Where We Started
The Collaborative is rooted in an initiative called Talking Together which launched in 2022-2023 as a year-long Grand Valley Presidential Initiative. Throughout the year, students, faculty, staff, and community members had opportunities to talk with one another across differences in perspective, identity, and life experience. Events included trainings, symposia, lectures, and service.
One Small Step
In 2024, we partnered to support WGVU as a partner in One Small Step, an effort to remind the country of the humanity of all of us, even those with whom we disagree. In collaboration with StoryCorps and other community organizations throughout West Michigan, WGVU spent several months bringing strangers with different political views together to record a 50-minute conversation—not to debate politics, but to learn who we are as people.
Michigan Listens
In the last couple years, Talking Together has brought additional speakers, symposia, and screenings to the Grand Valley Community. A highlight was the Michigan Listens event which featured the voices and stories of nine Michiganders from across the state. We invited these courageous speakers to reflect on a simple yet profound question: What do you value and why?
The audience was asked to listen with openness and without interruption. To refrain from applause, clapping, or sounds of agreement or disagreement. It was an exercise not in agreement, but in presence — listening deeply, engaging thoughtfully, and connecting with one another as fellow human beings.
Where We Are Today
What began as a single initiative has grown into a lasting partnership. Our three centers have formalized that work as a collaborative committed to civic leadership, interfaith understanding, and civil discourse.
