[Libs-Or] Announcing the NEW 2014-15 Conversation Project catalog

[Annie Kaffen]

Oregon Humanities is pleased to announce the new 2014-15 Conversation Project catalog, featuring 33 programs covering topics such as surveillance, agriculture, disability, education, guns, and sports.

What is the Conversation Project?

The Conversation Project offers Oregon nonprofit and community organizations low-cost, humanities-based public discussion programs about provocative issues and ideas. Discussions last sixty to ninety minutes and are led by trained conversation facilitators who connect the subject to participants’ experiences and to the local community, and challenge participants to think in new ways without advocating a particular perspective.

Why conversation?

If we hope to make real strides in building just communities, we need to develop practices that help us trust one another. We need to see and understand the world from the perspectives of others. We also need to develop the communication skills required to solve deep problems. In support of these practices, Oregon Humanities developed the Conversation Project; we believe that conversation is a powerful medium to invite diverse perspectives, explore challenging questions, and strive for just communities.

Why should my organization host a Conversation Project?

Nonprofit and community groups have reported that hosting Conversation Projects helps them meet their own educational and community-based missions. The program accomplishes this by doing the following:

Providing high-quality, affordable, and accessible public programming
Offering experienced facilitation and knowledge of a topic
Modeling open-minded, exploratory discussion about challenging topics
Attracting diverse public audiences and engaging new individuals to the host’s work
Connecting big ideas to local/regional communities and to individual experiences
Inspiring continued learning and inquiry on the part of participants

Apply before September 30 for Conversation Project programs taking place between November 2014 and February 2015. To read the full catalog, download an application, and watch video introductions to each program, please visit oregonhumanities.org. For questions and more information, please contact program officer Annie Kaffen at (503) 241-0543 or (800) 735-0543, ext 116, or a [dot] kaffen [at] oregonhumanities [dot] org. 


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