Parent (Previous) Guide Folders
Constructive Conflict Guide >
Civic Knowledge and Skills That We Can Use to Help Ourselves and Our Society More Constructively Handle Intractable Conflict >
Stripping Away "Overlay" Problems That Make Conflicts Appear More Intractable Than They Really Are >
Limiting Communication Problems and the Resulting Misunderstandings
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BI Article
Dialogue
In dialogue, the intention is not to advocate but to inquire; not to argue but to explore; not to convince but to discover. This essay introduces the concept of dialogue, discusses why it is needed, and suggests ways to do it effectively.
BI Article
Contradictory Thoughts About Dialogue
Dialogue can change attitudes, but those changes tend to be fleeting unless a great deal of thought and care goes into both the process and the aftermath. Designing for scale up is key.
BI Article
A Further Discussion of Dialogue
Dialogue has no fixed goal or predetermined agenda. The emphasis is not on resolving disputes, but rather on improving the way in which people with significant differences relate to each other.
BI Article
Katie Hyten Explains how Essential Partners is Taking Dialogue to Scale
Essential Partners has figured out both how to scale dialogue to the community level (if not beyond) and to make the relationship improvements dialogue engenders sustainable over the long term.
BI Article
Summary of Lisa Schirch: Transforming the Colour of US Peacebuilding: Types of Dialogue to Protect and Advance Multi-racial Democracy
A summary of an article focused on how peacebuilding dialogue and the movement for social justice should be complementary, not at odds with each other.
BI Article
Finding Common Ground / Constructive Addressing Differences: a Discussion Guide
An exercise to help people find common ground where none seems to exist and constructively address remaining differences.
Colleague Activities
Abortion -- Conversation Guide
A practical guide for those wanting to know how to convene and facilitate constructive dialogues capable of spanning partisan divides and meaningfully addressing our most controversial issues.
Colleague Activities
Livingroom Conversations Resources
We've highlighted LRC before, but haven't focused on their excellent resources for the times we get together with family and friends.
Colleague Activities
Constructive Dialogue Institute
CDI seeks to repair our civic culture by spreading the practices of curiosity, critical thinking, and constructive dialogue across our nation's education systems and workplaces.
Colleague Activities
Dialogue Lab: America | Documentary Film (2022)
A video about Ideos Institute's experiment testing whether constructive dialogue is possible in today's polarized culture, and if so, how dialogue might be a first step in healing our nation.
Colleague Activities
Difficult Dialogues National Resource Center
DDNRC seeks to ensure that college campuses sustain freedom of expression and academic freedom, promote pluralism, and expand opportunities for constructive communication across different perspectives.
Colleague Activities
The Response: The World Talks
Bringing together people from around the world for 1:1 virtual dialogues, The World Talks is a global dialogue experiment built by a coalition of independent media partners from 15 countries.
Colleague Activities
Academic Success Tip: Guide Students in Constructive Dialogue
A University of Delaware professor shares why and how she makes dialogue about difficult-to-discuss issues a foundational skill in her classroom.
Colleague Activities
LivingRoom Conversations Conversation Topics
A listing of topics by category, each with a free, easy-to-use conversation guide.
Colleague Activities
Contact Theory with No Contact: Facilitating Dialogue Online
An examination of the degree to which online dialogue can overcome impressions of difference without in-person contact.
News and Opinion
What Readers Really Think About Gender
An interesting alternative to face-to-face dialogue -- a journalist who promotes mutual understanding by soliciting and then sharing thoughtful reader views on controversial issues.