Lifeserving Communications draws mainly from the work of Marshall Rosenberg, PhD and Sandra Boston

Marshall Rosenberg was Founder and Director of Educational Services for the Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC). While growing up as a Jewish person in racially turbulent Detroit during and after World War II, he developed an interest in compassionate responses to tragic situations.

Pursuing this, he obtained a doctorate in clinical psychology from the Univ. of Wisconsin in 1961.  In the 1960’s, he first used his ideas in federally funded projects to teach mediation and communication skills during desegregation and civil rights efforts.

Dr. Rosenberg founded the Center for Nonviolent Communication in 1984. It is now an international nonprofit organization. More than 100 trainers teach NVC in 30 countries in North and South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. They offer workshops for educators, counselors, parents, health care providers, mediators, business managers, prison inmates and guards, police, military personnel, clergy, and government officials. Marshall conducted peace trainings in war torn areas throughout the globe.  He drew on these experiences when he taught NVC around the world.

(links to your favorite Marshall vids on Youtube)

About NVC

“Tragically, one of the rarest commodities in our culture is empathy. People are hungry for empathy. They don’t know how to ask for it… What I want in my life is compassion, a flow between myself and others based on a mutual giving from the heart.” – Marshall Rosenberg

“While helping us meet our needs without coercion, NVC also helps us resist giving in to our children’s every wish by teaching us to clearly express our feelings, needs, and requests and to expect our needs to be considered.” – Inbal Kashtan, “Mothering” Magazine, Jan/Feb 2002

“The single toughest, most dangerous opponent I’ve ever faced – the one who truly hurt me the most, causing me to spend 30 years of my life behind bars – was my own anger and fear. I write these words now, a gray-haired old man, hoping to God – before you suffer what I’ve suffered … you … (will) … listen and learn NVC.  NVC will teach you how to recognize anger before it becomes violence, and how to understand, deal with, and take control of the rage you may feel” ~ A prisoner writing to fellow inmates

“As a K-12 teacher, the process of Nonviolent Communication enables me to connect more deeply.  Children love and respond to deep recognition. Parents remark how they feel heard. Solutions come more easily and naturally. Conflicts and misunderstandings with colleagues can become opportunities to create deeper connections. Anger, depression, shame and guilt become friends helping me wake to some vital need not yet being met” ~ A teacher in Oregon

About Nonviolent CommunicationHow Does NVC WorkKey Differentials • Feelings ListNeeds List