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Communities around the world are entering a new era of community building that engages 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 business leaders.
Paul Born captures the essences of such conversations in his new book Community Conversations: Mobilizing the Ideas, Skills, and Passion of Community Organizations, Governments, Businesses, and People.
This seminar explores the importance of community conversations and looks at informative and inspiring examples of community engagement and collaboration, with exciting tips to help you engage your community in creating and implementing a vision for positive change.
Learning Objectives :
- To understand the importance of conversation in community building
- To recognize the different types of community
- To identify techniques for hosting community conversations
 Paul Born is the President and Co-founder of Tamarack and has worked with many organizations and communities to develop innovative and sustainable ideas that motivate people to collaborative action and change. He 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 organization.
As a master storyteller, Paul infuses his work, relationships, community, and life with the magic of conversation. He shares his passion for conversation in his book Community Conversations: Mobilizing the Ideas, Skills, and Passion of Community Organizations, Governments, Businesses, and People. For more information about Paul Born, click here.
 Sandra Zagon is a founding co-chair of the Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation (C2D2). She retired in 2003 from Canada's federal public service with over 30 years of experience in several public policy areas, including consultation, official languagues, and learning in Canada's federal public service. She also retired from the Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN), where she worked on several national citizens' dialogues.
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Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Conversations are at the root of this change. Communities across Canada and the world have come to understand that conversation is not just a technique but an approach to community building that can harvest the kind of postive change we are all working towards.
The Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation
 The Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation (C2D2) is a community of interest that advocates change through conversation. C2D2 has a vision for a democratic society in which all people, regardless of income, position, background or education, are able to engage regularly in thoughtful and challenging conversations about what really matters to them in ways that have a positive impact on their lives, their communities and their world.
Dialogue, speaking and conversations are essential for citizens, researchers, practioners and thought leaders to remain key players in the evolution of our society. We can no longer do the work of social innovation and change without talking to each other.
Do Less, Talk More
No matter how many community development techniques we are engaged in, doing more and working better may not help us achieve the change we wish to make. Before doing more, spending more, or getting better at what we do, we need to have a conversation with each other - a conversation that continues for as long as we are seeking to build better and stronger communities.
Our conversations should ask questions such as, "What do the private and volunteer sectors bring to this work? What does government, at all levels, contribute? And, how can citizens make a difference?" When there are truly diverse voices at the table, then ask, "What's next?"
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Community Conversations
Paul's book Community Conversations with a simple yet thought-provoking question, " If we really listened, would we do social policy differently?" And, so began Paul's exploration of his experiences in community conversations.
The Meaning of Community
We use the word "community" everyday in our work, yet it is filled with so much meaning. Community can mean different things to different people. Some types include communities that are:
- Place-based - People come together and are unified by geography and/or location.
- Interest-based - People connect because of a topic, issue, challenge or concern.
- Virtual - People connect, often based on a common interest or goal, but without a physical space. E.g. Online or via telephone.
- Hybrid - A combination of two or all of the above.
C2D2 is a virtual community of practice, or a community of research and research practioners that is interest-based.
No matter what kinds of communities you are part of, community conversations are an effect approach and process to get things done, and to engage people with each other.
Mobilizing Ideas, Skills, and Passion
 Together, talking and listening are essential for good policy, good ideas, good programs and good solutions to emerge. As human, social beings, we are tuned into using conversation as a tool for realizing and communicating the power and potential we have as individuals, families and communities.
Conversations invite people who can make a difference and who want to make a difference into a vision for change, giving them a sense of what is possible and what they can do. Once engaged in an empowering conversation, we are often driven to act. Conversations allow for many people, not just a few powerful organizations, to become engaged and inspired, which has the ability to effect widescale, possitive and noticable change.
One example of a good idea emerging from conversation is Vibrant Communities Canada. This initiative, which now exists in almost every urban centre across the country, emerged out of a conversation about having less poor, not better poor. And, through conversations that included multiple voices, these communities are working comprehensively to harness their assets instead of solving their problems, collaborate multisectorally, and continue an open dialogue that fosters learning and change.
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Techniques for Conversation
So much is possible when holding strategic community conversations. In Community Conversations, Paul shares his experiences and knowledge of the following 10 techniques that you can use to host your conversations in your own community.
- Conversation Cafés
- Peer to Peer Conversations
- The Top 100 Partners Exercise
- Future Search Meetings
- Open Space Conversations
- Appreciative Inquiries
- Common Meaning Questionnaires
- Food, Movies...and Conversations
- Giving Voice to Photos
- Building Learning Communities
Do you have a favourite technique or a conversation case study? Let us know!
- How do we bring people together to engage in a conversation that makes people feel engaged and inspired?
- How do we recognize the dynamics of power in conversation, and keep issues such as gender, ethnicity, and cultural diversity in mind?
To reflect on these and other important questions, refer to your personal copy of Community Conversations.
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Community Conversations: Mobilizing the Ideas, Skills, and Passion of Community Organizations, Governments, Businesses, and People - Learn more about Paul Born's book, and get your own copy!
Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation - Find out more about this emerging community of interest through their official website.
Canadian Policy Research Networks - CPRN combines timely research and thoughtful analysis to create meaningful dialogue on issues that are important for leaders to move Canada forward.
Vibrant Communities Canada - A community-driven effort to reduce poverty in Canada, Vibrant Communities creates partnerships that make use of our most valuable assets - people, organizations, businesses and governments. It’s a unique approach to poverty reduction that allows communities to learn from — and help — each other.
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