I was born in Scotland, grew up in the United States, and have been living in the Netherlands since 1994. After my sons’ births I became a doula and breath worker, and as they grew older and started attending school, I noticed my discomfort with the educational system. In 2015, I co-founded the democratic primary and secondary school LIFE! (Learning In a Free Environment) now called Democratic School Amsterdam—a heart-based school. I use Nonviolent Communication with students and teachers for empathy and mediation. Using the No Fault Zone game© I have been supporting people to reconnect with themselves and each other since 2016, both within my own school environment and elsewhere.
I have been learning and practicing NVC since 2010. It is the most powerful tool I know for creating ease and harmony with those around me. It is also the most powerful tool I know for mediating conflicts and creating peace. It is a life-long project for me to continue to embody this language of the heart and to share it across business sectors, schools, and in families around the world.
“Communication is something we do all the time; it includes the way we listen to others and interpret what we hear; it’s also the inner dialogue we have throughout the day. Most of our communication is infused with judgments which prevent us from seeing the beauty in ourselves and others and instead lead to distance and pain. NVC offers life-changing insights into how we communicate and presents concrete ways to implement these insights into heartfelt communication that results in connection and understanding.”