Ariella Goldfein

Resetting the Table

In the face of immense societal division, RTT has developed one of the most road-tested and effective frameworks for transformative communication across political divides in the country. Our unique methodology and toolkit support ideologically divergent parties to overcome core tendencies of conflict and to stay receptive to each other even while going toward the heat of their differences. To date, RTT programs have reached more than 45,000 participants, including faith leaders from multiple traditions, societal storytellers like journalists and Hollywood directors, and other multipliers positioned to make far-reaching culture change and impact millions more. RTT's core activities include: • Train and Educate: RTT trains faith leaders, entertainment industry professionals, journalists, and other community leaders and influencers, equipping them to facilitate and convene constructive communication across differences and/or produce new narratives fostering empathy, norms, and hope for healthy engagement across divides. • Convene and Facilitate: RTT's mediation expertise, rigorous methodology, and intensely trained facilitators build transformative communication even among strongly opposing parties directly addressing their differences. RTT designs and facilitates carefully curated forums, offering rare opportunities for courageous, productive discussion and learning on contentious issues, bringing to the table religious conservatives, progressive activists, rural people, and other audiences often suspicious of dialogue work itself. • Create and Distribute: RTT produces films and other content that advances mutual recognition and empathy across political and geographic divides. RTT's short film Purple, produced in partnership with Emmy Award-winning Transient Pictures, has now screened in 370+ communities in 49 states.