For many years, I have had the privilege of serving as a judge in numerous international mediation, negotiation, and ADR competitions. Each has its own philosophy, educational objectives, and methodology, and each contributes something valuable to the development of future professionals. I sincerely respect every organisation that dedicates its time, expertise, and passion to this work, because I know how much commitment stands behind every successful international competition.

At the same time, after several years of designing, observing and judging the International Mediation Diplomacy Competition (IMDC), I found myself returning to one simple but important question: What are we really evaluating?

Most judges arrive with years of outstanding professional experience. Some are commercial mediators; others are arbitrators, diplomats, negotiators, judges, lawyers, psychologists, or academics. Naturally, each of us evaluates performance through the lens of our own professional background. That is neither a weakness nor a mistake—it is simply how expertise develops.

Yet this is precisely where IMDC begins to differ.

Commercial mediation follows one logic. Negotiation competitions follow another. Diplomatic negotiation competitions have their own well-established formats and assessment criteria. Each of these educational models has earned its place and has made an important contribution to our profession.

IMDC was never created to replace any of them, nor to compete with them.

It was created because I wanted to explore a different educational philosophy—one that reflects the complexity of real international decision-making.

In reality, diplomacy is never only about negotiation, just as mediation is never only about techniques. Every international crisis carries layers of history, politics, law, culture, psychology, humanitarian considerations, and strategic interests. Sometimes the most important message is not what is said across the table, but what remains unsaid. Sometimes success is not reaching an agreement but preventing relationships from collapsing. These realities cannot be fully understood through the framework of any single discipline.

Over the years I have watched excellent commercial mediators instinctively apply techniques that work perfectly in business disputes, only to discover that they are insufficient in a diplomatic context. I have seen talented negotiators approach international crises as though they were commercial transactions, and brilliant students realise halfway through a round that they were trying to solve the wrong problem. They were not wrong; they were simply working with a different framework.

Interestingly, none of this is actually new. The philosophy of IMDC has been reflected in our Rules, Evaluation Framework and official documents since the very first edition. However, understanding a concept on paper and experiencing it in practice are often two very different things. With every edition, participants, coaches and judges begin to recognise more clearly what IMDC is truly designed to develop. Perhaps this is simply the nature of innovation—it takes time not only to introduce new ideas but also to recognise them.

That observation has gradually shaped the evolution of IMDC.

The competition is no longer simply about demonstrating mediation skills. It is about understanding the environment in which decisions are made. It asks participants to analyse complexity rather than simplicity, uncertainty rather than predictability, and relationships between states rather than relationships between private parties.

As IMDC has evolved, I have also realised that this evolution must apply not only to participants but also equally to those of us sitting at the judges' table.

For that reason, I would like to share several important developments that will be introduced in future editions of the International Mediation Diplomacy Competition.

Beginning with the next edition, all IMDC judges will complete a mandatory two-week IMDC Judge Preparation and Certification Program before joining the official judging panel. This is not because we question anyone's professional expertise. Quite the opposite. It is because we want to build a shared understanding of the IMDC philosophy, methodology, and assessment framework while respecting the unique expertise every judge brings.

Our judging panels will also become increasingly interdisciplinary. Rather than expecting every judge to evaluate every aspect of the competition equally, we will bring together specialists from complementary fields, including international diplomacy, international relations, international law, international humanitarian law, psychology, behavioral analysis, crisis management, strategic communication, negotiation, and mediation. Each expert will evaluate the competition from the perspective of their own discipline while sharing one common assessment philosophy.

This also means that future participants should prepare differently.

Commercial mediation remains an essential foundation.

Negotiation remains an essential foundation.

Diplomatic negotiation remains an essential foundation.

But none of them alone is enough.

Success at IMDC increasingly requires an understanding of history, geopolitics, international relations, humanitarian law, intercultural communication, psychology, crisis management and the human dimension of international decision-making. These are no longer supplementary competencies; they are becoming an integral part of what future mediator-diplomats must understand.

To those teams who have already participated in IMDC, thank you for growing with us. Your previous experience will undoubtedly help you, but I believe you will also discover new challenges ahead.

To those preparing for IMDC for the first time, I warmly welcome you. Come with curiosity rather than certainty. Be willing to question familiar methods. Sometimes the greatest lesson is not learning something new, but discovering that a familiar tool does not always fit a different reality.

Looking back, I realise that IMDC has evolved far beyond what I originally imagined when the first concept was drafted. It has become more than a competition. It has become a living educational laboratory where ideas are tested, refined, and sometimes completely reimagined. For me, that has been one of the most rewarding parts of this journey.

The world is changing rapidly.

The way we educate future mediator-diplomats must evolve with it.

And I have a feeling...

We are only just beginning.

With respect,

Kristine Arzumanova
Founder, International Mediation Diplomacy Competition (IMDC)
President, International Association of Mediators & Poly-Experts (IAMPE)

07 August 2026