Disagreeing Well: The Podcast About Polarization

What if the problem isn’t that we disagree—but how we disagree?In this episode of Disagreeing Well: The Podcast About Polarization, I am joined by Kiera Phyo and Jo Alstott from London, England, to talk about the Church of England’s Difference Course, a growing global effort to help people use their faith to navigate deep divides more constructively.The five-session course doesn’t ask people to change their beliefs. Instead, it asks something harder: to stay curious, to truly listen, to reimagine new ways forward and to resist the urge to turn others into “the other.”It sounds simple but it isn’t and the course is designed to lead participants through some challenging exercises to help them adopt practices that are helping people move beyond polarization—not by avoiding hard conversations, but by having them differently.At a time when division feels baked into everything, this is a refreshingly practical and hopeful conversation about an initiative that’s making a “Difference”.For more about the Difference Course see: https://difference.rln.global

In this episode, Disagreeing Well turns its attention to the United States as I speak with Katie Hyten, Co-Executive Director of Essential Partners, a U.S.-based organization which has been working to address polarization since 1989. We discuss the causes and dangers of polarization as well as the current situation in the United States. Katie highlights the important work her organization is doing in neighbourhoods, schools, universities, and faith communities to foster courageous conversations across a wide range of issues—from abortion to guns to everyday tensions. She outlines practical tools and provides real-world examples from the important work of Essential Partners to rebuild connection and community - even in the most polarized situations.Learn more about Essential Partners.

How Polarized is Canada… And Should We Worry?” In this episode of Disagreeing Well: The Podcast about Polarization, I speak with political scientist Eric Merkley, author of the new book Polarization Eh? The Causes and Consequences of Affective Polarization in Canada. We discuss the rise of “affective polarization” in our country – the tendency to dislike or even hate those on the other side of politics.What’s driving this division? How dangerous is it? And what can both citizens and political leaders do to address it. Learn more about Eric’s book. 

I am joined by social psychologist Anne Wilson to explore the psychology of polarization. What’s really happening in our minds—and in the minds of those we disagree with—when polarizing issues arise? Is there something about human nature that’s preventing us from listening to the other side and pushing us further apart?We discuss misperceptions, why facts alone rarely change minds, and the role social media plays in deepening polarization. Anne also shares practical strategies for having conversations across disagreement without making things worse.Anne Wilson is a Professor of Social Psychology at Wilfrid Laurier University, where she researches the psychology of polarization.Learn more about Anne’s work. For more information about the podcast and the people involved, see our Substack.