and essay to Joan Sabott and Nancy Sharpless (jsabott@mediate.org; nancy.b.sharpless@gmail.com)by 5 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, March 13. Any questions regarding the application should also be directed to both Joan and Nancy. Applicants will be notified of award selection by Monday, April 2.

Additional Selection Considerations

Please note that while proposals that meet more than one criterion are desired, proposals that are exceptionally strong in just one area will also be seriously considered. We seek proposals that provide practical and usable information/guidance/lessons for the Section in general and mid-level professionals in particular.

Further, we seek candidates that demonstrate the following:

• A commitment to working long-term in the field of environmental conflict resolution and building networks across organizations in the field;
• Overall leadership ability, with specific interest in taking on leadership roles in ACR EPP section; and
• “The Rob Factor” – a mid-level who is dynamic, service-oriented, bridge building, committed, with positive energy.

Award Sponsorship

The EPP Leadership Council thanks the following organizations for sponsoring this award:

Association for Conflict Resolution (www.acrnet.org)
Environmental Public Policy Section (www.acrepp.org)
United States Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (www.ecr.gov)
CDR Associates (www.mediate.org)