Abstract

ROUNDTABLES AT ONE COMMUNITY PLACE

Christina Marchant & Sheila McIntyre

In 2002, Family Services à la famille (FSFO) experimented with the roundtable model of dialogue to help foster community connection. Roundtables, symbols of open, respectful and democratic interaction, are a place for bringing together diverse people to share ideas and discuss issues that are important to them.

Three roundtables were implemented: the changing face of family; the experience of mental illness; and the role of counselling in our community. Participants were selected who had strong and informed opinions, but who wouldn’t normally have had the opportunity to speak with one another. A carefully-constructed open agenda and attention to ambience helped to create an atmosphere in which participants were able to dialogue, not debate, where people had a chance to discover shared values beneath their conflicting points of view. Participants from each roundtable reported decreased experiences of isolation, a stronger sense of hope, and increased understanding of the shared values from which they could build for change.

We are excited by the potential power of the roundtable both within and outside our agency to seed cross-sectoral connections, to connect people and issues. The roundtables created an open space that can facilitate and foster true listening and expression, enabling people to truly hear each other.

This presentation will describe the roundtable process and share the benefits and lessons generated from this first year of practice. It will also engage the audience participants in an informal roundtable discussion to explore others’ experiences with grasssroots citizens’ dialogues to promote community.

Bio

Sheila McIntyre is the president and founder of McIntyre and Associates. She provides consulting services in the areas of strategic planning, change management, team building, conflict management, and group facilitation. She is president of the board of directors of Family Services à la famille Ottawa, and has facilitated four roundtables since January 2002.

Christina Marchant manages community programs at Family Services à la famille Ottawa; prior to that, she coordinated social action and advocacy for the agency. She has been involved in numerous community-building initiatives, including founding an Art Studio for People Living with Mental Illness; developing an innovative video called Living on the Edge of Homelessness; and serving as chair the Ottawa Child Poverty Action Group.

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