September 2026

Americans in Conversation

Dear Friends — Happy Fall!

Fall is my favorite season; I’ve always liked it best. Even as a kid, I looked forward to slow summers being over and school starting. I wanted to stop sitting around and get on with it!

There are a lot of great things going on this fall, including some options to help you on your civity journey.

We’re in the middle of Welcoming Week, the annual event sponsored by Welcoming America, one of our amazing partners. Check out the Welcoming Week schedule here, and join us at our post-Welcoming Week Civity webinar on October 6!
Do you want to help people better understand and build trust in our election process … and in each other? Check out the resources on the Trustworthy Elections Initiative website – or just contact us – to organize an event in your community!
We have a brand-new partnership with the National Conference on Citizenship and the American Conversation Project. Learn more about hosting a small-group conversation in your community as part of this national visioning initiative!
Connect with other Civity Champions virtually on Saturday, October 17, or – take a leap and sign up for the sign up for the Civity Train-the-Trainer workshop on Monday, November 9.

As always, we are inspired by the great people we come into contact with through Civity. Check out Palma’s article on our experience talking with other Americans via StoryCorps’ Connect250 project and AllSides’ American Dream Roundtable. And a big shout-out to Aiden Flynn, our summer intern, who brought to us the wonderful idea of starting Civity Clubs in high schools. Aiden, we thank you for your great work and look forward to seeing what comes of it!

Friends, let’s enjoy the season, and let’s get on with it … together. –Malka

"I Dream a World..."

By Palma Joy Strand

Last month, Malka and I jumped on a couple of civity opportunities to be in conversation with people different from us. We both participated in the StoryCorps Connect250 invitation to record a one-on-one conversation with another American about who we are and what we hope for the nation, looking 50 years ahead. I also was part of a Roundtable, co-sponsored by AllSides and Newsweek, in which a randomly-selected small group from across the country contemplated the meaning of and our experiences with the American Dream.

The Birth of

Civity Clubs

By Aiden Flynn

At 6:00 pm, ten students join me at the gate. Sharp New England wind cuts through the air, but we are oblivious, warmed by excited chatter. We have come to this inaugural meeting of the Circle Chats Club to answer one question: What does it mean to deserve to go to our school?

I didn’t know it then, but this was my first taste of civity.

Growing Civity with the American Conversation Project!

By Malka Ranjana Kopell

Civity is thrilled to partner with the American Conversation Project (ACP) — a nonpartisan national civic listening initiative led by the National Conference on Citizenship, in partnership with Cortico and a coalition of civic, education, cultural, faith, and media organizations. ACP brings people together in communities for small in-person conversations that strengthen the bonds that hold us together … civity!

Civity Events:

Join Civity at an Upcoming Event!

CIVITY CHAMPIONS: Community of Practice (quarterly gathering)

Join this quarterly opportunity to hear from Civity Champions and interact with others in our community of practice. Be inspired and meet fellow travelers!

October’s Civity Champion is Jen O. Leshnower,

Former Bridging & Democracy Fellow of AmeriCorps and Current National Board Member of Repair the World! FREE TO ALL!

SAT, OCTOBER 17, 2026

10a-11a PT | 12p-1p CT | 1p-2p ET

TRAIN-THE-TRAINER:
Integrating Civity Exercises
Into Your Practice

This special 4-hour workshop is designed for trainers and facilitators who want to incorporate Civity exercises or the full Civity workshop into their own offerings. Participants who complete the course will receive a Civity trainer certificate.

MON, NOVEMBER 9, 2026

9a-1p PT | 11a-3p CT | 12p-4p ET

What an honor to spend time with the inspiring women at SES Equality & Solidarity Association!

Check out this article by SES describing our work together: "At its core, the Civity approach encourages people to engage with those who hold different views and embrace different identities in a more open, curious, and non-judgmental way. It reminds us of something simple but difficult in practice: instead of withdrawing or becoming defensive, we must stay engaged, listen, and try to understand. In today’s increasingly polarized global climate, this is less of a choice and more of a fundamental social capacity we need to work on."

Civity in the News:

SES & Civity: Working Together to Strengthen Trust in Turkey

Civity in the News:

Palma & Malka on In Reality Podcast

Palma & Malka recently appeared on In Reality, the podcast about truth, disinformation and the media, with host and longtime journalist Eric Schurenberg, now the founder of the Alliance for Trust in Media.

We thoroughly enjoyed talking to Eric, and the title he gave to our podcast conversation – “Heart vs. Head: How to Actually Get Things Done in a Diverse Democracy!" – says it all.

LISTEN

Civity Podcasts:

Listen to the Latest Civity Podcasts!

D.G. MAWN: Nurturing Community Through Convening & Mediation

LISTEN!

ERIC SCHURENBERG: Building Trust Among Newsrooms & Audiences

LISTEN!

How You Can Support Civity’s Work

Thank you for supporting and practicing civity! To support Civity’s work with a tax-exempt donation, CLICK HERE to donate online or get instructions to send a check.

Our work is more important than ever, and we can’t do it without you. Help us reach more people and give support to leaders across the country seeking to build civity.

Donate to Civity!

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