Understand a conflict
Separate what happened from what you are assuming, then look at what else shapes the situation.
Begin a guided reflection →Take the Conflict Matters Assessment →CONFLICT MATTERS
Find a thoughtful next step
in a difficult situation.
Understand what is happening, prepare for a conversation, or plan a group process. Start where you are.
A developing set of tools and field guides from Emergent Matters
START HERE
Choose one path. You can change course at any point.
What would help right now?
Begin with the situation in front of you. Each path offers a way to reflect and a next step within your control.
Prepare for a conversation
Find an opening, a useful question, or a reason to pause before talking.
Find your next step →Rehearse with guided prompts →Plan a group process
Clarify who decides, what people can shape, and how to close the loop.
Plan with guided prompts →Open a process worksheet →Want a response to your own words? Talk with the AI practice coach → Messages you choose to send go to OpenAI.
THREE LENSES
See more of the situation.
What am I bringing?
What did I observe? What am I assuming? What matters to me, and what support or boundary do I need?
Start with your own perspective.
The Conflict Matters Assessment gives you a structured reflection on Self, Relationships, and Conditions in one situation. Return to it when your understanding changes.
Take the Conflict Matters Assessment →What needs understanding?
Whose account have I not heard? What impact, trust, request, or repair needs attention?
What shapes our choices?
How do roles, power, history, resources, access, and decision authority affect what is possible?
The lenses help you see; the six practices help you act. They are not three separate tracks. A useful next move may change when you look through another lens.
SIX PRACTICES
Turn understanding into action.
Each practice names a move you can try. Open one to see how Self, Relationships, and Conditions change the questions you ask, then choose a small action or a field guide.
WORKING WORKSHEETS
Draft privately · Copy or download to keep
Put a practice to work.
Choose a conflict map, process planner, or follow-through worksheet when you know what you want to put on paper. Your writing stays on this page until you leave or reload it.
These are preparation tools. They do not contact anyone or create an agreement on someone else’s behalf.
THE PRACTITIONER BEHIND THE WORK
Jack Becker
Mediator · Dialogue and deliberation practitioner
Founder, Emergent Matters
A conversation is part of a larger process.
Jack’s work connects mediation and conflict management with public-sector stakeholder engagement, collaborative decision-making, and inclusive process design.
Conflict Matters brings those experiences together: supporting people to speak and listen with care, helping groups work through differences, and designing participation that has a clear purpose and meaningful influence.
The aim is capacity that stays with people through deliberate practice, useful tools, and reflection on what happens next.
For coaching, facilitation, a workshop, or help designing a group process, contact Jack about your situation →
The work behind Conflict Matters.
My work in mediation, public dialogue, and community decision-making has taught me to pay attention to how people navigate differences and what helps them move forward together.
Dialogue and Deliberation
At Colorado State University’s Center for Public Deliberation, Jack researched public issues and facilitated forums designed to build understanding across different experiences. His work with the Kettering Foundation included civic-engagement research and training through its Centers for Public Life network. This lineage shapes the emphasis on careful listening, making differences visible, and helping groups deliberate without assuming consensus.
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Jack trained and practiced as a mediator with Jefferson County Mediation Services in Colorado and has also been affiliated with Los Angeles County Courts Mediation Services. He earned a graduate certificate in Alternative Dispute Resolution from USC Gould School of Law and has taught conflict-management skills to school leaders. His instructor work with The Conflict Center has also shaped the hands-on practice in these resources.
Professional Practice
Through Emergent Matters, the Civic Consulting Collaborative, and Denver Public Schools, Jack has designed and facilitated public-facing processes around difficult education, health, and community issues. That work includes contentious school-planning decisions, stakeholder engagement, and training leaders to navigate conflict. It grounds the attention here to authority, participation, decision-making, and follow-through.