Skip to content
Project 2025
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories
Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs on stage

Luke Combs, politics and healing our nation's divide

Medicare Health Insurance Card. Social Security Card with Stethoscope and pen

Trump’s plan for Social Security risks undermining its future

A fictional, fanciful sign depicts the results of voter suppression through the unfair, partisan manipulation of district lines (gerrymandering).

The worst congressional gerrymanders of the 2020s

National Week of Conversation: Uniting Americans to #DisagreeBetter

National Week of Conversation logo
Graham Bodie
By Graham BodieApr 04, 2024
Graham Bodie
See More Writings by author

Bodie is a professor of integrated marketing communication at the University of Mississippi and chief listening officer at the Listen First Project.

In an era when division often takes center stage, the National Week of Conversation emerges as a beacon of hope. Now in its seventh year, NWoC invites Americans to rise above division April 15-21 by participating in a signature experience that builds connections across differences. NWoC offers a variety of unique opportunities for individuals from all walks of life to enjoy meaningful engagement with their fellow Americans and strengthen the fabric of our nation.

NWoC is a week to become inspired, equipped and engaged in bridge building. It was created for those exhausted by the division and hatred in our country. It was created for those seeking ways to turn down the heat of polarization.

Organized by the Listen First Coalition – which includes over 500 organizations committed to bridging divides – and in partnership with the National Governors Association’s #DisagreeBetter campaign, NWoC is a nationwide initiative with countless opportunities for local engagement. Throughout the week, Americans from coast to coast will have the chance to join virtual and in-person activities, including panel discussions, workshops, community forums, one-on-one conversations and the inaugural Better Together Film Festival. These events are designed to facilitate dialogue on crucial issues, share stories and experiences, and explore ways to collaboratively address the challenges facing our nation.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

This year NWoC is also excited to be partnering with hundreds of Public Broadcasting Service stations across the country in airing the film “Divided We Fall: Listening with Curiosity.” Check your local PBS station to see when the film is airing in your area, or see the PBS WORLD schedule for other airing times.

NWoC is about creating spaces for conversations that help us rediscover our shared humanity and the love we have for our country. It is about learning to search for common ground rather than conflict. It is about respecting where we disagree rather than trying to avoid or attack differences of opinion. It is about committing to #DisagreeBetter.

By participating in NWoC, Americans can show up for each other and the country we all love. Everyone is invited to take part in this transformative week.

Get more information about the National Week of Conversation, including a schedule of in-person and virtual events and learn how you can get involved.

Latest news

Read More

The arc of the moral universe doesn’t bend itself

"Stone of Hope" statue, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, Sunday, January 19, 2014.

(Photo by Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

The arc of the moral universe doesn’t bend itself

“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s familiar words, inscribed on his monument in Washington, D.C., now raise the question: Is that true?

A moral universe must, by its very definition, span both space and time. Yet where is the justice for the thousands upon thousands of innocent lives lost over the past year — whether from violence between Ukraine and Russia, or toward Israelis or Palestinians, or in West Darfur? Where is the justice for the hundreds of thousands of “disappeared” in Mexico, Syria, Sri Lanka, and other parts of the world? Where is the justice for the billions of people today increasingly bearing the brunt of climate change, suffering from the longstanding polluting practices of other communities or other countries? Is the “arc” bending the wrong way?

Keep ReadingShow less
A Republic, if we can keep it

American Religious and Civil Rights leader Dr Martin Luther King Jr (1929 - 1968) addresses the crowd on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington, Washington DC, August 28, 1963.

(Photo by PhotoQuest/Getty Images)

A Republic, if we can keep it

Part XXXIV: An Open Letter to President Trump from the American People

Dear President Trump,

Keep ReadingShow less
Finding meaning in a tragedy that defies understanding

A barn burning during a wildfire.

Getty Images//Photographer: David Odisho/Bloomberg

Finding meaning in a tragedy that defies understanding

The devastation caused by the recent fires in Los Angeles has been heartbreaking. The loss of life and property, and the grief that so many are experiencing, remind us of the vulnerability of everything in life.

Nothing is permanent. There are no guarantees for tomorrow. We are all so fragile and that fragility so often leads to breaking. And it hurts.

Keep ReadingShow less
Fueling Innovation to Navigate the Wildfire Challenge Ahead

A homeless woman pushes her belongings off Pacific Coast Highway and Topanga Canyon Blvd as the Palisades Fire rages down the hills in Pacific Palisades, Calif. on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Fueling Innovation to Navigate the Wildfire Challenge Ahead

One glimpse at the August 2024 wildfire incident map of Western North America and one might have thought half the continent was on fire. Oregon had declared a statewide wildfire state of emergency through September. California was grappling with the Park Fire, the fourth largest in the state’s history. New Mexico was recovering from flash floods exacerbated by the South Fork and Salt fires. The National Interagency Fire Center was reporting 85 large wildfires requiring active management, with nearly 30,000 wildland firefighters and support staff deployed, and evacuation orders in place for 20 fires. Meanwhile, Canada dealt with the incineration of the scenic and popular tourist town of Jasper and the evacuation of Saddle Hills County in Alberta, also requiring emergency measures to sustain incident operations including needing to mobilize international support through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. Fire services worldwide are increasingly engaged in protecting communities and natural resources, in geographies as diverse as North America, Chile, Siberia, Greece, Australia, and South Africa.

The 2024 fires in Western North America are not an anomaly; rather they reflect a global trend. The science is consistent and clear: Extreme wildfires have more than doubled in both frequency and magnitude over the past two decades, and this trend is expected to continue. Fires are a natural phenomenon across biomes, affecting just about every continent. However, in the context of unfolding climate change trends, including extreme heat and wind conditions, the risk of wildfire impacts is drastically increasing. Extreme wildfire impacts now span geopolitical boundaries, affecting diverse communities and ecosystems each year. Fires can burn wherever fuel is available, without regard for a community’s resources, politics, or development. While the challenge is complex, it is also unifying. We share the burden of catastrophic wildfires, and the potentially irreversible consequences they can cause.

Keep ReadingShow less
© Copyright 2025