Healing a Country’s Wounds (Pt. 2)

While a past Peace Talks Radio program on Transitional Justice included legal strategies such as a truth and reconciliation commission, this program deals with conversations that aren’t judicially mandated. Instead, Public Dialogues happen when people willingly listen to and talk with other citizens, develop understandings across differences, and collaborate on shared solutions. They discover a space between the two poles of ‘agree’ and ‘disagree’ about an issue. The need for Public Dialogue is most acute in complex issues such as racial equity, poverty, climate change, and mental health where it’s hoped that it’ll increase participatory democracy. Suzanne Kryder talks with three experts in this field: Carolyne Abdullah, the ; and Marion Sanchez, Community Engagement Manager with the City of Austin; and Carolyn J. Lukensmeyer, Former and First Executive Director of the National Institute for Civil Discourse, headquartered at the University of Arizona.