The community mediator's role is to assist people to reinforce the humanity inherent in all relationships, strengthen the social fabric of our communities, and rebuild trust in each other. CRT is committed to social justice, social change, and developing a culture of non-violence through a transformative conflict resolution approach using interest-based mediation.
The Community Mediation Program receives many more applications than we can accommodate. While we are aware that there are not many opportunities to gain mediation experience in Toronto and we would like to provide opportunity to as many volunteers as possible, our first responsibility is to our clients. We select volunteer mediators based on the needs of the community. To serve Toronto's diverse population we require volunteers from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds, languages, ages, sexual orientations, classes and professional backgrounds.
When new volunteers are required, current applications are reviewed and one or two may be selected. Applicants are selected for interviews based on the needs of the Community Mediation service at that time and only those applicants scheduled for an interview will be contacted. Additions to the roster are at the sole discretion of the Community Mediation Program and will be based on our commitment to providing the best possible service to the public.
Successful applicants must have attended our three or five-day Interpersonal Mediation course that teaches the St. Stephen's model of mediation. If the cost is a barrier, please speak to our CRT staff. Once you have successfully completed your training, you may be invited to join the roster. If you accept, you must attend an orientation meeting. Upon completion of this you will be assigned cases to work on with an experienced mediator who will provide mentoring.
Following your first few cases, a feedback and evaluation meeting will be scheduled. If we are satisfied with your progress, you will be retained on our roster. The Community Mediation Program reserves the right to remove a mediator from the roster at any time based on the needs of our community.