Community Cultivators event to focus on ‘transformative’ discourse

The Community Cultivators event series was designed to address political polarization and encourage civic engagement through conversation. The next event in the series, presented by the nonprofit Free Leadership, is scheduled for June 9 at American Stage.

Free Leadership was founded by Krystal White, a leadership psychologist with a background in organizational effectiveness and development. “What we want to do,” she said, “is change the context of how we have political conversations. The conversation is less about who’s right, who’s wrong, who could change and who needs to change.”

She continued: “It’s more about, ‘How do you not default to us versus them, winner versus loser, smarter versus ignorant? How can you actually just allow differences to be there without resorting to some tug of war?’”

Krystal White. Photo provided.

The intent of the community conversation is “breaking down barriers, bridging political divides and empowering citizens with practical tools to foster unity within political dialogue and discourse.”

Instead of simply discussing the importance of dialogue, Community Cultivators events offer a space for people to practice the skills that lead to transformative conversations. Attendees are grouped into small pods when they arrive and are led through an interactive, icebreaker-like activity before transitioning into the larger panel discussion. These highly-interactive events feature three panelists selected by Free Leadership, and a fourth selected by community members. The June 9 panel will be moderated by Councilman Corey Givens, who represents the Child’s Park neighborhood. 

The announced panelists are former Rep. Jennifer Webb; Joe Hamilton, Head of Network, Cityverse (and publisher of the St. Pete Catalyst); and Darryl Paulson, Emeritus Professor of Government, University of South Florida.

Community Cultivators, White said, should be seen as a communication tool for a divided community: “People are ready to do what the government can’t or won’t do, and motivating them to do those things is a way to instill hope. It causes a ripple effect in the lives around them.

“We need to teach people how to cultivate hope for one another, and to remind people how to do that.”

Admission to the June 9 event, 6-8:30 p.m., is by a $5 donation. American Stage is located at 163 3rd Street N., St. Petersburg.