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Bridging Divides
Bridging Divides
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I’m publishing one podcast episode per day again in the month of November 2026 as part of a challenge called NaPodPoMo. It stands for National Podcast Post Month. November is National Podcast Post Month, and the goal of the challenge is 30 podcast episodes in 30 days. This year we're making it more about practicing and learning, so the topics will be a bit more scattered than past years and we'll feature my This Week on Outrage co-host Lisa, with more dialogue episodes. outrageoverload.substack.com

  1. 11/30/2025

    Conflict Tools for a Fractured Democracy - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 30

    Day 30—the final episode of our 30-day journey into bridging our divides. Over the last month, we’ve explored everything from navigating disinformation and polarization to building trust and transforming how we relate to one another. We’ve covered big challenges — and big ideas. And today, we’re closing out with something vital: practical exercises. We’re joined once again by Guy and Heidi Burgess of Beyond Intractability. Guy walks us through a set of real-world conflict resolution exercises designed to help people manage deep political and moral disagreements more constructively — and with more respect. Bridging isn’t just a concept. It’s something we do.And these skills help us take that first step. And that’s a wrap on our NaPodPoMo 2025 challenge!Thirty episodes in thirty days. Thank you for listening, for caring, and for joining me in this work of rebuilding trust — one conversation at a time. A huge thank you to: * Karissa Raskin - CEO, Listen First Project * Paul Resnick - Michael D Cohen Collegiate Professor of Information and Professor of Information, School of Information * Kira Hamman - Senior Director of Programs, Urban Rural Action * Kamy Akhavan - Managing Director, the Center for the Political Future (CPF) at the University of Southern California * Adam Mizel - Co-Founder & CEO, US United * Mat Cotton - US Bahai Office of Public Affairs Race Discourse Officer, Baha’is of the United States * Melanie Trecek-King - Associate Professor of Biology at Massasoit Community College and Creator of Thinking Is Power * Tania Israel - Professor, Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology - UC Santa Barbera * June Klees - Historian and educator at Bay College in Michigan * James Coan - Co-Founder and Executive Director, More Like Us * Guy and Heidi Burgess - Lifelong educators and conflict resolution pioneers, Co-Directors of the Conflict Information Consortium, Beyond Intractability, and the free BI Substack Newsletter * Calista Small - Research Manager, More in Common * Tim Jones - Founder & Executive Director, Longer Tables * Kate Ullman - Executive Director, Legislative Semester; CoFounder and Chair, Wisconsin Civic Learning Coalition * Lisa Swallow - Co-Founder, Crossing Party Lines Learn more: OutrageOverload.net BI Exercises, Online Tutorials, and Simulations Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    Conflict Tools for a Fractured Democracy - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 30

  2. 11/29/2025

    Dialogue vs. Discourse: Understanding the Difference - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 29

    Day 29 of our 30-day challenge, bringing us near the conclusion of our deep dive into bridging our divides. We’ve talked a lot about connection, listening, and disagreement—but there’s a subtle distinction that can make or break your efforts: the difference between dialogue and discourse. In the context of bridging, these words aren’t interchangeable. Dialogue is a cooperative exchange aimed at understanding, while discourse can often be adversarial, aiming to persuade or argue. Recognizing which approach you’re in — and which is appropriate — is key to successful connection across differences. Today’s audience question: How do dialogue and discourse differ in the bridging context — and why does that distinction matter? Answering that is Tania Israel, Professor of Counseling Psychology at UC Santa Barbara and award-winning author of Beyond Your Bubble: How to Connect Across the Political Divide. Tania breaks down how to identify and intentionally use dialogue to foster understanding, even with those you strongly disagree with. Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    Dialogue vs. Discourse: Understanding the Difference - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 29

  3. 11/28/2025

    Rebuilding Our Shared Community Spaces - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 28

    Day 28 of our 30-day challenge, continuing our deep dive into bridging our divides. As we approach the end of this journey, we’re shifting to one of the most action-oriented challenges in the bridging movement: It’s hard to strengthen community when people rarely come together. Neighborhood gathering spots — from local diners to civic clubs — have been fading. Meanwhile, more of our lives have moved online. So how do we create opportunities to reconnect, to show up for one another, and to rebuild a sense of belonging? Our audience question today: What are some ways in our communities to get people together in person, given that we no longer have shared public spaces? To help us explore that, we’re joined by Karissa Raskin, Deputy Director at Listen First. Her work revolves around designing community-centered experiences that make face-to-face dialogue not only possible — but joyful. Karissa offers inspiring and practical ideas for bringing people together again — whether you’re a local organizer or simply a motivated neighbor. Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    Rebuilding Our Shared Community Spaces - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 28

  4. 11/27/2025

    How to Confront Disinformation Without Pushing People Away - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 27

    Day 27 of our 30-day challenge, continuing our deep dive into bridging our divides. Earlier in the series — on Day 9 — we explored how disinformation fuels division with Kamy Akhavan. Today, we’re returning to that same challenge from a new angle. Because sometimes, trying to correct someone’s “facts” can feel like you’re criticizing them — their judgment, their community, even their identity. And that can shut down a conversation faster than anything else. So our audience question today is: What are ways to address disinformation without alienating those who value their own “facts”? To help us with this, we’re joined by Kate Ullman — lifelong educator and Executive Director of Legislative Semester. Kate specializes in helping young people engage across differences and think more deeply about where their beliefs come from. She offers practical strategies for truth-seeking together — without shame, blame, or humiliation. Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    How to Confront Disinformation Without Pushing People Away - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 27

  5. 11/26/2025

    Rapid-Fire Answers for a Divided World - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 26

    Day 26 of our 30-day challenge exploring how to bridge our divides. For the past few weeks, we’ve featured deep, thoughtful answers to big questions from the Bridging Movement Summit — the real questions people across the country are wrestling with. Today, we’re mixing it up. ⚡️🎧 We invited Lisa Swallow — co-founder of Crossing Party Lines and author of Yes, You CAN Talk Politics — to give us Rapid-Fire Answers to a handful of those pressing questions, including: * What systems are primarily causing division, and what can realistically be done to change those systems in the next few years? What’s priority one or two for you? * What should be the limit of civic goodwill — and who gets to decide that? * The panel seems to ask for non–zero-sum engagement — but how can that work with people who only want zero-sum outcomes? * People tend to bond over shared dislike or hatred. How can we harness this bonding energy without it becoming destructive? Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    Rapid-Fire Answers for a Divided World - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 26

  6. 11/25/2025

    The First Step Toward Bridging - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 25

    Day 25 of our 30-day challenge on bridging our divides. Throughout this series, we’ve explored everything from misinformation to emotional regulation to respectful disagreement. We’ve heard from experts on how to talk across political divides and how to shift from debate to deep listening. But with only a few days left in our challenge, it’s time to return to a fundamental question — one that so many people ask: “What’s the first step I should take to build bridges?” Because wanting less division is one thing.Knowing how to begin is another. To help us with that first step is Tania Israel, Professor of Counseling Psychology at UC Santa Barbara and author of the award-winning book Beyond Your Bubble: How to Connect Across the Political Divide. Tania shares a simple, actionable starting point anyone can take — no matter your politics, no matter your comfort level — that makes real connection possible. You don’t need to be an expert. You just need to be curious. Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    The First Step Toward Bridging - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 25

  7. 11/24/2025

    Stop Arguing. Start Understanding - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 24

    Day 24 of our 30-day challenge on bridging our divides. Earlier in this series, on Day 6 and Day 12, we explored a critical question: How do we create an environment for constructive debate — without expecting people to soften their positions? Today, we’re diving deeper with a fresh perspective. The truth is: the key isn’t what we believe, but how we show up to the conversation. When the goal shifts from winning to understanding, everything changes. Joining us is Calista Small, Research Manager at More in Common, where she studies social cohesion and how communities can disagree better. Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    Stop Arguing. Start Understanding - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 24

  8. 11/23/2025

    How to Show Up on Social Media (Productively) - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 23

    Day 23 of our 30-day challenge, continuing our focus on bridging our divides. We’ve talked a lot about the problem of social media — the outrage-driven algorithms, the business model built on engagement, and how quickly online debates can escalate into hostility. Most of us only ever encounter this system at a personal level: one comment thread, one argument, one post at a time. But here’s the challenge: When you try to reduce divisiveness online, how do you avoid getting pulled into exactly the kind of debate you’re trying to fix? How can one individual meaningfully push back against a system designed to fuel conflict? That’s our question today: How can one systemically address divisiveness on social media platforms as an individual without it crumbling into debate where one digs in deeper? Answering that is Kamy Akhavan, former CEO of ProCon.org, America’s leading source of nonpartisan research on controversial issues. With two decades spent helping people understand complex issues beyond the noise, Kamy brings a real-world perspective on how to show up online in ways that shift the culture — not just the argument. Learn more: OutrageOverload.net Join the movement to lower the temperature: Count Me In for Calm Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe

    How to Show Up on Social Media (Productively) - NaPodPoMo 2025 Day 23
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I’m publishing one podcast episode per day again in the month of November 2026 as part of a challenge called NaPodPoMo. It stands for National Podcast Post Month. November is National Podcast Post Month, and the goal of the challenge is 30 podcast episodes in 30 days. This year we're making it more about practicing and learning, so the topics will be a bit more scattered than past years and we'll feature my This Week on Outrage co-host Lisa, with more dialogue episodes. outrageoverload.substack.com

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