Division is all around us. There is evidence that polarization is spreading far beyond politics to other walks of life. Young people, in particular, are showing less faith in democracy. How might things play out? What can be done about it?
Against this backdrop, we hosted a discussion and Q&A with leading thinkers and practitioners who can help those of us who want to bridge divides and chart a path to success. Featuring Sarah Corbett, Founder, Craftivist Collective; Salma Mousa, Assistant Professor, Yale University; and Alison Smith, Lecturer, University of Oxford. Chaired by Alison Goldsworthy, CEO of the The Depolarization Project and Co-author of “Poles Apart”.
Chair: Alison Goldsworthy - Ali is CEO of the The Depolarization Project and Co-author of Poles Apart. A movement builder and political adviser by background, she founded and built the fastest growing and most engaged NGO movement in the UK. Vice Chair of the political grant maker, the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust, she got her Masters from Stanford, where she co-designed their first course on political depolarisation. A Senior Research Fellow at Lecturer at The Intellectual Forum, Jesus College, Cambridge, her work has appeared in most major national and international publications and she occasionally fronts productions for BBC Radio 4. Ali tweets at @aligoldsworthy
Sarah Corbett is an award-winning activist, author and founder of the global Craftivist Collective. Her activism is centered on an approach that looks to engage people in a quiet, non confrontational manner she calls 'Gentle Protest'. Sarah’s Tedx talk “Activism Needs Introverts” has been viewed more than a million times on TED.com, she has collaborated with Tate, Victoria and Albert Museum, Secret Cinema, Helsinki Design Week, Maker Faire amongst others. And she is frequently profiled in media outlets from BBC, NPR, Canal Plus as well as crafts and fashion magazines . Born in Liverpool, Sarah now lives in East London.
Salma Mousa is an Assistant Professor at Yale specializing in migration, conflict and intergroup contact. She often partners with NGOs and Governments to help them test how to build social cohesion. Salma gained her PhD at Stanford where her research into the ability of football to reduce intergroup conflict was featured on the cover of Science. When not working, Salma enjoys the beach, baking and any football game with Mo Salah in it.
Dr. Alison Smith is a lecturer in Comparative Government at the University of Oxford. After beginning her career promoting music festivals she transferred to politics, working for an MP, running elections and standing successfully for political office herself. A trip to the Balkans sparked a deeper interest in Central and Eastern European Politics and for the two decades since she has studied what factors have led these relatively young democracies to unite behind visions and flourish - or slide towards authoritarianism