Articles & Webinars

I’m still buzzing from my recent trip to Costa Rica, often called the Switzerland of Latin America. Known for its extraordinary biodiversity, dramatic landscapes, and strong environmental track record, Costa Rica protects over 25% of its land through national parks and conservation efforts. But it wasn’t just the lush rainforest or the howler monkeys that left an imprint on me.

The real purpose of my journey? A deeply immersive, 9-day international training on a methodology that’s been quietly transforming how people resolve conflict: Nonviolent Communication (NVC), developed by humanistic psychologist Dr Marshall Rosenberg.

25 Hours, Two Layovers… and a Whole New World

After a 25-hour haul from Sydney, including tight layovers in Los Angeles and Miami, I finally landed in San José, Costa Rica. I was exhausted, jet-lagged, and grateful. And yet, part of me was also unsettled.

I have to name it. Going through U.S. customs these days doesn’t feel neutral anymore. The energy is... tense. It feels like crossing an invisible line between openness and restriction. And while this blog isn’t focused on the state of the U.S. today, it’s impossible to fully separate that experience from the NVC training I was about to enter. In fact, it framed the whole thing with a sense of urgency and clarity.

A Bit of My Story and Why This Training Mattered So Much

I’ve been travelling to the U.S. for decades. I was born in Puerto Rico, migrated to Australia in 1979, and have dual citizenship. I even lived and worked in the U.S. and Puerto Rico during my pharma leadership years. Those years gave me deep cross-cultural insight into how science, innovation, and human systems intersect. For a long time, I believed the U.S. was a powerhouse of technology and a global leader in scientific progress.

But the second Trump administration is reshaping that image, at a breathtaking speed.

Thousands of scientists have been dismissed from federal agencies. Entire datasets are being scrubbed. Grants and funding for climate science and DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) initiatives have been slashed or cancelled altogether. Misinformation and disinformation are spreading like wildfire.

The scientific community is reeling. Many are in shock, and perhaps that’s part of the strategy. In Shaping Tomorrow: A Playbook for Coaching Leaders in Sustainable Decision-Making and Policy (Campbell & Collett, 2024, p.40), we wrote about this phenomenon as part of the Discourse of Delay. When people experience distance, doom, dissonance, denial, or identity threat, what we call the “5Ds”, it delays meaningful action. It confuses. It paralyses. And yes, it works. Especially when the goal is to defund science, derail climate action, and push the MAGA ideology.

Why Communication Is at the Heart of It All

In all this chaos, one thing has become painfully clear to me: we haven’t done a good job communicating about the things that matter most.

Not about science.

Not about climate change.

Not about inclusion, belonging, or equity.

And certainly not about collective wellbeing. In 2019, I tried to contribute to the conversation by writing Scientists in Every Boardroom: Harnessing the Power of STEMM Leaders in an Irrational World. It was my attempt to bridge that communication gap between technical expertise and leadership influence.

But I now see that effective communication, especially when conflict, power, or politics are involved, requires something deeper. Something embodied. Something relational.

Enter NVC.

An Unforgettable Experience in the Costa Rican Rainforest

When I first learned that the Centre for Nonviolent Communication was running a bilingual (English and Spanish) intensive training in Costa Rica, I couldn’t believe it. The location? Two breathtaking venues in the rainforest: Brave Earth and Casa Luna Nueva. I was lucky to stay at Brave Earth - a place I can only describe as a regenerative life lab.

More than a training, it felt like a full-body retreat for the nervous system, the heart, and the mind. We explored how to unlearn old paradigms and anchor ourselves in the values of care, interconnection, and shared humanity. Brave Earth describes their purpose like this:

“To adapt, create more resiliency, and become more attuned to the current cultural context… to be a contributing force for cultural evolution, we need to embody new and ancient ways of being. This requires great acts of courage as we shed our old belief systems and programming.”

And let me tell you, it takes courage.

When Your Body Joins the Conversation

As a scientist trained in physical chemistry, a coaching psychologist, a neurodiverse woman, and someone raised in a conservative family, I wasn’t fully prepared for what my body went through. The heat. The humidity. The steep, rocky hills. I had to slow down, listen inward, and let go of “performance” mode.

Now that I’m back in Sydney, reflecting in my temperate home, I realise those physical challenges helped me experience what NVC truly means: connection. Connection to the Earth. To each other. And to myself.

I now understand what Brave Earth means when they say:

“Rather than offering a place of retreat and escape, we are offering a place to root and remember. We’re curating experiences to decolonize the conditioning of the dominant culture and expand our ability to be in deeper service to Life.”

So, What Is Nonviolent Communication?

Great question.

Nonviolent Communication (NVC), also known as Compassionate Communication, is both a methodology and a mindset. Developed by psychologist Marshall Rosenberg, it’s based on the premise that all human beings have the same universal needs — and that conflict arises not from those needs, but from the strategies we use to meet them.

At its core, NVC invites us to:

• Observe without evaluation.
• Identify feelings connected to needs.
• Name the need - what’s alive in us that’s being met or unmet?
• Make a request, not a demand - based on shared humanity.

Unlike traditional conflict resolution, which often focuses on negotiation and problem-solving, NVC is about restoring connection. It doesn’t bypass emotion, it integrates it. It doesn’t aim to win, it seeks understanding.

You can download a PDF of the 4-Part NVC Process, developed by Dr Marshall Rosenberg, from here.

Why NVC Matters So Much for STEMM Leadership and Sustainability?

In STEMM and sustainability spaces, communication often leans heavily on data, logic, and precision, and rightly so. But those tools alone can fall short in the face of systemic complexity, interpersonal conflict, or values-based disagreements.

That’s where NVC becomes a powerful ally.

When coaching STEMM leaders, I see again and again how difficult it can be to speak from vulnerability or engage in emotionally intelligent dialogue, especially across hierarchies, cultures, or silos. NVC offers a way to do this with clarity and courage.

It cultivates:

• Emotional literacy (crucial for high-trust teams)
•  Empathy (for self and others)
•  Psychological safety (which enables innovation)
•  Systems thinking (by connecting individual behaviour to collective outcomes)

For sustainability leaders, the stakes are even higher. Climate change is not just a technical challenge; it’s an emotional, ethical, and existential one. If we can’t communicate with compassion and coherence, we can’t mobilise the kind of collaborative action the world now requires.

And that’s why I’m so grateful for this experience.

Final Reflections

I came back from Costa Rica with more than jetlag and jungle memories. I came back with a renewed sense of active hope. Yes, things feel dire right now. But there are tools to help us navigate this moment. And NVC is one of them.

It helps us reconnect and remember what truly matters.

It helps us relate with care and rebuild with courage.

It helps us lead with love, not just logic.

And that, I believe, is what the world needs most now.

If you’re a STEMM leader, coach, or change agent working in sustainability, and want to explore how NVC can strengthen your impact, let’s connect. I’m weaving this into my upcoming leadership coaching programs because technical brilliance is only part of the equation. Relational wisdom is the other.

With gratitude, Dr Ruby Campbell