Question

writing a dialogue between two friends on the difficulties
during lockdown​

Answer 1

Answer:

I’m quite used to connecting to people through technology. Living on the other side of the world from friends and family will do that. And in my experience, you can have just as meaningful conversations online as you can in person. Still, as I end the Facetime call with my sisters, I reflect on the fact that it took a global pandemic for all three of us to get on a call together. And that more daily interaction (in person or virtually) with friends and family, as well as with strangers (though good to avoid in-person interaction for the upcoming future), to better understand each other’s experiences and perspectives, could be a step towards decreasing polarisation. At a very basic level, dialogue is ‘a conversation between two or more persons’ and ‘an exchange of ideas and opinions’ (Merriam-Webster dictionary). It doesn’t need to be formal.

Before the global outbreak of COVID-19, the foundation talked with peacebuilders during four separate roundtables – in Jordan, Lebanon, Sri Lanka and Sweden – about how they have used dialogue within their work to promote more inclusive and peaceful societies. Discussions centred on how dialogue can impact divisions within communities, the challenges that arise in organising dialogue sessions and what is needed to bolster the role of dialogue in peacebuilding. Yana Abu Taleb, Shirine Jurdi, Peter Wallenteen, Sarah Dolah and Mohammed Shale Billow, all contributors to Dialogue in Peacebuilding: Understanding Different Perspectives, also shared during the different sessions some of their experiences facilitating dialogue.

Due to recent developments, the foundation will during the upcoming months not be organising further in-person discussions on the role of dialogue in peacebuilding. Social distancing gives us a chance, however, to reflect on and learn about different experiences with dialogue. One of the messages to come out of Dialogue in Peacebuilding was that dialogue means different things to different people. It’s multiple meanings and the way that these multiple meanings impact approaches to dialogue efforts became evident in roundtable discussions as well.