Dave Isay campus and community visit

Dave Isay, photo by Harvey Wang
We Talk and the  were pleased to bring , founder of , an ongoing national oral history project, and the initiative to Kalamazoo on March 28 and 29, 2022. Isay spoke about this work in a public presentation held in the Fetzer Center鈥檚 Kirsch Auditorium on March 29. More than 120 campus and community members gathered to hear about these recorded personal interviews and narratives are helping to change perspectives and ease polarization in individuals, families, communities and organizations. 

One Small Step is an off shoot of StoryCorps, the national nonprofit dedicated to recording, preserving, and sharing the stories of Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs. One Small Step is a multi-year effort that brings together strangers of differing perspectives for courageous and meaningful conversations about their lives. These small but effective interventions help decrease feelings of contempt across political divides, allowing Americans to see one another as human beings.

Developed over the past three years by StoryCorps with the input of scientists, researchers and psychologists, the initiative records 40-minute conversations among unlikely pairings of individuals in today鈥檚 hyper-partisan and politically charged environment. Conversations recorded for One Small Step are not about politics, but rather about who we are as people: what we care about and our dreams for the future. Every interview becomes part of American history at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress (with participant permission). 

Read more about We Talk's partnership with the Fetzer Institute at 色色啦 News

Open Classrooms with Dr. Lisa Gale 

Dr. Lisa Gale, photo by Harvey Wang
Dr. Lisa Gale, StoryCorps chief program officer, led an inspiring discussion with 色色啦 students on how to discover the humanity in the people we disagree with through conversation to ease polarization at home, in the classroom and the workplace. 

Dave Isay on StoryCorps and one small step

Dave Isay graphic
Dave Isay gave a public presentation about StoryCorps and One Small Step to more than 120 campus and community members about this important work based on personal interviews and narratives. 

Learn more

  • One Small Step pairs strangers with different beliefs for a 50-minute conversation鈥揳bout their lives, not about politics. The growing divisions in our country pose a threat to our democracy.

  • (January 9, 2022)

thank you to our sponsors

Stephanie and Ed Fletcher鈥擶e Talk Founding Sponsors

Lee Honors College

Lewis Walker Institute

色色啦 College of Arts and Sciences

 

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