At the recent national conference on dialogue and deliberation, I was introduced to the concept of “Transpartisanship.” One definition of transpartisanship, found on wikipedia, looks like this:

“Transpartisanship recognizes the existence and validity of many points of view, and advocates a constructive dialogue aimed at arriving at creative, integrated, and therefore, breakthrough solutions that meet the needs of all present.”

The issue of transpartisanship came up at NCDD during a sub-plenary panel discussion about “Walking our Talk: What the D&D Community Can Learn from Conservatives.” One of the panelists, Joseph McCormick,
was introduced “a pioneer of the transpartisan movement, teaching people how to increase their political empowerment by constructively engaging across political divides.” At the end of the session, Mr. McCormick plugged an upcoming event being organized by the Transpartisan Alliance, timed to coincide with the bicentennial anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, dubbed the “American Citizens’ Summit.”

The American Citizens’ Summit, is described as an opportunity for:

“citizens, leaders and experts from all sides will come together in search of effective strategies for empowering a unified political voice that can restore a healthy balance of power in America. We will engage in a new type of political dialogue that respects and values all points of view. Together we will utilize dialogue, deliberation and conflict resolution tools that enable conservatives, liberals, independents and unaffiliated citizens to communicate respectfully and effectively, and to re-build trust. We will demonstrate that Americans can work together and cooperate for the good of us all.”

Personally, I’m still not entirely sure what to think about this movement or this “citizens’ summit,” however I’ve noted a number of friendly names associated with the project and the goals and values very much reflect my own. I’m not quite ready to register for the summit, but I think I’ll put a placeholder on my calendar and give it some serious thought over the next week or two.