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Collaborative Contexts


COLLABORATIVE CONTEXTS

An Authentic Discourse
Whether it is a board of directors meeting or a larger group of sixty people including politicians, faith leaders and non-profit leaders gathered for collaborative conversation, dialogue that is facilitated with grace and skill opens new opportunities for team, and community transformation.

If you are part of a team or a community that seeks transformation and new ways of working together, I can help you begin the conversations that will open pathways of collaboration and understanding.

Dialogue is a process that allows people, usually in small groups, to share their perspectives and experiences with one another about difficult issues Dialogue is not about winning an argument or coming to an agreement, but about understanding and learning.

Deliberation is a closely related process with a different emphasis. Deliberation emphasizes the importance of examining options and trade-offs to make better decisions rather than a sound decision-making process that involves all parties and explores all options.

Dialogue and deliberation processes tend to use skilled facilitators and carefully constructed ground rules or agreements to ensure that all participants are heard and are treated as equals

Dialogue and deliberation can serve a variety of purposes, including but not limited to:

  • resolving conflicts and bridge divides
  • building understanding and knowledge about complex issues
  • generating innovative solutions to problems
  • inspiring collective or individual action
  • reaching agreement on or recommendations about policy decisions
  • building civic capacity, or the ability for communities to solve their own public problems
Techniques used with experience by Cathie can include but are not limited to:
Appreciative Inquiry, Conversation Cafés, and Open Space Technology