Carmel qualified as a practitioner mediator in 1994 and was instrumental in developing and implementing a professional family mediation training programme in Ireland and continued that committment through her time as a member of the Mediators Institute of Irelanf Executive Committee. As regional manager with the state run Family Mediation Service, Carmel was part of a team reponsible for putting the family mediation service on a national footing. Carmel currently coordinates the professional training in family mediation for the Family Mediation Service and also teaches on the Masters programme in Mediation and Conflict Intervention at Maynooth University