"I appreciate Born’s efforts to break collaboration down into its constituents, and to elevate its skills and knowledge to an art form deserving of our close attention. We need to walk the talk more often, in more meetings, and in more projects in order to instill the skills of listening, creativity, non-judgment, visioning, and collaborative leadership (and “follower-ship”) at every level of community life.
Evidently, transformation is not so much about organizations as it is about citizens coming together to share their vision, to learn, and to create. Not new to any of us. Like building coalitions, it is part of the community development air we breathe.
Born offers the most practical tools and suggestions for what it is we need to do or ask in order to realize these prerequisites (for transformation) in the communities where we work. Born offers many examples from his experience in Vibrant Communities that illustrate his contention that our dialogue or conversation design and facilitation skills are really central to planting all of these prerequisites in groups and communities."
Communities around the world are entering a new era of community building. Whether improving economic conditions and reducing poverty, re-energizing citizens and social programs, reducing crime, or revitalizing a troubled neighbourhood, they are engaging people from all sectors as never before to work together as equals to improve their quality of life.
At the heart of this engagement are community conversations, in which common goals are embraced by a diverse array of people with different backgrounds and needs, and influencers are drawn from multiple sectors, including community organizations, the various levels of government, and businesses big and small.
Full of informative and inspiring examples of collaboration, Community Conversations captures the essence of creating such conversations and offers ten practical techniques to host conversations in your community.
Preview Community Conversations
Community Conversations is packed with creative techniques and informative examples of collaboration from communities across Canada. Any community conversation must begin with the four fundamentals, which is why the book opens with an in-depth look at conversing, engaging, collaborating, and casting a vision.
Next, some common techniques are explored, including the Top 100 Partners Exercise, Conversation Cafés and Future Search Meetings. These techniques are critical to any successful community conversation.
Finally, the book concludes with a few inspiring stories of how a community conversation can create a new dialogue, a sense of hope and build true connections between people whose energies might otherwise go unharnessed.
Paul Born is a master storyteller who infuses his work, relationships, community, and life with the magic of conversation. He is internationally recognized for his innovative approaches to community building.
Paul is President and Co-founder of Tamarack - An Institute for Community Engagement. He is also the founding chair of the Canadian Community Economic Development Network, Vibrant Communities Canada, and Opportunities 2000.
A motivational, inspiring and informative speaker, Paul has extensive experience in helping organizations and communities to develop new and sustainable ideas that motivate people to collaborative action and change.
Click above to see Susan Cook-Scheerer of Rogers Daytime TV interview Paul Born about Community Conversations and Creating Vibrant Communities. (Feb 25, 2009)
Paul also founded and was the Executive Director of the Community Opportunities Development Association (CODA) - now called Lutherwood - one of Canada’s most successful community economic development organizations. As the Founder of Opportunities 2000, Paul led a Millennium campaign to reduce poverty in Waterloo Region to the lowest in Canada, which was recognized as one of the United Nations' "Best Practices" worldwide, in 1998.
Paul holds a Masters degree in Leadership, and is often invited to contribute to learning events as a keynote speaker, trainer, and facilitator on issues including community collaboration and engagement, innovation, and social change.
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Universities and colleges across the country are beginning to recognize CommunityConversations as a key resource in their curriculum. Take a look at how other professors are using the book, and what students are saying about it!
Carleton University - School of Journalism and Mass Communication - Communication and Community: Media Advocacy for Social Change - September to December 2008
"I work from the firm belief that ‘Whatever the problem, community is the answer.' Community Conversations teaches us how to make that statement true. The stories, examples and processes gathered together in one lovely book hopefully will inspire you to become active in creating the conversations that will weave our communities into health and new capacity."
~ Margaret J. Wheatley, author of Leadership and the New Science and Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future
“Paul Born's Community Conversations draws from decades of experience to illuminate the strong and effective ideas that emerge when diverse participants meet together over well-mediated conversations.
The book is replete with inspirational stories and how-to tips, delivered with clear writing, gentle humour, and reflective commentary that provide powerful insights into community-based dialogue.”
~ Mark L. Winston, Academic Director and Fellow, Centre for Dialogue, Simon Fraser University
"Paul Born has done a masterful job of demonstrating the power of community conversations. The combination of first hand stories, concepts that make sense and practical advice will make this a favourite book for community leaders, facilitators and activists."
~ Brenda Zimmerman, PhD, Director, Health Industry Management Program - Associate Professor of Strategy/Policy Schulich School of Business Co-author of Getting to Maybe, How the World is Changed
"I love Community Conversations because I think it will be helpful to our ever emerging Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation, amongst other communities. It is an easy read, packed with such simple yet strong lessons which we all have acquired in our practices yet tend to forget or let slide to the sides of our frames of action let alone reference."
~ Sandra Zagon, Past-Chair, Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation
"Community Conversations dispels the notion that 'talk is cheap'. Talking or good conversations are essential to rethinking our analysis, our partners and our actions as we tackle our tough social and ecological challenges. You can imagine yourself as an impresario of good conversation after reading this book."
~ Al Etmanski, Founder of the Plan Institute
"Paul Born is a change maker. If you want to understand how to make change happen, explore the techniques he uses to enable communities to take charge of their own future."
~ Judith Maxwell, Senior Fellow, Canadian Policy Research Networks
Communities around the world are entering a new era of community building. Whether improving economic conditions and reducing poverty, re-energizing citizens and social programs, reducing crime, or revitalizing a troubled neighbourhood, they are engaging people from all sectors as never before to work together as equals to improve their quality of life.
Paul Born is a master storyteller who infuses his work, relationships, community, and life with the magic of conversation. He is internationally recognized for his innovative approaches to community building.
