‘What should we do?’ seems to be a fulcrum of our public discussions today. This is a question that is raised in the streets of Madison and Washington alike. The question—‘What should we do?’—is a precursor to action. It recognizes… Read More »
Tag Archives: conversations
IF Audiences
The Interactivity Foundation (IF) focuses upon three major discussion areas: sanctuary project discussions designed to develop public policy possibilities in our selected areas of concern, public discussions of the contrasting policy possibilities presented in our sanctuary project reports, and student-centered… Read More »
What’s Different About IF Policy Discussions?
The Interactivity Foundation (IF) promotes the thoughtful consideration of a wide range of conceptually contrasting policy possibilities in selected areas of concern. One way that we do this is through our sanctuary projects, which typically involve private discussions lasting a… Read More »
Not So Benign a Conflict
As our nation celebrates Independence Day, I am reminded that much of American history is based in conflict. The crucible within which we forged our independence was a war fought mightily against a more powerful enemy, anchored in the energy… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Also tagged civic engagement, discussion process, generosity Leave a comment
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An Exemplar of Civic Conversation
Owen Coyle, a friend of over thirty years duration, passed away a week ago and the time since has been filled with memories of political collaborations and stories shared about our other adventures. The collaborations started with sharing the same… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Also tagged civic engagement, deliberation, democracy, generosity Leave a comment
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Connecting IF Reports to Current Issues in Public Discussions
A recent Frontline episode (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/vaccines/?utm_campaign=homepage&utm_medium=bigimage&utm_source=bigimage_) exploring the
vaccine controversy was fascinating and suggests several openings by which a couple of our
less discussed reports might find some legs. Both the Regulation and Science reports connect
nicely… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Also tagged civic engagement, conceptual possibilities, discussion process, facilitation Leave a comment
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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… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Also tagged attitude, governance, personal development, reasoning skills Leave a comment
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All Communication Is Not Created Equal: Observations on the Usefulness of Blogging
Blogging, like most forms of communication, can serve various purposes. It can contribute to both IF’s learning by doing (through recruiting, say) and teaching (by drawing attention to the lessons we have learned by doing).
But it is a fundamental… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Also tagged citizen discussions, civic engagement, communication skills, discussion process Leave a comment
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Recruiting for Public Discussions: Use Groups, Don’t Create Them
It’s time to declare individual recruiting a dead-end approach. The results of upwards of 60 IF public discussions are clear: group-based recruiting is superior. Whether thought of in terms of “’efficiency” or “sustainability,” its advantages over individual recruiting are now… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Also tagged challenges, participation, Public Discussions, recruiting Leave a comment
Wiki Discussions?
One of the new possibilities we’ve been exploring at the Interactivity Foundation is the use of wikis for the discussion and development of material. We’ve set up a general wiki site, the Interactivity Foundation Wiki as… Read More »
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