We all know what it feels like to be shut out. We’ve all felt at some point voiceless; powerless to make the changes we want to see in society, whether that’s at home, in our communities, across society, or in our places of work. We’ve all certainly felt it in politics. This is true for most people, most places, but exasperated in Northern Ireland due to its traditional divisions.

John Paul Lederach, one of academia’s most-renowned peace builders, once said: “The absence of a unifying vision in post-conflict societies is the single greatest obstacle to achieving lasting peace.”

It is precisely this sentiment that lies at the core of Community Dialogue and its partners’ upcoming ‘Civic Innovation Programme’. A programme, by the way, that I am very happy to be an active part of. The project is supported by the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, Porticus, The Reconciliation Fund, Paul Hamlyn Foundation and Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

If you’d like to join our coalition to build a united civic voice on the issues you want to see addressed in society, please look through the information and contact us at the details below.

Building a Strong Civic Voice

Community Dialogue has spent three decades seeking and promoting a unified vision for NI, facilitating dialogues and events geared towards empowering the marginalised and building a shared and prosperous future for all. Its consortium of partners across the community sector view the roll out of its Civic Innovation Programme, which will engage with more than 3,300 citizens across 337 events, as another tangible tool to help achieve this vision and give a strong civic voice to traditionally marginalised communities.

“Northern Ireland is full of such people and their experience of exclusion is reinforced by our unresolved legacy of conflict, and by our political systems that have been purposely designed to keep them and their communities ‘at bay’. This project provides them the opportunity to empower themselves, to become socially engaged, to build a collective vision, and to challenge the attitudes and systems inhibiting their participation.” David Holloway, Director, Community Dialogue

What topics we will consider

Throughout the next 18 months, through four methods, our work will include – but not be limited to – the below themes:

  • Challenging intolerance
  • Combating paramilitarism
  • Empowering the marginalised
  • Healing conflict legacy
  • Improving mental health
  • Building capacity for participation
  • Integrating education and housing
  • Encouraging community-government collaboration
  • Resolving constitutional tensions
  • Developing a united civic society voice

Our four methods of community building

While Community Dialogue and their partners do not see their philosophy – or even this specific project – as an ‘end all, be all’ to Northern Ireland’s socio-political woes, it is viewed as part of the journey to help get us there.

Through facilitated dialogue, an open discussion often with a loose structure, facilitators help guide the conversation and aid if/when dialogue breaks down. The process is meant to empower people to share their honest feelings and help build consensus.

Our events and workshops – online and face-to-face as Covid restrictions are lifted – will include:

  • Tier 1: Consensus-Building Dialogues – facilitated discussions and large-scale events covering a range of topics affecting NI, building consensus together to tackle these issues.
  • Tier 2: ‘Participative Democracy’ Workshops – developing the relationship between dialogue and learning, while building the capacity of grassroots communities to make their voices heard; and exploring alternative mechanisms for decision-making in NI.
  • Tier 3: Cross-Sectoral Coalition – Together, 24 advocacy engagements, will aim to address the needs of those feeling shut out of the political system.
  • Tier 4: Learning & Promotion – findings, action plans and feedback from the project will fuel research and learning materials to inspire community relations good practices to better inform public policy and benefit future generations.

What We Learned Last Time

Last autumn, Aisling Bishop of Community Dialogue and AvilaMedia launched the pilot of the ‘Participative Democracy’ workshops, engaging 30 participants across the grassroots, the community sector and civil society to explore alternatives to decision-making processes – including deliberative polling, societal manifestos and citizens’ assemblies. We also discussed different ways to expand democratic principles, practically address social needs and develop action plans on how to bridge the gap between communities and their elected leaders. 

Being 2020, the year of Covid and Brexit, it’s fair to say some participants were initially a bit anxious and uncertain about the future. Throughout the few weeks of discussions, however, there was a notable change in how they began to feel about themselves and this place we call home. A sense of hope began to brew alongside their new-found friends and colleagues. 

Here are some ways participants’ views on politics and democracy changed:

Steve McGookin, Associate Editor at Northern Slant, had this to say after participating in the first round of the project:

“It’s been a tough year, but knowing there are others out there, not just talking about a more positive and shared Northern Ireland, but taking action to achieve it, is very inspiring. I know these fine people will continue to work to build a civil society we can all be proud of.”

Instilling hope is precisely what this project seeks to accomplish over the next 18 months.

How do I Get Involved?

If you want to help steer Northern Ireland towards a new and more positive tomorrow, today, contact us via the details below to join our mailing list for upcoming events, forums, and workshops. 

There’s no reason the coalition we seek to establish can’t reach corners of our society previously unreachable, furthering democratic principles and helping make marginalisation a thing of the past. We invite those within and beyond Northern Slant to take part as participants, co-facilitators, advocates, peace builders and friends, joined together by this common sentiment:

“We are working to ensure that the feeling of not belonging, of being voiceless, is something that future generations will only ever read about in history books.”  – Aisling Bishop, Community Dialogue

For further information & to RSVP contact: admin@communitydialogue.org 

We look forward to seeing you out in the community soon!