International Education Month

Oct 23

Building Conflict-Resilient Academic Communities: Responses to October 7 in the University of Haifa Law School 5:00 p.m.

With introduction by Provost Chris Long In the aftermath of October 7, 2023, conversations in the University of Haifa Law School were difficult and tensions high. The law school...

Building Conflict-Resilient Academic Communities: Responses to October 7 in the University of Haifa Law School

October 23
5:00–6:30 p.m.

John E. Jaqua Academic Center for Student Athletes 101

https://international.uoregon.edu/building-conflict-resilient-law-schools-lessons-university-haifas-response-october-7th

With introduction by Provost Chris Long

In the aftermath of October 7, 2023, conversations in the University of Haifa Law School were difficult and tensions high. The law school and the university as a whole, with nearly half its students of Arab descent and a long history of inclusion, were looking for ways to maintain both safety and open dialogue during acute crisis. To promote respectful, civil dialogue, Dr. Faina Milman-Sivan (Associate Professor and then-Vice Dean for Teaching) and Dana Feinreich-Giloh (Clinical Director, Dispute Resolution Clinic) developed the "Shared Life Dialogic Framework” including collaboratively drafted Guidelines for Respectful Discourse.” Rather than imposing top-down rules or restricting speech, they facilitated a participatory, consensus-building process that created space for deeply-rooted positions, active listening, and respectful dialogue across profound divisions.

After presentations at Harvard, NYLS and University of Cincinnati earlier this month, Faina Milman-Sivan and Dana Feinreich-Giloh will visit UO to share their experiences developing, implementing, and adapting these framework and guidelines. They’ll reflect on how they have tried to balance a version of freedom of expression with inclusion and civility in a time of war. They’re now extending these guidelines into the space of expression on social media. They also have noted the similarity of their guidelines to UO’s Shared Principles for Educational Events on the Conflict in Israel-Palestine (which they consider unique in North America), and look forward to comparing our parallel experiences with ensuring civility, respect and inclusion.

Professor Faina Milman-Sivan is Associate Professor of Law at the University of Haifa Faculty of Law, where she previously served as Vice Dean for Teaching (2021-2024). She holds an LLM (summa cum laude) and JSD from Columbia Law School and clerked at the Israeli Supreme Court under former Chief Justice Dorit Beinisch. Her research spans international labor law, prison labor regulation, and workplace conflict resolution. She is co-editor of Global Justice and International Labor Law (Cambridge, 2016) and serves as chair of the Israeli Employment and Labor Law Scholars Forum. Her scholarship, supported by the Israeli Science Foundation and German-Israeli Foundation, has influenced judicial decisions, including landmark rulings on prisoner wages and freedom of association. Following the events of October 7, Professor Milman-Sivan, then serving as Vice Dean for Teaching, led the University of Haifa Law Faculty's response to campus polarization.

Dana Giloh is an attorney-at-law, certified mediator, and social worker (MSW, specialization in Couple and Family Therapy). She is the founder and head of the Mediation Legal Clinic at the University of Haifa Faculty of Law, where she teaches negotiation, mediation, and conflict resolution and supervises clinical and community-based initiatives. Giloh has over a decade of experience in teaching and practicing mediation across diverse contexts, including family conflicts, small claims courts, and cases involving individuals with mental health challenges. She has trained mediators in leading institutions such as the Israeli Bar Association and municipal mediation centers. Following the events of October 7, she led a consensus-building process at the Faculty of Law, fostering inclusive dialogue and institutional resilience.

Learn more about the event at: https://international.uoregon.edu/building-conflict-resilient-law-schools-lessons-university-haifas-response-october-7th

For questions, contact Elly Vandegrift at ellyvan@uoregon.edu.

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