In a year marked by polarization, rapid information cycles, and the growing pressure placed on higher education, many students and educators are asking a fundamental question: How do we talk to each other in a way that strengthens, rather than fractures, our communities?

Across campuses in the CDI network, the answer keeps coming back to one practice: constructive dialogue. Not as a trend, not as an abstract ideal, but as a lived habit that helps people navigate conflict, build trust, and stay connected even as tensions rise.

This year, we invited students, faculty, and campus leaders to share why this work matters to them. Their reflections illuminate a common theme: dialogue doesn’t erase disagreement. It makes disagreement navigable. It gives students and educators tools to stay present, curious, and grounded when conversations become difficult — and to transform moments of friction into opportunities for learning.

What follows is a sample of their experiences, in their own words and through the lens of the campus contexts they inhabit.

Dialogue as a Way Through Fear

Caeden S., Student, UW Bothell

For many students, the first barrier to dialogue isn’t disagreement — it’s fear. Fear of saying the wrong thing. Fear of conflict. Fear of being misunderstood.

Caeden described the weight of this clearly:

“People are genuinely afraid to have conversations over conflict — myself included — and the constructive dialogue framework helps break down some of those fears.”

On a campus as diverse as UW Bothell, even everyday interactions can carry emotional charge. Caeden shared how dialogue helped him navigate leadership within a student club, manage disagreements productively, and bring ideas from different members into shared decision-making. His experience captures one of the quiet truths about dialogue: it helps students build the confidence to stay in a conversation they once would have avoided.

Dialogue as a Shift Toward Curiosity

Janeyra S., Student, UW Bothell

Janeyra described her early understanding of dialogue as “polite criticism.” That changed when she began learning deeper principles of constructive dialogue — especially listening, curiosity, and genuine questioning.

This shift immediately influenced how she collaborated in group projects and handled tense conversations across her campus community. As she put it:

“Constructive dialogue matters because it transforms difficult conversations from something I was anxious about into something I feel empowered to facilitate.”

That sense of empowerment — not over others, but within oneself — is one of the most consistent outcomes we see across institutions. Students talk about being able to slow down, ask better questions, and stay grounded in moments when the room feels divided.

Dialogue, for Janeyra, created a more humane and connected campus environment. It wasn’t just a communication tool; it was a way of treating others with dignity.

Dialogue as a Habit of Leadership and Institutional Culture

Vince Greer, Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs for Dialogue and Diversity, Claremont McKenna College

At Claremont McKenna College, constructive dialogue is one of the core tenets of its Open Academy. Vince Greer emphasized how deeply these principles shape both student development and institutional identity.

He described how students are encouraged not to self-censor, but to voice their views while respecting others. That commitment showed up powerfully at a recent campus event in which students from a wide spectrum of perspectives engaged in a structured dialogue during a moment of intense national strain.

Here’s what stood out: students stayed in the conversation even when it was tense, even when disagreement felt uncomfortable, and even when leaving would have been easier.

As Vince put it, constructive dialogue helps students “find their voice, own it, and also explore differing opinions and viewpoints with the hopes of yielding increased understanding and exposure.”

In other words, dialogue isn’t an add-on at CMC — it’s part of what responsible leadership requires.

Dialogue as a Path to Understanding and Civic Imagination

Erika Weissinger, Assistant Professor of Practice & Director of Community, Climate, and Culture, UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy

At UC Berkeley’s Goldman School, Erika Weissinger sees dialogue as essential to the education of future public leaders. Her students regularly bring challenging policy disagreements into the classroom and into their group chats — with varying degrees of intensity.

But Erika sees something encouraging: students reminding each other to “practice constructive dialogue,” pausing before reacting, and actively trying to understand perspectives with which they strongly disagree.

Erika shared a powerful example from a student who wrote an op-ed about bike lane design from the standpoint of a garbage collector — a viewpoint often excluded from policy debates. Dialogue didn’t erase tension; it expanded the imagination for what solutions could look like.

Her reflection summarizes what many leaders across higher education are feeling:

“Dialogue is what makes a diverse campus an educational advantage instead of a source of constant conflict.”

Dialogue as a Commitment to Our Shared Humanity

Anonymous Student Testimonial

One student wrote honestly about the difficulty of believing in dialogue when public life feels harsh and reactive. They described moments of discouragement — and the reminders that pulled them back:

“People are more than their opinions, and if you’re lucky like me, you get to love people who disagree with you on the things that matter most.”

This reflection captures something essential: constructive dialogue is not naïve optimism. It is the practice of recognizing humanity in moments when doing so feels most difficult.

Why These Stories Matter

Across these campuses, we see a shared conviction:

Dialogue does not eliminate conflict — it gives people tools to engage it with steadiness, clarity, and empathy.
Dialogue does not guarantee agreement — it creates space for understanding.
Dialogue does not protect us from difficult moments — it prepares us to face them together.

Whether in a policy classroom at Berkeley, a student club at UW Bothell, or a structured campus forum at Claremont McKenna, constructive dialogue helps students and educators rewrite the patterns that deepen division. It offers a way forward rooted in curiosity rather than retreat, and in connection rather than reduction.

And most importantly, it reminds us that navigating difference is not an obstacle to learning — it is the work of education itself.

Learn more about CDI’s research-backed approach to dialogue and culture change at constructivedialogue.org.