Brendan McAllister Death, Obituary – We regret to inform you that the founding Director of Mediation Northern Ireland has passed away; it is with great sadness that we share this news with you. After a brief struggle with illness, Brendan McAllister, who was 66 years old, passed away on Tuesday morning (the 13th of December 2022). During his time at mediatEU, Brendan McAllister served in the role of Senior Associate and contributed to a wide variety of collaborative projects. The implementation of transitional justice through mediation was one of these efforts, along with coaching and training.
Brendan’s dedication to the cause of establishing peace in Northern Ireland dated back to 1974, when he first became active in the effort.
In 1992, after having been actively involved in peace activism for a number of years, he quit his job as a social worker in order to focus all of his energy on the study and improvement of mediation as a strategy for establishing peace. He was in charge of providing leadership for the expansion and development of an indigenous mediation field, which required the use of methodology that was sensitive to cultural norms and contextual nuances. In addition, he was responsible for the expansion and development of an indigenous mediation field. As a mediator, he worked primarily through the development of local practice: on the street level; across peace lines in Northern Ireland; within circles of civic leadership; among political leaders; with members of paramilitary groups, both inside and outside of prisons; with institutions of the state; with the government; and, at times, in partnership with third parties from the international community.
He worked on the development of local practice in the following locations: on the street level; across peace lines in Northern Ireland; within circles of civic leadership; among Between the years 1992 and 2008, Brendan served as the Director of Mediation Northern Ireland, which was at the time one of the most important national mediation groups operating in the midst of the troubles. During this time frame, Brendan was a pivotal role in the process of reorganizing the police department in terms of organizational culture, change management, and community policing.
He worked with the Parades Commission in Northern Ireland as the Mediation Advisor for the organization.
In this position, he was accountable for providing advice to Commissioners regarding the administration and resolution of disputes over parades throughout Northern Ireland; training and directing a staff of mediators; and mediating in a range of cases involving parades that were in dispute.