Circle Dialogue

A talk-story approach to community building and peacemaking

Circle Dialogue is...

A holistic, human approach to have difficult conversations, resolve conflicts, and build and deepen relationships
A safe and courageous space to hear and share diverse experiences and perspectives
A deliberately planned process that is designed and facilitated by a trained Circle Keeper
A centuries-old indigenous practice that has recently been introduced in Western culture through restorative justice and peacemaking

When building connections matter, or when important conversations keep going 'round and 'round -or aren't being had at all- a Circle Dialogue might be the tool to get you unstuck.

Jess shares why she loves the Circle Dialogue Process during a Mindful Hawaii Community Meeting (1 min)

When and why would you use a Circle Dialogue?

A Circle Dialogue can be planned as a stand-alone event, a recurring community experience, or an enhancement to your leadership retreat or new member orientation. With your input and partnership, we customize each Circle process to best meet your group's needs, such as:

Create connections among a new and old members
Deepen relationships within an existing team
Build mutual understanding around a delicate topic
Share diverse experiences and perspectives in a safe space
Process and discuss a difficult issue, conflict, or shared experience
Gather vulnerable information from varied perspectives

Experience and Learn More

The best way to learn about and better understand the Circle Dialogue process is to experience it. Let's talk about about how a Circle Dialogue could help you in achieve your goals. Contact us directly or join our interest list below to hear about upcoming Circle experiences and our information session: Circle Dialogue 101.

Hear from Circle Participants

I came away surprised. I had no intention of sharing what I did. The questions prompted me to go places I hadn’t planned to go, but I felt completely safe talking about these things. And I connected with the other stories in lots of ways.

[I appreciated] the beauty of establishing a very simple rule: that every body gets to speak personally, without worrying about being interrupted and needing to get back in the game [...] and listen completely to what others need to say.

I think the Circle says a lot about the possibility of us finding clarification and reinforcement in our community. You don’t have to do it yourself. You can share it and have people support you [...] encouraging you to say what’s on your mind. And I think that’s what we need in our society.