Tag Archives: attitude

Managing Anger in Public Discussion

IF public discussions provide participants with opportunities to discuss contrasting policy possibilities in neutral, non-partisan settings.  Because these possibilities are meant to be anticipatory of possible policy approaches that allow participants to “re-imagine” how society handles issues, our discussions are generally “hopeful”. That does not mean that every participant agrees with each possibility (those possibilities Read more »
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Dealing With Difference

Difference is a fundamental fact of human life. There is similarity too. But difference is the reason why we need to have discussions about public policy. It is also the reason why they should occur face-to-face, over extended periods of time, and with the assistance of a skilled but neutral facilitator. If we all agreed Read more »
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Some Thoughts on Recruiting Panels for the Best Contrast of Possibilities

The current tendency within IF is to recruit at least the generalist panels via Public (or “Citizen”) Discussions.  Those of us who use Meetup to recruit Citizen Discussion participants have a greater chance of connecting with a broader public.  We are not limited to our direct friends or acquaintances or to the slightly broader network Read more »
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Trusteeing the Process

On Sunday I spent about 90 minutes at a retreat for the Board of Trustees of a local private school.  I served on this Board for the past three years, so I was already familiar with the personalities and issues the Board faces.  I brought my markers & flipcharts, and employed some IF facilitation techniques, Read more »
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Little Things That Count: A Human Scale of Discussion

When people are invited to take part in one of the Interactivity Foundation’s Public Discussions they often wonder what effect this could have if we meet with just a small group of citizens, perhaps just six or seven people, in sessions here or there around the country. What good will this do?  What could it Read more »
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Attitudes of Discussion

Picture for a moment two very different kinds of citizen “discussions” that took place this summer. Both were focused on issues surrounding health and healthcare in our society.  For the first, you might think of any of a number of the so-called “town hall” meetings with US Congressional representatives that took place in the summer Read more »
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Yes-And: Setting the Tone for the Summer Institute

Setting the tone for our collaboration on the Summer Institute: it’s vital to adopt an attitude of “yes-and,” a spirit of creative generosity and innovation. This is one way to embody generosity of spirit, a core aspect of our approach to discussions.
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