Conversation Circle: Making America Kind Again

Reaching out to each other with curiosity and appreciation across political and cultural divides to listen, learn, and build relationships, through facilitated, structured dialogue

90 minute sessions – Maximum 8 people

Event Coming in March 2025 – via Zoom

Conversation Circle

Overview

In this time of social division, turmoil, and demonization, where it has become difficult for people to communicate in a civil and constructive way, the Conversation Circle is an alternative compassion-based approach to talking witheach other, for the purpose of learning, understanding, building relationships,increasing trust, and strengthening community.

The Conversation Circle is a structured and facilitated conversation among a small group of people with a variety of viewpoints and perspectives and real differences around polarized public issues. In a Conversation Circle, each person shares their views, perceptions, experiences, hopes, and concerns around a topic of interest, without interruption, rebuttal, or feedback. It is not a lecture or debate where people get on their soapbox and try to convince others, nor is it a meeting to make decisions or reach agreement. Rather, the Conversation Circle is an open spirited conversation and gathering in a safe space, where people listen respectively to each other, truly listen, with an attitude of curiosity, appreciation, and acceptance. Using  a series of open exploring-based questions, the conversation focuses not on ideology, but on experiences, hopes, and concerns around what is meaningful to each person. Given that this form of interaction is not common, some commitment and preparation is needed for it to be successful.

Conversation Structure

• Introductions
• Review of guidelines / agreements• Round 1 – pass around talking object; each person speaks briefly to the topic, no feedback or response
• Round 2 – again with talking object, each person deepens their own comments or speaks to what has meaning now.
• Final Round – with talking object, each person says briefly what challenged, touched or inspired them, what did they learn, what questions remain
• Where do we go from here – envisioning the focus of the next conversation

Conversation guidelines and attitudes

• Open-mindedness and Reflectiveness
• Compassion and Appreciation
• Acceptance, Curiosity, and Discovery
• Sincerity
• Brevity
• “Slow down to the speed of wisdom”
• Confidentiality

Conversation Questions

• How did you come to the idea or belief you have? Can you tell me a story that helps me understand that? What experiences did you have that influence how you think and feel now?
• What is at the heart of this issue, for you as an individual? Why do you care so much about this issue?
• Do you have any mixed feelings, uncertainties, or discomforts regarding this issue that you would be willing to share?
• What underlying values or beliefs led you to your current beliefs on this issue?
• Even though you hold widely differing views, are there any concerns or ideas you think you may have in common? What kind of compromise or solution might work for both sides?
• Is there anything positive or acknowledging you would be willing to say about the person on the other side of this issue? What can you learn from someone on the other side of the issue? Is there a way that both of you might be right? How?
• What could be done to improve each person’s ideas? Could any of the other side’s ideas be incorporated into yours? How?
• Is there any aspect of this issue that either of you have left out? Are there any other perspectives you haven’t described?