Marshall B. Rosenberg, PhD, 1934 – 2015
Founder and Director of Educational Services at The Center for Nonviolent Communication
Dr. Marshall Rosenberg grew up in an inner-city Detroit neighborhood, where he was confronted daily with various forms of violence. Wanting to explore the causes of violence and what could be done to reduce it, he chose to study clinical psychology. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin in 1961, and in 1966 he was awarded Diplomat status in clinical psychology from the American Board of Examiners in Professional Psychology.
Nonviolent Communication training evolved from Dr. Rosenberg’s quest to find a way to rapidly disseminate much-needed peacemaking skills. The Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC) emerged out of work he was doing with civil rights activists in the early 1960’s. During this period, he also mediated between rioting students and college administrators and worked to peacefully desegregate public schools in long-segregated regions.
The central focus of Dr. Rosenberg’s philosophy and life’s work was to create peace:
“I would like us to create peace at three levels and have each of us to know how to do it.
First, within ourselves. That is to know how we can be peaceful with ourselves when we’re less than perfect, for example. How we can learn from our limitations without blaming and punishing our self. If we can’t do that, I’m not too optimistic how we’re going to relate peacefully out in the world.
Second, between people. Nonviolent Communication training shows people how to create peace within themselves and at the same time how to create connections with other people that allows compassionate giving to take place naturally.
And third, in our social systems. To look out at the structures that we’ve created, the governmental structures and other structures, and to look at whether they support peaceful connections between us and if not, to transform those structures.” – Dr. Marshall Rosenberg