Civil Discourse Online Training

Have you been increasingly concerned about the polarization of our country? Have you often felt ill equipped to speak with people who don't share the same ideas or views on the world? This course is for you. Pursuing Justice and Peace starts with our ability to talk with one another respectfully even in disagreement.

The dates/times for these three sessions are August 6, 13 and 20 from 6:30-8:30 PM for civil discourse online training led by: 

Alan Yarborough
Church Relations Officer
Office of Government Relations
Office of the Presiding Bishop 
The Episcopal Church

• Session one, Aug. 6: This session will focus on inward capacity building for civil discourse that will help us leverage conversations in a more effective way. For starters, we will explore what we mean by civil discourse, the context of civil discourse in other forms of peaceful civic engagement, and our personal contexts we bring to conversations. We will also review tenets of civil discourse, the importance of vocabulary, and ways to sustain this work as we go.
• Session two, Aug. 13: This session will focus on the importance of beginning our conversations by acknowledging the values that we hold that motivate us to care about a given topic. This can unlock a deeper understanding of ourselves and others that improves the interactions we have on difficult topics.
• Session three, Aug. 20: Our third and final session will explore the complexities of policy making – in other words, things are not always as simple as it seems. Civil discourse can play a critical role in diving deeper into an issue, weighing costs and benefits of different solutions, and ultimately finding a better way forward.

The training is offered at no cost. We hope it will motivate you and your communities to enter confidently into constructive conversations on the important issues facing our local communities, our country, and the world.

Questions? Contact the Ven. Diane Riley.

Registration is closed.