Are you passionate about strengthening democracy through dialogue and deliberation? Looking to connect with fellow practitioners and dive into meaningful discussions? Don’t miss our Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy (PMD) Community of Practice session this Thursday, 1-2:30pm Eastern, 10-11:30am Pacific!
This session is an open space for practitioners to come together, share ideas, gain insights, and collaborate on the opportunities and challenges we face in fostering democratic engagement. Whether you’re a seasoned practitioner or just getting started, this is a chance to connect with others who share your commitment to making an impact. What to Expect:
Interested? Sign up here: https://forms.gle/sLJG1e2V9XMa2kcK8 For more information about the Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy (PMD), visit our webpage: https://www.ncdd.org/communityofpractice.html. We look forward to seeing you there and continuing to build our community together!
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As we navigate the wake yesterday’s election, there is hope in our community. Through your practice, reflection, and connection, each of you brings a renewed commitment to democracy. Our collective work continues well beyond election day, sustaining democratic values and fostering meaningful dialogue in our communities.
Below are several updates for the Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy initiative... Upcoming PMD Theme: Post-Election Reflection—Ensuring Democracy through Dialogue This month, the Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy (PMD) is focusing on “Post-Election Reflection: Ensuring Democracy through Dialogue.” This theme is especially timely as we come together to guide our communities through post-election conversations, creating space for connection and healing. Community of Practice – Post-Election Support Group (Nov 14) The days following an election often bring a mix of emotions, insights, and challenges. On November 14, our Community of Practice will host a post-election support session, offering a space for reflection and discussion. This session is open to all practitioners who are ready to share experiences, navigate community conversations, strategize for engagement, or reflect on lessons learned. Join us in this supportive, confidential space to exchange ideas, address challenges, and support one another. Sign up here! New Schedule for November & December PMD Forums In the spirit of continuing support and to accommodate the upcoming holiday season, the timing for our next forums have been modified and are scheduled for:
These forums are an ongoing source of inspiration and support for our democratic journey. If you haven’t already, mark these dates in your calendar or sign up for more information, and consider inviting others who might benefit from this empowering work! October Forum Recap & Calls to Action Our October 24 forum emphasized the impactful role of mediators and facilitators in supporting democracy through constructive dialogue, especially during election periods. Here are some key takeaways:
Explore Our New Website Space and Share Feedback We’re excited to announce the updated website here on the NCDD site! This space is designed to be a comprehensive resource and engagement hub for the PMD initiative. We invite you to explore the site and share any feedback to help us continue improving it. Check it out at ncdd.org/practitionermobilization.html PMD Listserv Options: Stay Connected and Engaged To support our members and partners in their democracy-focused work, we offer two dedicated listservs—Info and Discussion. These platforms are designed to keep you informed, provide valuable resources, and foster meaningful conversations on democracy and the vital role of facilitators and mediators in strengthening it.
In times of heightened emotions and diverse perspectives, the work of mediators and facilitators is more crucial than ever. You are living proof that democracy is not just a system—it’s a practice rooted in respect, listening, and understanding. Our communities need to see this in action. Let’s show how better conversations are possible and make space for all voices through dialogue. Together, let’s ensure that this post-election period brings out the best in our communities and in ourselves. Thank you for showing up in ways that matter and for helping us build a foundation of connection and understanding in our democracy. In solidarity, The Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy Team ![]() The tragedy of 9/11 left the world grappling with intense emotions of grief, fear, and anger, creating a deep need for connection and understanding. As people struggled to process the overwhelming loss and division, open conversations became vital for healing. Conversation Cafés provided a safe space for individuals to voice their emotions, bridge divides, and foster empathy during this period of crisis. These dialogues helped communities come together, promoting shared humanity and a sense of unity in the face of collective trauma. Have you heard the news?! NCDD is thrilled to announce the launch of our NCDD Working Groups and Exchanges - and you're invited to join!
2024 is already looking to be an important year and there is a lot of energy for dialogue, deliberation, and engagement work. NCDD is uniquely positioned to bring together our collective wisdom, experiences, and passion for change to reflect and collaborate together. Coming out of the 2023 conference, NCDD is excited to be harnessing the collective energy and capacity of this coalition through the formation of working groups that align with key priority areas for the organization, as well as exchanges that will allow the membership to deepen connections. These groups are intended to provide our members with focused opportunities to connect, collaborate, build capacity, and invest in our shared coalition. Current NCDD Working Groups A number of potential focus areas were suggested at the 2023 conference. The NCDD staff and board have determined that these following groups are best aligned with current organization priorities and can also play a key role in building and sustaining NCDD as an inclusive coalition and a thriving organization.
Joining a Working Group Working groups open to all, please fill out this form. While you are not required to be an NCDD member, your support helps make these groups possible - become one today! Current NCDD Exchanges
Joining the Exchange Express your interest in this exchange by filling out this brief form. The form asks for ways you would like to communicate around the exchange, as well as opportunities to present and lead the group. Want to Start a New Exchange? NCDD is excited to support additional exchanges focused on bringing our network together around specific sectors, areas of interest, etc. If you would like to discuss starting a new exchange, reach out to NCDD’s Executive Director, Courtney Breese, at [email protected]. Additional Questions? Please contact NCDD’s Communications Coordinator, Keiva Hummel, at [email protected]. NCDD is excited to announce our full lineup of sponsorship opportunities are now available for the upcoming 2023 conference! Below is our invitation to sponsor, followed by details on where to find more information, and how to sign up. ![]() Many of us are grappling with how to help communities bridge divides and collaborate meaningfully together. The National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation has a long history of doing this work. We are also a scrappy nonprofit, long overdue for full-time staff and programmatic support. Many funders and organizations are looking to support efforts that strengthen democracy at this important moment in our history. NCDD sponsorship is a way to make this contribution that offers a multitude of benefits to you as an organization. Your support directly enables the production of our conference, and helps us to bring our staff to full-time capacity. As you may have heard, we are thrilled to announce that NCDD’s National Conference on Dialogue & Deliberation is back for its 9th year in person! Our biennial conferences convene hundreds of the most active, thoughtful, and influential people in public engagement and group process work across the U.S., Canada, and throughout the world. Nearly 5,000 people have attended NCDD’s national and regional events, and we expect to have about 500 attendees join us in Atlanta. Your support makes mobilizing global change possible. BECOME A SPONSOR TODAY! Explore NCDD's Sponsorship Brochure and various levels of support here. Contact [email protected] to sign on now as a sponsor. Sponsorship is crucial in a post-2020 environment. We can’t do it without you! Your patronage of the NCDD conference is a strong signal of leadership in and commitment to public engagement and community problem solving in our growing community of practice. Partnering with us via sponsorship has tangible benefits, and instant, public, prestigious name recognition during and after the event. These highly desired sponsorship placements are a windfall for your brand, as you’ll simultaneously build good will and name recognition. We work with the leading innovators in the field, and our sponsors are the benchmarks of that progress. By sponsoring NCDD 2023, you will be featured as one of the pioneering leaders in dialogue and deliberation. That’s something to talk about! Becoming an NCDD Sponsor - Expands Reach and Increases Impact As an NCDD sponsor, you are playing a major role in promoting knowledge-sharing and networking among dialogue and deliberation professionals, community leaders, and public managers. Your help is strengthening the capacity of people in our field to bridge divides and solve complex community challenges. Your sponsorship dollars come with other benefits. We are an extremely lean-running organization, and your sponsorship means NCDD can hire full-time staff this year, continue to produce our world-class conferences, give conference scholarships, and ensure the inclusion of diverse populations in our field. Your sponsorship develops the field, enhances professionals, and increases the efficacy of our dialogue and deliberation offerings. In a post-COVID era, these small asks accomplish big things. Peruse the full brochure outlining all opportunities here. We hope to add you to the ranks of sponsor for NCDD 2023. Reach out to [email protected] with your questions, or to support this event! ![]() Two weeks ago, NCDD celebrated 20 years of connecting people who care about the way we talk with one another with an exciting and lively event. Thank you to everyone who joined us for this hybrid event, and to the many of our network members who shared remarks for the event and/or contributed a photo for our 20th Anniversary photo project! If you were not able to join us live, we have now uploaded the video of the event here. Please check it out, as it captures much of this amazing network over the last 20 years, and talks about what we can continue to work on together. Plus, you can check out the announcement we made about our next national conference! ![]() NCDD is excited to announce our next webinar featuring NCDD Member Org EnCiv! Join us on Tuesday, December 13th from 1-2pm Eastern/10-11am Pacific for this FREE webinar sharing more about the development of EnCiv's "Undebates" tool. EnCiv is a nonpartisan organization looking to challenge sensationalism and polarization in civic discourse by offering social technologies that power widespread, cross-partisan discussion and better decision making. In this webinar, we'll be joined by David Fridley and Adolf Gundersen who will provide us with an overview of their latest tool, Undebates, and talk with us about other discussion processes where a platform of this sort could be helpful. He'll also discuss one such effort, called the Unroundtable. Register today to join us! EnCiv - Undebates for Organizations For organizations that are run democratically, getting members to participate - meaning vote, is a challenge. They are forced to compete for people's attention from all the usual sources - social media, mass media, even streaming media. EnCiv will demo a new tool that allows organizations to create "Undebates" for their elections. It automates the process recording video Q&A with candidates and assembling it into an interactive viewer for voters to review on their own schedule and quickly decide, and it can be shared on social media, and embedded on a website. The same process can also be used to present differing views on ballot measures. For now, you are able to create an account and try it out for free. In this webinar we are also looking to brainstorm other forms of discussion processes to adapt this to, including what we call an "Unroundtable." The challenge is to create connection between people at large scale when they can't all be in the same place at the same time. Learn more about EnCiv and the Undebates tool at www.enciv.org/undebates. Today is Giving Tuesday, a day dedicated to supporting the causes that matter to us. We hope you will consider including the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation in your gifts this year! NCDD is celebrating 20 years of connecting people who care about the way we talk with one another. By making a gift to NCDD this Giving Tuesday, you are helping us continue to connect and support this amazing community of practice, as well as continue to introduce more people to the communal power of dialogue and deliberation!
Your gift this Giving Tuesday will directly help us:
Please consider a gift of any amount today at www.ncdd.org/donate. Or, consider supporting NCDD’s mission by becoming a member: www.ncdd.org/join. Thank you! Those who joined NCDD for our 20th Anniversary Celebration last week were the first to hear our big announcement - the National Conference on Dialogue and Deliberation is back! After a hiatus due to COVID, we are so thrilled to reconvene our signature event in 2023. And, we shared another important opportunity that you'll want to read on to learn more about. About the Conference NCDD 2023 will be held October 13-15, 2023 at the Crowne Plaza Atlanta Perimeter. A beautiful location perfect for the highly interactive conference, we are so thrilled to bring our event to the Southeast US for the first time! This will be a wonderful opportunity to connect with practitioners in the region, as well as showcase some of the wonderful work being done in the Atlanta area. If you haven't attended an NCDD conference before but want to learn more, check out this link. Opportunity - Join or renew in 2022 to get the very best rate! At our anniversary event we made another big announcement. We will be offering the lowest rate on conference registration to NCDD members whose dues are in good standing in 2022. That means if you have been thinking about joining or are behind on renewing your membership, now is the time to do it! NCDD members all received discounted registration for our conference, but this is a special opportunity we're offering for an even deeper discount if you join or renew by December 31st. This helps support NCDD as we start what will be a very busy year, and gives you the very best deal on the conference!
Stay updated on the conference at our new event page: NCDD 2023 We can't wait to gather together with you all in 2023! NCDD is looking for YOU, our network members, to be a part of a Photo Project we're working on for our 20th Anniversary! We posted on the blog earlier in October, but we're hoping to get some more submissions in this final week before we start putting the project together. Read below for the information on how to join us! Inspired by the photo project we did for our national conference in 2012, we are creating a video comprised of photos submitted by our members that include a statement of how you are recommitting to this work and/or this community as we celebrate 20 years together. This is an opportunity to capture our diversity and passion and put it on display! The video will be used in the anniversary event and on the website. We are asking for submissions from network members through Friday, November 11th. How to Get Involved
Take a picture of yourself holding a sign or next to one that expresses (briefly!) what you would like to recommit to. |
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