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Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution

Consensus Project

The Consensus Project consults with state and local governments, faith-based and civic organizations, and civil rights and grassroots groups throughout the United States to develop and implement transformative solutions to conflicts arising out of the design and management of public policy formation and implementation processes.

We believe that the best way to achieve an equitable and sustainable society is to promote dialogue, mediation, and collaboration as community engagement processes that further the goals of inclusive democracy and consensus building in the formation and implementation of public policies. The Consensus Project works at the national, regional, and local levels, establishing forums and networking with public policymakers, civil rights advocacy groups, and civic, faith-based, and business leaders to design community engagement solutions that acknowledge the complex interdependence within our society.

Examples of conferences coming out of the consensus project include

  • Health Care Solutions for Non-Documented Immigrants With End Stage Renal Disease, September 2010
  • USAID Conference on Rule of Law and the Mexican Drug War, September 2010
  • The Death Penalty and Race in Georgia panel discussion, February 2012
  • ACS Cosponsored Programs:
    • Civil Rights and the Access to Courts: Looking Back and Looking Forward, November 2010
    • Iqbal and Twombly and Access to Courts panel discussion, Fall 2011
  • “Hot Coffee” panel discussion, Fall 2011
  • In Defense of Women—Judge Nancy Gertner, Spring 2012

Conference and Forum Video Archive

Access to Justice Forum (September 29–October 1, 2010): Rule of Law Reform and Drug Trade: Challenges and Implications in Mexico and the United States

Access to Justice Forum (November 11–12, 2010): National Civil Rights Conference

Access to Justice Forum (September 21–22, 2011): Tort Reform and Access to the Courts

Access to Justice Forum (February 21, 2012)

Access to Justice Forum (February 24, 2012)

Access to Justice Forum: Combating Elder Abuse (October 11–12, 2012)