Sponsors and Supporters of the 2004 Conference

We would like to thank all of the organizations and individuals listed on this page for helping to ensure that the 2004 National Conference on Dialogue & Deliberation is a successful, unforgettable event. We would not be able to do this without you!

The 2004 National Conference on Dialogue & Deliberation is funded, in part, by the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

Co-Sponsors of the 2004 NCDD Conference

Along with the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation, the conference is Co-Sponsored by The Forum Foundation, the International Association for Public Participation, and by Regis University's Institute on the Common Good.

The Forum Foundation

The Forum Foundation conducts futures research in the field of Administrative Theory and Many-to-Many Communication technology to discover those dynamics which tend to move organizations and institutions, universally, toward solving their problems and anticipating or adapting to changes in their internal or external environment.

The Forum Foundation is interested in applying the Fast Forum? groupware technique using an "Opinionnaire?" and "Viewspaper?" to assist leaders to "talk" symbolically with constituents and for them to "talk" back. This assists in (1) diagnosing system problems as a first step in solving them, (2) learning through the dynamics of the Socratic Method by individuals and organizations participating, and (3) moving organizations and individuals participating toward organizational and societal peace. Some limited grants are available to support services to organizations interested in participating in the research. States, cities, schools, and organizations interested are invited to apply.

The International Association for Public Participation (IAP2)

The International Association for Public Participation is an association of members who promote and improve the practice of public participation decisions that affect the public interest in nations throughout the world. IAP2 carries out its mission by organizing and conducting activities to:

IAP2 was founded in 1990 as the International Association of Public Participation Practitioners (IAP3) to respond to the rising global interest in public participation. The initial mission was to promote the values and best practices associated with involving the public in government and industry decisions which affect their lives.

Regis University's Institute on the Common Good

The Regis University Institute on the Common Good seeks to facilitate dialogue aimed at developing strategies to resolve important community issues. Rooted in the tradition of Roman Catholic social teaching, the Institute asserts the dignity and social nature of the human person. Nether liberal nor conservative in its posture, the Institute operates on the belief that a healthy society is committed to the welfare of all its members, especially those without a voice, suggesting a balance that avoids the extremes of exclusive individualism or totalitarianism.

The Institute sponsors public and private forums for the discussion of significant social issues. Its intent is to promote the long-term good of the greater community of Denver and the Rocky Mountain West through the discovery of common ground for addressing these issues. While not a formal academic program, the Institute encourages Regis University faculty and students to incorporate its themes into their courses and other academic work. The University is dedicating its own resources, including space, to serve the common good through these public and private discussions as well as ongoing research and teaching.

Partners with the 2004 NCDD Conference

Partners of the conference include the Animating Democracy Initiative of Americans for the Arts, the Conflict Resolution Institute at the University of Denver, the Jefferson Center, the Pennsylvania Center for Civic Life, the Public Conversations Project, the Study Circles Resource Center, and the Western Justice Center.

The Animating Democracy Initiative of Americans for the Arts

The Animating Democracy Initiative (ADI), launched in fall 1999, is a programmatic initiative of Americans for the Arts made possible with support from The Ford Foundation. Its purpose is to foster artistic activity that encourages civic dialogue on important contemporary issues.

The Initiative does this through an integrated set of program components including: publication of the study Animating Democracy: The Artistic Imagination as a Force in Civic Dialogue, reports and other field resources; The Animating Democracy Lab, which identifies and strengthens exemplary arts-based civic dialogue projects sponsored by arts and cultural institutions through financial and advisory support; An interactive web site and searchable database to centralize extensive information on arts-based civic dialogue; National convenings to share learning resulting from the Animating Democracy Initiative.

Americans for the Arts is the nation's leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With a 40-year record of service, it is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all
forms of the arts.

Conflict Resolution Institute, University of Denver

Conflict in the twenty-first century poses a major threat to human security. At the University of Denver, faculty affiliated with the graduate level interdisciplinary Conflict Resolution Program (started in 1998) believe it is important to explore theories, methods, approaches, and practical techniques in social management and problem-solving that cross conventional disciplinary boundaries. Generous support from the Henry Luce Foundation allowed for the hiring of a senior professor in September, 2002 to provide leadership for expanded Conflict Resolution activities locally, regionally, and nationally. The newly inaugurated Conflict Resolution Institute supports an interdisciplinary academic program, interdisciplinary research center, and active partnerships in conflict resolution practice.

The Conflict Resolution Institute is designed to educate students and professionals in conflict resolution frameworks and technical skills for problem-solving, management, and leadership in various social settings including politics, business and the workplace, and interpersonal life; to encourage theoretic and applied research on methods for conflict prevention and conflict transformation based on ethical standards of justice and fairness; and to expand public awareness of alternative bargaining, negotiation, mediation, and facilitation techniques for resolving disputes in order to improve societal relations and levels of trust between individuals, within organizations, and across cultures by promoting peaceful resolution of conflict. One of its unique program strengths is its diverse course offerings that include both skills courses and theory courses on the range of conflict resolution processes.

The Jefferson Center

The principle work of the Center has been the development and demonstration of the Citizens Jury? process. Over 30 such projects have been conducted since 1974 in the United States. This parallels work in Germany, where Professor Peter Dienel, working out of the Research Institute for Citizen Participation and Planning Methods at the University of Wuppertal, invented a very similar method called "Planungszelle".

In 1994 the British think tank, IPPR, became interested in the work being done in the U.S. and Germany, paid visits to both Minneapolis and Wuppertal, and published a book entitled, Citizens Juries. Since 1996, over 200 projects have been run in Britain. The process has also spread to Australia, Austria, India, Spain, and other nations.

The Citizens Jury process is designed to allow decision-makers to hear the people's authentic voice. A Citizens Jury provides an unparalleled opportunity for citizens to learn about an issue and deliberate together to find a common ground solution. Decision-makers who watch a Citizens Jury in action or listen to a jury's recommendations are able to learn what an informed public wants, and why. This information can be an invaluable resource for elected officials and other decision-makers at the the local, state, and national levels.

The Pennsylvania Center for Civic Life

Based at Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania, the Center for Civic Life advances the understanding and practice of deliberative democracy through teaching and learning. It sponsors collaborative projects, often based in high school and college classrooms. It undertakes and reports research that explores the power of deliberative talk to strengthen engagement in learning and in democracy. While these activities often begin at universities in Pennsylvania?s State System of Higher Education, they link schools, universities and communities across the country and around the world.

Teachers, students, staff and other concerned citizens are all encouraged to become a part of these efforts. The Center promotes creation of a wider network of educators, students, citizens, schools, and communities as essential parts of the web necessary for support of a dynamic and vital democracy.

Teachingdemocracy.org, the web home of the Center for Civic Life, is an online meeting place and resource center for people interested in sharing what they know about deliberative democracy in a creative setting that promotes and values experimentation.

The Public Conversations Project

The Public Conversations Project began in 1989 as a small brainstorming group which explored the possibility that family therapists have ways of working with conflict that can be fruitfully applied in the public arena. This exploration led to the establishment of an action-research project which was conducted under the auspices of the Family Institute of Cambridge. In 1996, with support from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Project became a free-standing 501(c)(3) organization.

The Public Conversations Project has convened, conducted, and evaluated dialogues on abortion, the environment, sexual orientation and religion, social class, population and women's health. They have consulted on a wide range of issues and have shared the fruits of their learning through workshops and trainings, offered nationally and internationally, and publications in the popular press and scholarly journals.

The Study Circles Resource Center

The Study Circles Resource Center is dedicated to finding ways for all kinds of people to engage in dialogue and problem solving on critical social and political issues. SCRC helps communities by giving them the tools to organize productive dialogue, recruit diverse participants, find solutions, and work for action and change.

The Topsfield Foundation created the Study Circles Resource Center in 1989. Since then, SCRC has worked with many kinds of communities, on many different issues, to develop a process for bringing people together for creative community change. Hundreds of communities across the country have organized study circle programs. SCRC works directly with these communities to refine and improve the process for organizing large-scale community dialogue that leads to action and change.

As SCRC staff and associates work with regional, state, and national organizations interested in active citizenship, study circles are becoming a more widely known and well-tested process for large-scale citizen involvement. Throughout the country, study circles are increasingly recognized as a dynamic part of what many are heralding as a new movement for strengthening democracy and community building.

Western Justice Center

For the Western Justice Center Foundation (WJCF), the development of a peaceful society is more than an ideal. It is a goal translated into three priority programs that teach children the skills of peaceful conflict resolution, help communities resolve disputes without violence, and assist our nation?s courts and administrative agencies improve access to justice through innovative programs and other practices which increase consumer satisfaction.

WJCF is non-partisan and non-ideological. It nurtures collaboration among diverse groups and creates cost-effective partnerships among organizations to accomplish more than each organization could achieve alone. WJCF is both a local and national resource, providing services and testing new ideas in the greater Pasadena/Los Angeles area, then communicating results on these and other model practices to a growing national/international constituency.

Supporters of the Conference

The following groups provided significant in-kind donations and support.

Alchemy
The Center for Deliberative Democracy at Stanford
The Co-Intelligence Institute
The Deliberative Democracy Consortium
The Dialogue Group
Diversity Arts
The Global Negotiation Project at Harvard Law School
Heartland Institute
The International Institute for Sustained Dialogue
The Kettering Foundation
The National Issues Forums Institute
What is Enlightenment? Magazine
The World Caf?

Supporters of the Scholarship Fund

The following people and organizations have made donationsto the conference scholarship fund:

Kathy Covert, Associate Strategist, Federal Geographic Data Committee
Center for Multicultural Excellence at the University of Denver
John Esterle, Executive Director, The Whitman Institute
Deborah Flick, President, Collaborative Solutions Group
Nancy Glock-Grueneich, HIGHER EDge
Maribeth Goodman, The Goodman Group, Inc.
Scott Hammond, Professor, Utah Valley State College
Joan Heron, Retired Professor, California State Fresno
Patrick Hill, Evergreen State College
Sharda Miller, Voices of Vision
Curt Paddock, President, Trajectory Consultants
Charlie Pillsbury, Executive Director, Community Mediation, Inc.
Julie Pratt
Tobin Quereau, Austin Community College
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Marilyn Saunders, Skills for the 21st Century
John Spady, Forum Foundation
William & Flora Hewlett Foundation

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