LWVCO is partnering with the Zonta Club of Denver to present a workshop, "Engaging In Civil Discourse Around Polarizing Issues," on Tuesday, Feb. 22 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Led by Dr. Martin Carcasson, Professor of Communication Studies at Colorado State University, this workshop will teach methods and strategies to employ when communicating with others around issues that may impact all of us differently. Speaker Martín Carcasson, Ph.D. describes the workshop this way:
"This session focuses on how to better engage diverse publics on difficult issues in order to elevate the quality of public discussion, particularly considering the current level of polarization and hyper-partisanship evident. It utilizes the concept of wicked problems as a useful framework for reframing complex issues in a way that opens up space for more nuanced conversations. Participants will learn about recent research in social psychology that shows why many of our current traditional public processes unfortunately work to bring out the worst in participants, inherently undermining our ability to address difficult issues and causing more distrust, frustration, and cynicism. Deliberative engagement processes, such as those used by the CSU Center for Public Deliberation, will be introduced as alternatives that both avoid triggering the worst in human nature as well as work to tap into key positive aspects that can be critical to a healthy local public culture."
About The Speaker Martín Carcasson, Ph.D., is the founder and director of the CSU Center For Public Deliberation. For seven years, ending in January 2021, he served as the chair of the National Coalition For Dialogue & Deliberation.