• Internationalization

DRL intends to influence both the internationalization at home (IaH), promoting the internationalization of the teaching staff through the promotion of good practices, such as our permanent international seminar, and at the same time we intend to improve the internationalization of the curriculum (IoC) by offering a comparative and multidisciplinary view of the situation of mediation in Europe and the rest of the world. We consider it essential that courses in all countries establish mechanisms that allow the exchange of teachers and students, whether in English or other languages, but above all that allow an international vision of mediation and diverse professional experiences.

 

• Third mission (TMA)

Lab connects these objectives with the third mission (TMA) of higher education institutions to contribute to the social, economic and cultural development of the community from an international perspective by offering questions and answers to global challenges (Jones et al., 2021). These learning experiences develop students' interculturality (Robson et al., 2018), the comparison of national elements, the handling of the complexity of "plural cultures" and shapes, with DRL members in an international learning community.

 

• Transversality

Collaborative conflict management is not only a subject specific to a particular discipline (social work, law, or psychology, among others). Mediation implies the acquisition of a series of competencies in the analysis, management and resolution of conflicts that are understood by UCM and other higher education institutions as transversal to all its studies. This implies that these are competencies in which our students should be trained throughout their degrees, regardless of the branch they belong to. Among these transversal competences UCM includes "negotiation and conflict management techniques", "promotion of integration and management of diversity and disability" and "problem solving and creativity". DRL aims to improve the transversal competencies of our students by offering training that addresses all these issues from an international and collaborative perspective.

 

• Transdisciplinarity

The culture of peace and the promotion of alternative conflict resolution systems, essentially mediation, requires a transdisciplinary approach, since it takes concepts, models, and techniques from various disciplines. DRL wants to encourage the collaboration of faculty from various departments, such as law, social work, or psychology, but also faculty, experts and professionals from different countries and areas of intervention, whether family, criminal, community. Only in this way will a holistic response be possible that allows us to address the conflict efficiently and assess the various possible options.

 

• Transfer of Knowledge

Our students must be prepared for the labor market they will find at the end of their degrees. Training in mediation and collaborative conflict management is not only a transversal competence of our students, nor a way to manage conflicts, it is also a new profession that can be accessed from various branches of knowledge. It is essential for students to know the professional opportunities that are offered with specific training in this area, the complementary training that will be required depending on the chosen area of intervention, as well as the legal requirements to be able to practice as professionals in this sector. DRL aims to serve as a bridge between academia and professional practice, not only providing its experience in the field of intervention but also facilitating collaboration between the two, which may be transformed into future agreements or research projects.