Bridging the Divide dialogue series: The whole point is to get students from different ideologies in the same room to talk

"Students [are] talking to each other about challenging issues in a space where they won't feel judged or attacked."

Bridging the Divide began as a pilot project last spring on four UW campuses: Oshkosh, Eau Claire, Green Bay and Parkside, on discussing difficult subjects in a polarized society. This past fall, it expanded to all 13 four-year UW campuses.

The gatherings occur monthly, with a different topic each time-abortion, climate change, affirmative action, immigration among them-and led by student facilitators.

UW-Oshkosh's Mike Lueder, outreach affiliate for the Thompson Center who oversees the project and director of UWO's Center for Civic and Community Engagement, came up with the slogan: "replacing snark with conversation, tweets with talk, and scrolls and likes with face-to-face dialogue."

Read more about this important project in a profile crafted by the team at UW-Madison:

Bridging the Divide dialogue series