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For internal clarification, the purpose of this presentation is to help people:

Recognize how polarization shows up in their own lives
See that a constructive response is possible
See how Braver Angels is working to bridge the divide
Experience a glimpse of the Braver Angels approach
Consider a next step toward becoming a more courageous citizen

How the presentation supports this purpose:

Introduces Braver Angels and the problem it seeks to address
Connects with audience experiences of polarization
Provides a short exercise to help participants reflect on their own polarization
Shares evidence of Braver Angels’ impact and approach
Offers opportunities for further engagement with Braver Angels

Distribute or print the Participant Guide and Braver Way

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The Braver Angels Approach

Becoming a Courageous Citizen

Welcome everyone - really glad you’re here.

Let me start with a quick question: [Show of hands or nod]� How many of you feel worn down by the tone of our public conversations these days?� (pause)

You’re not alone—and that’s exactly why Braver Angels exists.

My name is [Name], and I’m a Braver Angels Ambassador. [Brief personal line—why this matters to you]

I’m joined by [names/roles if applicable].

We’re volunteers who care about helping people connect across political differences in more constructive ways.

Today is a short introduction and a chance to experience a bit of Braver Angels.

We’ll be spending some time in small groups, so we ask that you stay for the full session.

And just to set expectations—this is an introduction.�If you’re interested in building real skills, we’ll point you to workshops where you can practice and go deeper.

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Activity:

What Do We Have In Common?

[For in person presentations] We are going to jump into our first activity. You will chat with someone you don’t know in groups of 2-3 people. And, you’ll get a chance to talk again in additional activities. During a quick 5 minutes, find some things you have in common about [Ambassador, pick a topic, such as travel, favorite sport, holidays]

[For virtual presentations] We are going to jump into our first activity and you will be sorted into breakout rooms of 2 or 3 people. You will be chatting with the same person today so as I mentioned before, please stick around for the next hour.

Your task in the next 5 minutes is to find something you have in common about “travel.”

(Or any easy topic of the presenter’s choosing - e.g., food/holidays/family/sport)

Stop screensharing

We have different experiences so it might be challenging to find something in common, so here is a tip - don’t just share facts about yourself, ask OPEN questions of the others. Questions that require more than a YES/NO answer.
If you come up with something immediately, challenge yourselves to find out how many things you have in common.

GO TO BREAKOUT ROOMS OR SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION

Popcorn Share

Welcome back! How was that?
How many of you were able to find something in common about [the topic]? Give me a thumbs up or raised hand.
How easy was it to find something in common? Did it take a little digging?
Who had difficulty finding something they had in common?
Who would like to share? [5 minutes max]

If I had asked you to find something you had in common about politics, how would that small group discussion or breakout room have been different? How would YOU have felt going into the group?

With a show of hands, how many of us are uncomfortable in any way with having political discussions – especially with those who have a different viewpoint? �

It’s not unusual to feel some discomfort or even avoid those discussions. At Braver Angels, we WELCOME opportunities to engage with those whom we disagree with, and we believe that in disagreements, both sides share and learn.

Along the way, we MIGHT find things we totally agree on, but if not, we respect the rights of the other person to have their own opinion and we are never trying to get anyone else to change their views.

Today, we are going to give you a taste of Braver Angels.

We will do a short experiential activity taken from one of our skills workshops.
We are going to learn about the concept of Courageous Citizenship
We will share how Braver Angels is having an impact on bridging the partisan divide and strengthening our democratic republic.
And then we’ll talk about the ways YOU can get involved and make a difference.

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The Crisis of Polarization

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Activity:

Your “Inner Polarizer”

Braver Angels offers several SKILLS workshops (Depolarizing Within, Skills for Disagreeing Better, Being Red in a Blue Environment and Being Blue in a Red Environment are just a few).�
The activity we’re about to do is taken from the first workshop we recommend, called “Depolarizing Within.” Depolarizing Within is a workshop that helps us see how our own biases affect our perspectives. So, this activity helps us take a look at ourselves – our “inner polarizer” and then we can learn how to disagree without being negative.

We offer this activity so you can have an idea of what a Braver Angels workshop is like. This activity requires you to do some personal reflection. It’s possible it will bring up some uncomfortable feelings and that is completely normal.

Please note we will NOT be asking you to share your responses and if you choose not to take the quiz, that is perfectly fine.

Participant Guide https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QKshPkI71KsWBAeJH_sKM6m-13LaPN8aELDhdz9nM6I/edit?usp=sharing
[For virtual meetings] The link to the survey is in the chat - if you haven’t printed it, don’t worry, just make a mental note of your answers.
[For in-person meetings] Please see your participant guide for the survey.

We are going to take up to three minutes for you to consider your answers. It might not take that long, so we will be watching to see when everyone is ready to move on.

And I encourage you to go with your first reaction to the question. Often, that answer is our most natural and “correct” answer. As I said, you will not be asked to share your responses. This activity is intended to reveal a baseline of our own beliefs toward others who have a different political point of view.

Allow 2-3 minutes. Check in to see if anyone needs more/less time. Once the group has completed the survey:

Now we are going to go back into discussion groups/breakout rooms. And I just want to remind you not to assume your partner agrees with your political perspective.
You are not being asked to share your responses. What we want you to share is how the survey made you feel.
What was your REACTION to this activity? Talk about what you thought of this activity or how helpful it was to look at yourself this way?
What do you think could be the benefit of doing an activity like this?
You do not have to share how you rated yourself.

When you come back from the small group discussion/breakout room I will ask if anyone would like to share a highlight from your group discussion.

GO INTO SMALL GROUP DISCUSSIONS/BREAKOUTS for 5 minutes

Return from Small Group Discussions/Breakout Room

How did the survey make you feel?

Who would like to share something from their group? [Have two or three people share]

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Recognizing Your Inner Polarizer

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We are all influenced by politicians, media, and our own echo chamber

How We See Each Other

If you look at the words from that six-question survey, things like disdain, frustration, respect, appreciation, those aren’t about issues. They’re about how we feel about people. And that’s really the heart of the problem.

Disagreement itself isn’t the issue. In fact, disagreement is actually healthy.

What changes is how we begin to see each other. Researchers call this affective polarization.

All that means is this: we start to attach negative assumptions to people who see things differently.

Not just their ideas, but their motives, their intentions, even their character.

And once that happens, it becomes much harder to have real conversations or solve problems together.

[Supporting narrative: Imagine a married couple, headed for divorce.

When they first met, they had EVERYTHING in COMMON. Now, they can’t find one thing in common!]

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The Personal Cost of Polarization

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Source: “Dignity in America” Dignity.US, February 2026

We Have More in Common Than We Think!

Very important

Fairly important

Just somewhat important

Not at all important

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This requires us to be Courageous Citizens!

Hold

America

Together

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Engaging respectfully across differences

What is Courageous Citizenship?

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The Braver Way

The Braver Angels Approach…

will help you become part of the solution

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The Braver Way

We state our views freely and fully, without fear.

We treat people who disagree with us with honesty, dignity and respect.

We welcome opportunities to engage those with whom we disagree.

We believe all of us have blind spots and none of us are not worth talking to.

We seek to disagree accurately, avoiding exaggeration and stereotypes.

We look for common ground where it exists and, if possible, find ways to work together.

We believe that, in disagreements, both sides share and learn.

In Braver Angels, neither side is teaching the other or giving feedback on how to think or say things differently.

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Braver Angels Impact Findings

Participants report that they:

Are more comfortable with the opposition
Perceive differences as strengths
Learn valuable lessons from each other
Benefit from BA training

*Rating of 5/7 or higher

We ask participants to evaluate our workshops, both before and after, which gives us important data about the impact that we are having. Here’s what people tell us.

<CLICK>

For next steps,

Our workshops are not a one and done quick fix. The skills you learn need to be practiced to make them second nature. So I recommend that you take a skills workshops.

In our free Skills workshop, you can learn how to engage with the other side and you can practice with a partner. Many of our local Alliance groups around the country hold workshops in-person and we offer them online nationally most months.

[For in-person presentations] Please see your Participant Guide for links to the Impact study and the latest Organization Report

[For virtual presentations] The links to the 2024 impact report and the latest Organization Report are being posted in the chat.

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Depolarizing Ourselves

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How Braver Angels Reduces Polarization

Resources to help you take action

Skill Building

Skills Workshops

E-Courses

Volunteer Training

Depolarization Dojo

Convening

Community Gatherings

Debates and Town Halls

Campus Forums

Alliance Groups & Events

Collaborative Action

Common Ground

Citizen-Led Solutions

National Initiatives

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www.braverangels.org

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GET INVOLVED

Allow us to help you build important skills
Volunteer in a variety of roles
Work alongside other Courageous Citizens in your local Alliance

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Our country needs Courageous Citizens. What are YOUR next steps?

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This moment calls us.

This work matters.

And you can be part of it today.

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Evaluation Form

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https://feedback.braverangels.org

[Update the QR code with your event-specific link.]

Before we finish up this event we would like you to complete a short evaluation. Braver Angels does evaluations at the end of all of our events and some of the results you heard about today was taken from the data we collect in these evaluations.

We also use these evaluations to help improve our events and our presentations. We ask for some demographic data and we use it to understand trends among our participants. I’m going to give you a moment right now to start the evaluation -

Use your cellphone camera and aim it at the QR code.
Don’t take a picture.
A link to the evaluation form will appear just below the QR code.
Our event number today is NNNN.
If you aren’t able to scan the code, the link is also being pasted in the chat.

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“I'm heartsick over the divide in our country and want to be part of the solution.” S.W., Connecticut, Blue

“I want sane conversation.”

D.B.,Minnesota, Red

“I am a big advocate for nuance and learning more from real people. Learn, learn, learn!”

B.Y., California, Red

Braver Angels is helping heal our country. Be part of it today.

“BA's thoughtful process is needed to restore civil discourse and political engagement.” T.L., North Carolina, Other

“I have been isolating and cutting people out of my life because of this. I need to learn these skills.” R.R., Pennsylvania, Blue