If peace is the goal, conversation is the mode to get there. That’s why a Conversation CafE will be a highlight of the second Peace Fair on Sunday, Sept. 19, on Circular Street in Saratoga Springs.
Conversation Cafes were started in Seattle in 2001, piloted by three friends who decided to see what would happen if informal gatherings to talk were organized and open to the public. Held in coffeehouses and in classrooms, the discussions spread to nearly 70 cities around the United States the world and now Saratoga.
Between eight and 15 people get together to have conversations about a topic and the idea is to have a spirit of inquiry, rather than a debate, said Margie Ingram, who will facilitate Saratoga’s very first cafE.
The talking circle is just that`a circle of friends and strangers talking, not debating`and Ingram said that’s the difference between making real progress toward peace and just circling the wagon.
`That’s the thing really different about these. It’s not to convert people to your point of view, it’s a time to be reminded and consider the bigger picture and all the options,` said Ingram. `These are important for people to become more open-minded and have conversations that will be conversations rather than conversions you run into trouble when people box themselves into looking at situations in one way.`
The Peace Fair, sponsored by the Presbyterian-New England Congregational Church, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Saratoga Peace Alliance and Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Saratoga, the theme for this year is `Peace-ing it Together.`
There will be two 45-minute Conversation CafE sessions with a different topic or question posed at each. The questions will deal with piecing things together.
The first at 1 p.m. will ask, `Where do you see reason for Hope?` Ingram said it targets those that may feel discouraged or hopeless about something. The second at 2 p.m. will explore, `How can we balance our personal needs with the needs of the community and larger world?` Each conversation follows six specific guidelines to maintain order and encourage productivity: open-mindedness, acceptance, curiosity, discovery, sincerity, brevity.
Ingram, who is a professional speaker and workshop facilitator, said she hopes to make Conversation Cafes a permanent fixture in Saratoga Springs.
The Peace Fair is a time to address peace-keeping and peace-building by presenting various pathways to peace in one place.
`It started with the intention and idea that individuals could come to the fair and learn about all the different ways people in this community are working toward peace and maybe find a way for themselves or to join in that,` said Anne Diggory, a fair coordinator. `It’s a time of networking and celebrating all this work going on.`
There will be booths, music, food, fun for children and other pro-peace activities. Pinwheels of peace symbolize hope and engagement and are the calling card of International Day of Peace on Sept. 21, which the fair coincides with.
`Cooperative games will be played, not ones where people win or lose. A group that has meditational gongs from Tibet will meditate about peace. A strong element is activist groups that have a particular cause they’re working on or petitions to sign to send to Congress,` said Diggory. `We’re promoting environmental awareness; what the relationship is between working on environmental issues and conflict.`
One of the biggest demonstrations, said Diggory, will be a demo of a new solar method of cooking.
`An organization has been teaching refugees and people in poverty how to make solar ovens or cookers out of tinfoil and cardboard. They can cook and treat water so it’s safe to drink,` said Diggory.
The Peace Fair will be held at 24 Circular St. in Saratoga Springs on Sunday, Sept. 19, from noon to 4 p.m. For a full list of the day’s events, visit www.peace-ing.org and for information about Conversation Cafes visit www.conversationcafe.org.
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