Mary Mackenzie, MA, is the co-founder of the NVC Academy, an online school for learning Nonviolent Communication; executive director of Peace Workshop, International, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting practical methods for living nonviolently; certified trainer of Nonviolent Communication for the Center for Nonviolent Communication and mediator. Mary brings extensive experience in creating and maintaining collaborative organizations and partnerships in the business world and within families, in finding a way forward that values all needs even in challenging decision making processes, and in balancing efficiency and authenticity in all interactions. She is a deeply spiritual person with a keen sense of humor, inner clarity, and insight. Mary's guiding vision is to help people learn concrete, practical tools for living peacefully day-to-day. She believes that if each of us steps up to the plate to transform our own negative behaviors and thought patterns we can create world peace, one heart at a time. Her individual coaching sessions with people who want to fully integrate Nonviolent Communication into their daily lives, workshops, retreats, organizational development, group facilitation, public speaking engagements, and personal daily life reflect this passion. Mary lives in Long Beach, California, with her wife, Kimberly Fox.