All Things Conflict

About All Things Conflict

Who doesn't have conflict in their lives? Whether at work, at home or somewhere out in the world we are all affected by conflict even when it is indirect. The impact of poorly managed conflict can devastate lives. With 30 years’ experience mediating conflict and training peacemakers, Maria has held people’s hearts through everything from workplace hostility, board room battles, belligerent teenagers, separated parents at loggerheads to neighbours at war, street gang rivalries, threats to life and business deals gone wrong. In this podcast Maria lifts the lid on why we fight and how we can resolve conflict and design it out of our lives. Maria’s mission is to reduce unnecessary human suffering through conscious awareness, facilitated dialogue and trauma healing, using her communications tool, the Dialogue Road Map.

Publisher

Maria Arpa MBE

Category

business · kids & family · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

8 Apr 2025

Latest episode

6 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

85 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   6 Oct 2026

   What Does It Feel Like to Be Led by You? Unlocking the Dialogue Road Map with Maria Arpa MBE

   What do people say about your leadership when you are not in the room? In this reflective episode of All Things Conflict, host Maria Arpa explores the core question that sparked her 30-year career in communication and conflict resolution: What is it like to be led by you? Maria synthesizes three decades of frontline work across social housing, high-security prisons, troubled schools, and corporate environments. She explains how unaddressed tensions naturally turn into disputes when systems lose touch with empathy, compassion, and active listening. Highlighting real-world stories of former prisoners becoming master facilitators and former students becoming workplace mediators, Maria demonstrates the long-term impact of working from a paradigm of care and intimacy. She also invites listeners to register for her upcoming webinar and outlines how leaders, entrepreneurs, and changemakers can join the 2027 Dialogue Roadmap cohort to bring authentic, de-escalating communication skills into their organizations. Key Takeaways Self-Reflective Leadership: True leadership requires precision of language and deep awareness of how your words and instructions are received by others. The Escalation Spectrum: Small daily tensions naturally arise when people work together; when left unaddressed, they escalate into full-blown disputes. Trust & Attitude: People can instinctively read your underlying attitude toward them—trust, safety, and tone dictate whether a situation escalates or heals. Systemic Failure vs. Human Connection: Many societal and workplace disputes are caused by systems that have lost their capacity for empathy and active listening. Leading Out of the Shadow of Greed: High-performing businesses and leaders can drive profit and progress without exploiting people or causing harm. Register for the webinar here https://beacons.ai/mariaarpambe Timestamps 00:00 – Introduction 00:39 – Invitation to the Dialogue Roadmap Webinar 02:11 – Why Communication Is the Baseline of All Human Activity 03:51 – How Tensions Turn into Conflict (Workplaces, Prisons, & Housing) 04:45 – The Foundations of Healing: Trust, Safety, and Language 05:19 – Stories of Lasting Impact: Prisons, Schools, and Cafe Reunions 07:15 – 20 Years of the Center for Peaceful Solutions 08:03 – Inviting the 2027 Cohort: 20 Days of Intensive Training 10:12 – Conscious Business: Profit Without Misery or Exploitation 11:40 – How to Get in Touch with Maria & Speak with Alumni

2. 

   29 Sept 2026

   Justice Redesigned: What 49 Episodes Taught Us About Systemic Reform

   In this series finale of Justice Redesigned on All Things Conflict, host Maria Arpa looks back on an incredible journey spanning nearly 50 episodes dedicated to examining, questioning, and re-envisioning the modern justice system. What began as an open-ended exploration became an intimate masterclass featuring defense lawyers, former heads of the Crown Prosecution Service, third-sector leaders, child abuse survivors, and individuals with lived experience of incarceration. Maria synthesizes the overarching lessons from across the series. She tackles the crisis of legal aid, the tragic reality of wrongful convictions, the underfunded power of restorative justice, and the lifelong harm caused when society fails to listen to child victims of crime and exploitation. Ultimately, Maria highlights a vital truth: even the most enlightened, well-resourced government cannot fix a broken system alone—true healing and structural reform require grassroots community action, restorative practice, and authentic human dialogue. Key Takeaways The Scope of Systemic Failure: From legal aid struggles to wrongful convictions, systemic breakdowns affect every level of the criminal justice ecosystem. The Power of Restorative Practice: Restorative justice remains critically under-resourced despite its proven ability to facilitate deep healing and genuine resolution. The Price of Ignoring Children: Failing to listen to child victims of crime and sexual exploitation creates unhealed wounds that ripple across an entire lifetime. Transformative Lived Experience: Formerly incarcerated individuals who transition into community leaders offer some of the most powerful insights into fixing the penal system. Community Over Bureaucracy: Government policies alone cannot solve systemic trauma; real change depends on community initiatives, empathy, and raw, honest dialogue. Timestamps 0:00 – Introduction 01:21 – Reflecting on 50 Episodes of Justice Redesigned 02:15 – Legal Aid, Prosecution Struggles, and the Tragedy of Wrongful Convictions 02:51 – The Underutilized Power of Restorative Justice 03:22 – Giving Voice to Child Victims of Exploitation and Abuse 04:00 – Insights from Lived Experience: Transformation After Prison 04:35 – Grassroots Leaders: Third-Sector Contributions to Justice 05:00 – Why Government Alone Cannot Fix the Justice System 05:41 – Moving Forward: The Essential Need for Dialogue, Empathy, and Connection

3. 

   22 Sept 2026

   If you had the keys to the Ministry of Justice and you could make one change today, what change would you make? Part 2

   In this final, roundup episode of the Justice Redesigned series on All Things Conflict, host Maria Arpa poses a single, transformative question to a panel of expert podcast guests: "If you had the keys to the Ministry of Justice and could make one immediate change, what would it be?" The responses offer a multi-perspective blueprint for overhaul and reform across the legal and penal landscapes. Guests tackle critical issues including dedicated funding for legal defense and future judges, mandatory pre-court mediation to divert cases from overwhelmed courtrooms, and giving formerly incarcerated individuals a central role in justice policy consultation. The conversation spans systemic reforms—such as replacing punitive prisons with Nordic/Dutch dignity models, ending early-stage trauma in family court, introducing sentence reductions for positive mentorship, and cracking down on unproven expert witness testimony to prevent wrongful convictions. Key Takeaways Dedicated Legal Funding Streams: Safeguarding resources for criminal defense representation, court infrastructure, and judicial training ensures equal access to justice regardless of wealth. Mandatory Pre-Protocol Mediation: Requiring mediation before filing court claims reduces litigation friction and keeps avoidable disputes out of overloaded courtrooms. Policy Consultation with Lived Experience: Involving individuals who have navigated the penal system ensures justice policies reflect real-world conditions rather than bureaucratic theory. Dignity-Based Incarceration: Shifting to Dutch and Nordic prison models—which prioritize privacy, humanity, and normal living standards—directly lowers reoffending rates. Early Mediation in Family Disputes: Creating an in-between diversion stage for private children's cases prevents children from suffering multi-year court battles and social care friction. Reforming Expert Witness Standards: Tightening oversight on courtroom expert testimony is essential to eliminate pseudo-scientific claims and prevent wrongful convictions. Timestamops 00:00 – Introduction 02:22 –Dedicated Funding for Criminal Defence & Future Judges 03:29 – Mandating Pre-Protocol Mediation Before Court Claims 03:48 – Consulting People with Lived Experience in System Policy 04:14 – Setting Clear Boundaries & Open Dialogue Behind Bars 04:58 – Stripping Away Bureaucracy to Reconnect on a Human Level 06:14 – Proposal 6: Mandatory Empathy, Empire, & Structural Bias Education 07:08 – Transitioning to Nordic and Dutch Dignity-Based Prisons 08:14 – Creating Pre-Court Diversion Stages in Family Law Cases 09:38 – Sentence Reductions & Mentorship Incentives for Inmates 10:40 – System-Wide Restorative Justice & Post-Release Housing 12:12 – "Punishment Is Not a Resolution" 12:20 – Overhauling Expert Witness Verification in Criminal Courts 13:16 – Call to Action: Share Your Views & Join the Conversation

Who has been a guest on All Things Conflict

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• David Ellis
• Fiona Ruttle
• Penny Parker
• Hesham Puri
• Paul Baker

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

46,553

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

5 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

15 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 42 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

42

Social presence

0

YouTube

72

Engagement

32

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