We have over 100 conversation guides based upon the current interests and needs of our users. They improve our listening and connection skills. The conversations allow us to deepen our own understanding as well as deepen relationships with friends and family. Living Room Conversations invite us to reach out and get to know people who have different views than we do. This is making it easier and easier to demonize good people who have different beliefs than we do. We have teased ourselves apart so that we primarily spend time with and talk to like-minded people. How does Living Room Conversations fill a need for our society? Screenshot of a participants in one of Living Room Conversations’ themed conversations on Zoom. This inspired me to work with dialogue experts to design a simple and small conversation format that is massively reproducible, and so I co-founded Living Room Conversations with a conservative and independent friend. I made friends and learned a lot, but by 2010 it was actually harder to have a good conversation about the climate with a conservative than it was in 2005. This required intentional effort to spend time with people that have very different views. In 2004, I wanted to understand why conservative people saw things so differently than I did. What sparked the creation of Living Room Conversations? Co-founder Joan Blades (who also co-founded ) shares more about how Living Room Conversations build relationships that support collaborative problem-solving and generate compassion. Anyone is welcome to use Living Room Conversation’s free resources, which can be adapted to address the needs of any community working to bridge divides. The non-profit’s open-source conversation model - developed by dialogue experts - provides an accessible structure for engaging in meaningful, civil conversation - anywhere in the world, even virtually - with those who may have different viewpoints. Living Room Conversations envisions a world where people who have fundamental differences of opinion and backgrounds learn to work together with respect and even joy. Join us in appreciating the inspiring and catalyzing contribution these Changemakers offer to shaping a more grateful world. These efforts elevate the values of grateful living and illuminate their potential to transform both individuals and communities. Here in our feature “Grateful Changemakers”, we celebrate programs and projects that serve as beacons of gratefulness.