How do we move from the prevailing mode of “us versus them” to a civity culture in which “we all belong?” Read perspectives from our team on how to change the paradigm.
Water, Systems, & the Stories We Tell Ourselves
We swim in the water of the systems we’re in. And because we’re used to this water—these systems—they come to be invisible and sometimes appear…
“Healthy Green Shoots”: Our Common Purpose at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Malka and I recently had the honor of participating in a meeting at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The occasion was the wrapping…
New Community-Based Social Trust Project Starts This Fall!
We’re thrilled to announce that, with support from the JAMS Foundation, we will be kicking off an exciting new project this fall in Louisville, KY: Enabling…
Trustworthy Elections: Growing Local Trust to Grow National Trust
Civity has joined Living Room Conversations, the National Institute for Civil Discourse, the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation, Interfaith America, AllSides, and a growing network of local and national…
To Fix Our Democracy, We Need to Go to the Heart
As we approach America’s 250th anniversary, we at Civity share with many others a deep concern about the health of our democracy. We value a rule…
A Tale of Two Stories
When I hear the same thing from multiple sources and in multiple ways, I pay attention. This kind of synchronicity means that something big is…
The Civity Storytelling Intervention Goes to Minnesota
As many of you know, the Civity team submitted an intervention in the Stanford-based Strengthening Democracy Challenge back in 2021. The Challenge was to test whether online…
Civity Partners with Turkish Women
I’d like to introduce you to our newest partner—SES Equality and Solidarity Association. Founded five years ago as SES Equality, Justice, Women Platform, their mission is…
Check Out Civity’s New Website!
Under the wise (and patient!) guidance of Civity Champion Steve Fleckenstein and Civity Communications Director Gina Baleria, the Civity website has been updated, reorganized, and…
We Are Prairie Grass
As 2025 draws to a close, I find myself thinking of prairie grass. Those of you who have attended one of our workshops know that…
Civity Partners with Welcoming America on Workshop to Build Trust Across Difference
Last month, Malka and Palma provided an online session on “How to Build Trust Across Difference in Your Community” to several dozen members of Welcoming…
Seven Ways to Slice & Dice the Us-vs-Them Bogeyman
This is a fun title for a serious blog. I hear a lot – all of us hear a lot – about the prevalence of…