In 2023 we organized

10 dialogues

on major political topics

dividing Polish society.

400 citizens registered, 122 have participated

2023 election year dialogues

The goal of the project was to reduce polarization and showcase a different conversation on top political issues than the one imposed by the election campaign. The grant, funded by the Washington-based National Endowment for Democracy, also allowed us to launch the Polish Dialogue platform, where citizens can register for upcoming dialogues and review the results of previous ones.

Go to the Polish Dialogue platform

Who participated?

We used a nationwide social media campaign to attract regular citizens from all over Poland – diverse in terms of gender, age, education, political views and place of residence. Initially, they had one thing in common: they all wanted to meet and talk with people holding opposing views. As they participated in our dialogues they discovered that they had much more in common.

What were the topics?

Go to dialogue summaries (in Polish)

What was the impact?

71%

of polled participants feel a greater sense of community with their conversation partners

68%

have a better understanding of people with opposing views

68%

feel more ready to talk to people who think differently

50%

are more likely to cooperate with people with opposing views

63%

declare a change in attitude – from a focus on persuasion to a desire for mutual understanding

73%

report conscious application of the skills acquired during the dialogue in personal life

What is the output?

Dialogue maps

Each conversation was summarized in a dialogue map that reveals the lines of division and common ground on each of the 10 divisive topics. The maps serve as a resource for NGOs and government units to address polarization around these issues.

See the dialogue maps (in Polish)

Recipes for good conversation

As citizens are asking for advice on how to handle conversations on polarizing issues, we have produced and disseminated simple recipes for good conversation, offering practical tips and guiding questions on each divisive dialogue topic.

See the recipes for conversation (in Polish)

What participants are saying:

It was an interesting experience to see that even if I see a difference between me and another person, at other time I can notice that we also have things in common.
If our politics looked more like this dialogue and maybe if, in conversation with loved ones, we could also speak from the heart and our own experiences as we did today, life would be much better in Poland.
If more people in Poland talked like we did here today on this subject, there would be less division and less political fighting. There was little of that political overtone heard here, and I am very happy about that.
Our positions, despite the discrepancies, were peacefully conveyed, and it will stay with me that you can tell each other what you think, provide access to these other bubbles in such a calm and cool way.
It was an eye-opening event to get out of my bubble. I had a chance to hear how important social benefits are to other people. Something that for me has no impact on quality of life, to another person can be very important.
I leave the dialogue feeling I have more empathy, a deeper sense of community and more hope that we can get along. That we can live and respect each other.