Michael Williams is a professional storyteller and member of the Scottish Storytelling Centre. He is also an accredited Child Care Worker, English Teacher, and Peace Education facilitator (Unipaz-UK) who has worked with children, adolescents and adults for more than 30 years (www.rjmwilliams.co.uk).
He states: “I am a firm believer in the healing energy of story and storytelling. I have experienced its benefits first-hand and witnessed its transformative power . . . storytelling connects us ‘eye to eye, mind to mind, and heart to heart’.”
Michael is currently the Editor of ‘Therapeutic Storytelling’ (www.allthingshealing.com) and is frequently called upon to use storytelling as a tool to resolve conflict and promote healing, reconciliation and mutual understanding. He offers coaching and training in storytelling, emotional literacy and well-being to a variety of professions including teaching, social care, nursing, mediation work, youth work and more. In 2009, Michael was invited to join an international troupe of ‘Healing Words’ storytellers to work with groups of Arabs and Jews in Israel and Palestine promoting reconciliation and peace. In 2010 he will travel to Canada to share his experience and facilitate workshops and training in therapeutic storytelling.
Michael is a former Senior Tutor in English and Canadian Studies at Edinburgh University, a graduate (Local History) of the University of Oxford and former teacher of the Edinburgh Rudolf Steiner School. From 2005 until 2007 he was also the Secretary of the Cross-Party Group for Creating a Culture of Peace in Scotland in the Scottish Parliament.