The Herbert C. Kelman Seminar on International Conflict Analysis and Resolution presents:
Corporate Reckoning:
How Businesses Can Address Historical Wrongs
A virtual talk with:
Sarah Federman
Associate Professor of Conflict Resolution
Kroc School of Peace Studies at the
University of San Diego
Monday, May 11, 2026
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET (US and Canada)
Free and open to the public.
About the Talk:
Survivors and descendants continue to demand reckoning from governments, universities, museums and seminaries for participation in a variety of historical wrongs. Increasingly, corporate executives also find themselves called upon to atone for their predecessors’ moral transgressions. While many business leaders can address inherited failed product lines or dysfunctional teams, fewer know how to handle demands that their enterprise address legacies of mass atrocity such as slavery, genocide, or colonialism. When survivors and descendants demand reckoning, many corporate leaders initially shirk the responsibilities that follow from these requests. They may claim that history belongs to the historians, that their company’s activities were legal at the time, or that too much time has passed. If it comes to it, courts will rule in their favor, they reassure themselves. Others avoid these issues simply because they have no idea how to address them.
In this webinar, Sarah Federman provides a pathway forward that serves companies and those affected by these historical harms. The atonement model she presents is developed in her new book, Corporate Reckoning (MIT Press, 2026), which offers case studies across atrocities, industries, and geographies.
Demands for reckoning ebb and flow, but these histories do not disappear. Taking responsibility for irreparable harm is not easy or comfortable. Despite the dilemmas and difficulties, the only way out is through.
About the Speaker:
Sarah Federman is Associate Professor of Conflict Resolution at the University of San Diego’s Kroc School of Peace Studies. She is the author of the award-winning books Transformative Negotiation and Last Train to Auschwitz, as well as two coauthored anthologies, Introduction to Conflict Resolution and Narratives of Mass Atrocity. Her latest book is Corporate Reckoning, published by MIT Press on April 21, 2026. In addition to her literary works, in 2022 Federman testified before Congress concerning the responsibility of US banks to respond to their slavery ties. Federman’s TEDx talk on this topic has been selected by TED’s main conference for wider promotion.
About the Herbert C. Kelman Seminar Series:
The Herbert C. Kelman Seminar on International Conflict Analysis and Resolution series is sponsored by the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School and The Weatherhead Center for International Affairs.
For more information, contact Donna Hicks at dhicks@wcfia.harvard.edu.
Accommodation Statement:
The Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School (PON) is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation(s) for persons with disabilities in connection with its programs and activities. Accommodations must not fundamentally alter applicable PON programming and are not retroactive.
Event participants should request accommodations at least two weeks prior to the start date of a program or event, as accommodations may take time to implement. Please note that PON will make every effort to secure services, but these are subject to availability.
To request accommodations please e-mail ponevents@law.harvard.edu.
