[article extract] Mediation is a growing area of practice for a large range of professionals and is one of a number of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) options. Mediation is practiced in a variety of contexts including community, workplace, family, parent/adolescent, criminal justice, environmental, Native Title, commercial and construction. The backgrounds of those who work in mediation range from social work and psychology to the legal profession. There are large numbers of short courses available to train mediators and there are academic subjects/programs in which the area of mediation is studied.
