Trainings and Learning Opportunities

The Maine Agricultural Mediation Program (MAMP) offer trainings and learning programs throughout the year. MAMP’s 16-hour Agricultural Mediation Resources training is typically held each spring, and our 40-hour Basic Mediation Training Certificate is offered annually.

Both trainings (or an equivalent Basic Mediation training) are required to become part of the MAMP Co-Mediator/ Faciliator roster, which helps USDA producers with difficult conversations, are held regularly. Those interested in attending our regular trainings can sign up on our waitlist and will be notified of upcoming offerings.

2026 MAMP Winter and Spring Book Clubs:

Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most

No-cost | 6-week virtual series

Difficult Conversations book cover. Turn avoidance and discomfort into productive conversations at home and at work. You’re invited to join our book club focused on Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most (3rd Edition), based on research from the Harvard Negotiation Project.

Winter Book Club

January–February 2026 Session
Wednesdays, noon–1:00 p.m. via Zoom
January 21, 28; February 4, 11, 18, 25

Spring Book Club

March–April 2026 Session
Tuesdays, 7:00–8:00 p.m. via Zoom
March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31; April 7

Who Can Attend

Our book club is tailored to the unique challenges faced by the following communities:

Land and sea industry workers, including farmers, fishermen, processors
Service providers supporting Maine’s food harvesters and producers
Conflict professionals, mediators, facilitators, and students

What You Will Learn

How to shift from blame to curiosity in difficult conversations
Tools to manage emotions and identity-based conflict
Strategies to open conversations constructively
Ways to strengthen personal and working relationships

Format and Time Commitment

Weekly Brightspace discussion boards at your own pace
Weekly 60-minute live Zoom sessions
Reading/Listening: Two chapters per week (approximately 60-80 pages)
Discussion posts: 15–30 minutes per week
Participants are encouraged to commit to the full 6 weeks.

Book Access

Participants are responsible for acquiring their own copy of Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most (3rd Edition) by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen.

Hard Copy: Love your wallet and the planet, consider buying a used/previously loved 3rd edition
Audiobook: widely available across listening platforms
If you need financial support to access our book club text (in either format), please see the “Accommodations” section below for details.

Co-Facilitators

Lucy Wess, Maine Agricultural Mediation Program Director

Nancy Elizabeth Neal, MAMP Super Intern and dairy farmer, Honey Brook Farm, Garland, Maine

Important Details

Confidentiality: Participants agree to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of any sensitive personal or business examples shared by other members during discussions and Zoom meetings.
Tech Needs: You will need reliable internet connections, a computer/tablet to access the BrightSpace platform, and a microphone/webcam for the weekly Zoom meet-ups.
Assistance Accessing this Discover Course: Our Visual Course Login Guide (PDF) walks you through the process!

Accommodations: If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this course, including financial support to access our book club text (in multiple formats), please contact Lucy Wess at lucille.wess@maine.edu.

2026 40-Hour Basic Mediation Training

MAMP invites land and sea farms, agricultural workers, agricultural service providers, and members of the general public interested in becoming mediators, looking to enhance conflict resolution/management skills or learn how to assist others in resolving their conflict-related issues, to apply for our upcoming training. We’re offering a 5-day hands-on, highly interactive practical training in Bangor, Maine (see below for details). This training is designed as a “low barrier” offering with a focus on welcoming a diverse class of trainees, including but not limited to those in traditionally underserved communities such as BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, refugee/ asylum seekers, as well as bilingual language speakers.

This comprehensive training will include: demonstrations, discussions, exercises, videos, and role-play practice with mediation scenarios, in addition to mini-lectures. The sessions will focus on both the facilitative and transformative orientation models. Co-Instructors, Karen Groat and Leah Boyd (see bios below), will lead the training sessions and guest mediator coaches will provide additional support, guidance, and experience to participants.

Trainees will learn:

Conflict theory and stress response
Theories and practice of mediation – both facilitative and transformative models
Screening for mediation appropriateness
Ways to build and enhance participant rapport
Effective interventions and practice
The impact of mediator influence and bias
Standards of mediator practice and ethics
The professional limitations of mediation practice

Learn new skills, understand how to apply them to your life and to a mediation practice by taking this training. Past participants report an amazing shift in the way they talk, listen, and problem solve — at work and in their family life. After the training, participants will receive a Certificate of Completion, a commonly accepted state and national standard. Participants are expected to attend and actively engage in all training sessions to receive the certificate of completion.

“I loved this training! It has been a highlight of the winter. It was all so though provoking to reflect on communication, bias and listening skills… I like to think of mediation as a new skill that needs to be developed.”

– 2024 40-Hour Basic Mediation Participant

Who: Land and Sea Farmers, Fishermen, and Industry Workers, agricultural service providers, and members of the general public

What: MAMP 40-hour Basic Mediation Training, Fall ’26

When: October 2026

Session Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (one hour for lunch)

Session #1: Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026
Session #2: Thursday, October 22, 2026
Session #3: Friday, Oct. 23, 2026
Session #4 Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026
Session #5 Friday, Oct. 30, 2026

Where: UMaine Extension Penobscot County Office, 307 Maine Avenue, Bangor, Maine

Cost:

Land and Sea Farmers, Fishermen, and Industry Workers: Training cost is $0; MAMP will cover the cost of training + housing for those located 40 miles outside of Bangor. Land and Sea Farmers and Agricultural Workers are responsible for their meals and transportation.

Agricultural Service Providers: Training cost is $600 per trainee* Ag Service Providers are responsible for their housing, meals, and transportation; MAMP will provide trainees with housing information i.e., room blocks at local hotels as available.

*Understanding that professional development/education funds may vary from organization to organization, we have available some partial training scholarships and/or housing subsidies for providers who are located 40 miles outside of Bangor. Scholarships/ subsidies will be considered upon request on a case-by-case basis.

Members of the General Public: Training cost is $1,250 per trainee. General public trainees are responsible for their housing, meals, and transportation; MAMP will provide trainees with housing information i.e., room blocks at local hotels as available.

This training is financially supported by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Maine Agricultural Mediation Program.

Additional Info:

Pre-work and between-session assignments, readings, and/or video resources will be shared with trainees via e-mail.
In the event of inclement weather, MAMP will notify trainees via e-mail and provide Zoom information for training sessions that will be conducted online.
The training location has a full kitchen with a refrigerator, freezer, microwave, coffee maker, etc. Trainees are encouraged to bring their lunch, drinks, etc. MAMP will provide snacks, coffee, and tea throughout the training.
Participants are expected to attend and actively engage in all training sessions to receive a 40-hour basic meditation training certificate.

Registration:

Registration Deadline:
October 1, 2026 (Minimum of 8 participants is needed for this training to take place)

Questions: For more information, contact us at maineagmediation@maine.edu or click here (Google Form) to get on the waitlist for the next MAMP training (TBD).

Additional Info:

The training location has a full kitchen with a refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, etc. for those who would like to bring their lunch, drinks, etc. MAMP will provide snacks and water throughout the training. Participants are expected to attend all training sessions to receive a certificate. In the event of inclement weather, MAMP will notify participants via e-mail, provide Zoom information, and training sessions will be conducted online.

Questions:

Please e-mail Shiela Leonard at maineagmediation@maine.edu or call Lucy Wess at 207.974.9637 for more information.

Meet Our Co-Instructors

Karen Groat is a Libra Professor of Mediation at the University of Maine Augusta Justice Studies and has over 20 years of mediation, consulting, and teaching experience in Maine. As former director of the Opportunity Alliance Family Mediation program and co-founder of the Family and Community Mediation (FCM), she has worked extensively with mediators, adults, and youth, communities, and organizations specializing in complex family matters, multi-party disputes, and workplace conflict in more than 3800 mediations. An experienced Transformative Mediation trainer and communication coach, Karen combines research from neuroscience and trauma-informed care in her relational practice. In 2018, she expanded her work in collaboration with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension for farmer and farm worker well-being. This work includes Farm Coaching (receiving the 2021 ERME Outstanding Project Award), agricultural mediation (MAMP), and offering peer support and training to service providers in Northeast ag and rural communities.

Leah Boyd is a mediator, facilitator, and certified trainer with the Center for Nonviolent Communication. She is co-owner of Clarity Services, LLC, offering communication-related services to a variety of organizations, families, communities, and individuals. Leah began mediating in 2010 and has served on numerous rosters, including the Maine District Court and the Department of Education.

Karen and Leah will be joined by other professionals in the mediation field with experience in a variety of Alternative Dispute Resolution and Restorative Practices.

This training is hosted by the Maine Agricultural Mediation Program (MAMP) a University of Maine Cooperative Extension program which is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). MAMP is a proud member of the Maine Farmer Resource Network (MFRN) and the Coalition of Agricultural Mediation Programs (CAMP).

If you are a person with a disability and need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this program, please contact Shiela Leonard at maineagmediation@maine.edu, to discuss your needs. Receiving requests for accommodations at least 7 days before the program provides a reasonable amount of time to meet the request, however, all requests will be considered.

2027 16-Hour Agricultural Mediation Resources Training

This 16-hour mediation resources training will introduce participants to the Maine Agricultural Mediation Program’s staff, services and structure. Participants also will have opportunities to network with and learn firsthand from University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Maine Farmer Resource Network colleagues who work directly with Maine producers and harvesters.

Guest speakers will explain how they support producers and harvesters and make referrals to MAMP. MAMP staff and training speakers also will familiarize participants with the informational and technical resources that MAMP co-mediators share with program participants.

Who

Anyone interested in learning more about conflict resolution and agricultural resources or becoming a Maine Agricultural Mediation Program co-mediator.* Participants may include new and experienced mediators, land- and sea-based farmers, agricultural service providers and members of the general public.

When

March 2027

Format

The hybrid training includes eight hours of independent learning modules and eight hours of live online sessions via Zoom.

Independent learning modules

The modules will be sent after registration is confirmed. Participants must complete and submit all modules at their own pace before the live training sessions.

Live online sessions

Session 1: Tuesday, March 2, 2027, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Eastern time
Session 2: Thursday, March 4, 2027, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Eastern time

Main training topics

MAMP’s free and confidential services, with a special focus on its agricultural mediation and conflict management program.
Presentations from guest speakers representing agricultural service providers and federal, regional and state organizations, offered live and by video.
Review and discussion of case studies involving conflicts and issues that commonly arise in Maine’s agricultural and aquacultural communities.

Cost

There is no cost to attend.

This training is generously funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture through the Maine Agricultural Mediation Program.

Waitlist

Join our waitlist for the next MAMP training. Please reach out to Nora Saks at mamptrainings@maine.edu or 207-881-1553 with any questions.

Please note

This is a mediation resources training. Those seeking instruction and role-play practice in mediation and conflict management should consider MAMP’s annual 40-Hour Basic Mediation Training and Certificate Program or other MAMP learning opportunities.