WDC Academy

What to do when tensions rise? Conflict management in participation processes

Good participation is built on dialogue. But engaging in dialogue with people who think differently is rarely free of conflict. In this workshop, we’ll explore how conflicts arise, the different types of conflict, how they escalate – and crucially, how we can de-escalate them. We'll focus on what conflict-resilient process design can look like and how to respond constructively to disruptions. We’ll also address a growing challenge: when participants not only bring strong opinions, but their own version of the facts as well.

Jörg Sommer is a political scientist and sociologist who has been working on the design of democratic processes for over 30 years. He is Director of the Berlin Institute for Participation and in this role serves as an advisor and expert for parliaments, ministries, foundations and civil society organisations. In 2023, he was elected Chair of the Professional Association for Citizen Participation. Since 2020, he has published the free weekly newsletter demokratie.plus, which explores issues of democracy and social cohesion.