Dialogue walk
A dialogue walk is a method in which two individuals explore a question in a deep conversation while being on a walk outside. It gives participants a space to dive into a deep conversation, practice authentic sharing and deep listening, and get to know each other's perspective and experience on a topic. It can be used as part of a dialogue event or also as a sharing tool in any other form of a participatory workshop.
Context
By "dialogue" we mean the kinds of conversations that change something in us when we take part in them, and that shift something between the people who are involved in the conversation. Dialogues invite us to take the “risk” of being authentic and to co-create a space where others can do the same. Dialogues are about challenging our habits of thought and conversation: listening with attention, speaking with intention and daring to turn the camera around to face ourselves and the roles we might have within the systems we are trying to change.
The Dialogue Space is a space where we try to learn and understand not through facts or intellectual knowledge, but through seeing another perspective through the eyes and story of someone else, and through getting a new sense of the broader ecosystem that the discussed issue is part of.
Why and when to use this method
This method can be used anytime you want your participants to explore a question in pairs. The benefit of the dialogue walk is especially that it allows participants to be outside and move, so it’s a great method to use to change the energy and connect more to the body, especially in workshops where participants are sitting most of the time. It even works in online workshops, see example further down.
In comparison to other dialogue tools (for example Triads), for our nervous system, the act of walking side by side feels less “confrontational” than sitting opposite each other. For some participants, it can be easier to open up and share personally in the setting of a dialogue walk.
How the method works
Define a question:
First, you will need to find a question that you would like participants to explore during this exercise. Make sure that the scope of the question is concrete enough to be explored in the given time frame, and make sure that the question is personal enough (so that participants are invited to share their personal experiences with the topic, and not just have a philosophical conversation on a meta-level).
Introduce dialogue principles:
Introduce what you mean by dialogue and a set of principles that participants are invited to follow during the exercise. Here you can find the dialogue principles that we use in the Catalyst Lab.
Instructions for the dialogue walk:
Share the question that you would like participants to explore during the dialogue walk (write it on a flipchart paper, so that participants can take a picture of it before they leave on the walk)
Minimum 30 minutes are needed for this exercise. During the first 10 minutes the first person will share, and the second person will listen attentively. Ask participants to keep track of the time by using a timer on their phone. The speaking time belongs entirely to the first person. It’s also fine if there are moments of silence, they can allow for new insights or a next level of sharing to emerge. Invite the second person to practice listening attentively (no interrupting for comments), except for clarifying questions if really needed.
After 10 minutes, change roles and the second person shares, while the first person listens.
The remaining 10 minutes are for an open conversation on the topic, and on the experience of the dialogue walk. Invite participants also to observe their inner process during the exercise: How is it to really be listened to and have so much speaking time, without being interrupted? What could show itself through that? And how is it to just listen, without interrupting?
Ask participants to form pairs, ideally with someone they don’t know well yet.
Indicate the participants at what time to be back in the room (usually it helps to plan a 15 minutes break after a dialogue walk so that really everyone is back at the indicated time)
After the dialogue walk, optionally you can ask participants to share with the whole group how this experience was for them, what insights they gained on the question etc. The invitation is not to share the other person’s personal stories (the content of what has been shared remains confidential between the two people who had that conversation), but rather personal insights, impressions and feelings that emerged in the process.
Time needed:
Minimum 30 Minutes.
Material & space needed:
A flipchart paper with the question(s) for the dialogue
A flipchart paper with the dialogue principles
Any outside space will do, in the city or in the countryside. Ideal is, of course, a beautiful surrounding with nature, a park etc., but anything else also goes.
Examples
This is a method that we use very often, for instance in dialogue evenings, in the Catalyst Lab and in Social Innovation Labs as for example the Gender Lab. During the Corona pandemic, when we were forced to host all our formats online, we also included this method, which was a great experience and a very welcome change of setting for the participants. We did it the following way: participants were paired through Zoom breakout rooms. Once in the breakout room, they exchanged phone numbers and called each other on their phones, going for a walk together outside. It also worked very well online, and participants were very happy to be able to leave their computers for a moment and get some fresh air and movement.
Here are a few quotes from participants who have practised this dialogue walk within a gender equality workshop:
“These 7 minutes enabled me to get to know my colleague in more depth than ever before in the 2 years that we have been working together.”
“The fact that I was listened to for the entire 7 minutes was powerful and unusual.”
“It was hard but also relieving to just listen.”
“I didn’t realise that gender equality was an issue until I listened to my partner.”
Sources and Further literature
Sarah Friederich is part of the Catalyst Lab design and hosting team at collaboratio helvetica and in this role supports the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As a facilitator (Theory U, Art of Hosting, Dialogue) she supports diverse projects in the area of social innovation with design and facilitation of participatory events and group processes. The promotion of new forms of collaboration and systemic change are an integral part of her work. For many years, she has gained experience working for NGOs and social organisations in the field of environmental and social justice in Switzerland and Bolivia.
In addition to her work with collaboratio helvetica and as a facilitator, Sarah supports people as a coach in their personal development processes, especially in the process of grieving after the loss of a loved one.