ABOUT THE AUTHORS

If people come together, they can even mend a crack in the sky.

— SOMALI PROVERB

Marie Abijuru is a U.S. citizen from Rwanda. She is currently working at the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO), and she volunteers with Resolutions Northwest, a unique organization providing a wide range of mediation and facilitation services to help Portland area community members find solutions to conflict. She was one of the first participants when the African Diaspora Dialogue Project was launched, and served as a facilitator for the second group from the Great Lakes. Marie’s dream is to speak out for peace and justice, and to help refugees and immigrants to feel at home and work together for their success. Marie was named Person of the Year in 2009 by the Rwandan community.

Daniel Amine is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He did both undergraduate and graduate studies, in business administration and conflict resolution respectively, at Portland State University. He dedicates his time and energy to bridging gaps between cultures and building relationships among different immigrant groups struggling for justice and equality. He formerly worked at IRCO/Africa House and was a member of the State of Oregon refugee advisory council.

Diana Bianco has almost 20 years of experience in policy development, management, advocacy, community relations, and communications. She has practiced law, directed issue campaigns, and provided guidance and strategic direction to nonprofits and government agencies. Through Artemis Consulting, Diana helps clients analyze and manage policy and program direction, improve communication and collaboration through conflict resolution and facilitation of meetings, and devise advocacy strategies. Diana is a certified Transitions Coach and, working with the Andrus Family Fund, helps organizations apply the William Bridges’ Transition Framework to community reconciliation efforts and foster care programs.

Vincent Chirimwami is a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He arrived in the United States in 2004 and lives in Beaverton, Oregon. Vincent is a licensed special education teacher and community dialogue facilitator. He holds two master’s degrees in education and conflict resolution from Portland State University. His education hasn’t stopped there, as he continues to work on his doctorate (PhD) degree in public policy and administration with a focus on public management and leadership at Walden University, Minneapolis. Vincent was a participant in the first round of ADDP dialogues, and went on to become a facilitator in the second round.

Roland Clarke is a native of Liberia, West Africa. He is currently conducting his PhD dissertation study on citizen participation and decentralization policy of Liberia and expects to graduate in 2017 from Walden University, Minneapolis, majoring in public policy and administration. In 2010, Roland earned an MA in conflict resolution from Portland State University, and in 1998, an MS degree in counseling and clinical education from Christian Theological Seminary, Indiana. Furthermore, in 1994, he earned a BSc in counseling from the United Methodist University in Liberia. Professionally, he is working and has worked as a consultant for many organizations as follows: Associates for Peace and Development, African Diaspora Dialogue Project, USA, Program Learning Group/ChildFund, Liberia, Plan International, Liberia, Peacebuilding Office/UNDP, and Ministry of Health, Liberia. He also served as Dean of Student Affairs at the United Methodist University in Liberia for three years. His expertise and skills include dialogue, community reconciliation and transitions facilitation, program management, advocacy, policy formulation, and academic research. His passion is in research and building capacity.

Djimet Dogo is currently the Manager of IRCO/Africa House, a one‐stop service center that provides an array of services for African immigrants and refugees in Portland, Oregon. Prior to coming to the United States, Djimet ran Chad‐Nonviolence, a human rights organization in Chad focused on bringing warring groups together. In Portland, Djimet draws upon his experience as a human rights activist in Africa to seek assistance for Portland’s growing African refugee population. Djimet holds a master’s degree in public administration, a BA in communication, and a BA in liberal arts from Portland State University; a BA in English from the University of Chad; and degrees in peace, human rights, and conflict resolution from Austria and France.

Mindy Johnston has an MS in conflict resolution from Portland State University where she became very involved in restorative justice work with incarcerated men. Mindy currently supervises the Crime Victim Advocacy Program at Lutheran Community Services Northwest, a program she developed in both Vancouver, Washington and Portland, Oregon. She also manages the Reception and Placement Program, which resettles refugees in Clark County, Washington. Mindy lived in Java, Indonesia for four years, studying traditional music and language, followed by further language study at the University of Wisconsin’s Southeast Asian Studies Summer Institute. Mindy directs Portland’s only Javanese gamelan ensemble and has started a nonprofit organization called Gamelan Rakyat (meaning Gamelan for the People), with the hopes of taking gamelan into prisons and other disadvantaged communities.

Julie Koehler works at Mercy Corps on curriculum development, training, facilitation, and youth development. She has been a member of the Mercy Corps Gender Working Group for over three years. While at Mercy Corps she has delivered workshops on humanitarian negotiation in Afghanistan and Guatemala, advocacy and good governance in Mongolia, and do no harm. She has also participated in evaluations of programming in China, proposal review across Mercy Corps countries, and internal gender resource development. Julie teaches a course on gender and international development through the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program at Portland State University. She also serves as league mediator for the local women’s roller derby league, the Rose City Rollers. She is completing her master’s degree in conflict resolution at Portland State University with a focus on gender, cross‐cultural communication, and peace education.

Mary Lind currently serves Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) employees as Conflict Management Specialist/Senior Trainer. She offers classes, coaching, and custom interventions for groups, teams, and individuals focused on effective approaches to workplace conflict. Since 2002, Mary has served as mediator, facilitator, instructor, and coach in a variety of community, workplace, and international settings. Mary earned an MA in peace education from UPEACE and an MS in adult education/conflict resolution from Portland State University (PSU). She taught graduate and undergraduate students at PSU for eight years, and taught faculty and students at PSU, UPEACE, and the Indianapolis Peace Institute. Her background in international education and interethnic dialogue facilitation shaped her conflict resolution practice and teaching, believing every conflict is an intercultural conflict, and every person is best qualified to address their conflict with others.

Sa’eed Mohamed Haji is a native of Somalia. He lived in Kenya from 1996–1998 as a refugee immigrant. He came to the United States in February 1998, with no knowledge of English, and Portland Community College in Oregon was the first formal school he had ever enrolled in. In 2004, six years after his arrival in the United States, Sa’eed earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Portland State University (PSU). In June 2010 he completed a graduate degree in conflict resolution at PSU.

Rukia Mohammed was born in Somalia and raised in Kenya. She is an active member of the Somali Bantu community and served as a secretary of the Portland Somali Bantu community organization. She was a participant in the first ADDP dialogue process in the Somali group, and served as a facilitator in the second dialogue process. She earned an associate’s degree in social science from Portland Community College, and she is currently working toward a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education at Portland State University.

Gloria Ngezaho, husband, father, published author, community organizer, and Oregon congressional candidate, is originally from Burundi, central Africa. He holds a certificate in interfaith conflict resolution from the United States Institute of Peace, and earned both a BA in international studies and an MA in conflict resolution from Portland State University. He is expected to complete his doctoral studies at Concordia University‐Portland by the end of 2016.

Carmina Rinker Lass holds an MA in conflict resolution from Portland State University. During her graduate studies, she worked with ADDP as a needs assessment coordinator. Prior to and following her graduate work, Carmina studied intercultural conflict resolution, dialogue and reconciliation among divided communities, French, and microfinance strategies for poverty alleviation. Her studies took her across Europe and to India. Most recently, Carmina’s work has focused on economic empowerment, financial capability, and lending among low‐income and underserved communities in the United States. Currently, Carmina is the Director of Training and...