Page 420 - Mike Ratner CC - WISR Complete Dissertation - v6

In my 9/26/18 review with my graduate advisor related to this project, I was asked to add

to the conclusion of what was missing or offers opportunity for future study. This dissertation was

initially designed to take stock of the “Community Conversation” movement which is a group of

local actions whom are hardly aware of each other’s efforts. I then looked into the accumulated

experiences of deliberative dialogue facilitation and community intervention research and the ways

in which it has unfolded over time. While I participated and studied up close dialogues in five

cities, it is obvious something significant is happening which has great potential, but continued

study and a focus on both local impacts and individual-level change is needed to build knowledge

of how communities in conversation thrive and how perhaps external community interventions

can contribute to sustainable community-level impact. However wonderful Community

Conversations are they need greater participation and that involves inspiring more people willing

to step up to lead / start them and effectually get facilitator training. This requires finding and

working with community members who love the concept or are least willing to make the effort

meaningful for others to take part. That can be challenging to find volunteers without cash

incentive, who have the time, interest and skill to reach out to others particularly those who have

culturally varied worldviews and go into communities that have coped with serious challenges

over long periods of time to come together for a dialogue. Yet, when accomplished it’s that exact

quality of engagement and interaction that brings forth the variety of insight, wisdom and

experience that can add immeasurably to the possibilities and power of leading local-level impact.

Community Conversations may seem simple or trite as a concept but ought to been seen as

a form of regional wellness therapy which offers complex social processes with properties that

constitute more than the sum of their parts. A critical need exists to develop new ways of building

evidence that reflect the complex social systems involved when conducting a conversation that can

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