Building Capacity for the Conversations Communities Need

Martín Carcasson, Ph.D., is a professor in the Communication Studies department of Colorado State University, and the founder and director of the CSU Center for Public Deliberation (CPD, www.colostate.edu). His research and practice focuses on helping local communities address “wicked problems” more productively through improved public communication, community problem solving, and collaborative decision-making. The CPD is a practical, applied extension of his work, and functions as an impartial resource dedicated to enhancing local democracy in Northern Colorado. Dr. Carcasson and the CPD staff train students to serve as impartial facilitators, who then work with local governments, school districts, and community organizations to design, facilitate, and report on innovative projects and events on key community issues. Carcasson and the CPD staff have designed and facilitated over 500 meetings in their 18 years.

In the fall of 2021, he helped launch the Northern Colorado Deliberative Journalism Project, which works to support and reimagine local journalism through collaborative efforts that combine the best of journalism with deliberative principles. More information here: https://cpd.colostate.edu/djp/

Carcasson has helped start centers like the CPD at multiple institutions including the University of Houston-Downtown, James Madison University, Baylor University, and Washington State University-Vancouver. He works often with local governments, school districts, libraries, and newsrooms. He has given keynote addresses or workshops with the International City/County Managers Association, the National Association of Counties, the American Library Association, American College Press ,the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the National Civic League, the National School Relations Officers Association the National League of Cities, among others. All together, he has given talks or run workshops to over 250 cities, universities, or community organizations in over 30 states.

Many of Martin's key writings are available on the CPD website here: https://cpd.colostate.edu/what-is-deliberation/resources/

Engagement as an HxA Member:
Presented at HxA Virtual Event, Summit, or Conference
Published on HxA: The Blog
Guest on HxA Podcast
HxA Writers Group Member or Veteran
Active Member of an HxCommunity
Active Member of an HxA Campus Community
Faculty Fellow at HxA Center for Academic Pluralism
Speaker's Title and Institutional/Organizational Affiliation: Martín Carcasson, Colorado State University Center for Public Deliberation
Event Type :
Lecture/Presentation
Fireside Chat
Book Talk
Constitution Day Event
Classroom Visit
Workshop
Podcast
Debate, Forum, or HxConversation
Speaking Topics - List up to 5 specific topics or titles, each separated by a semicolon: Deliberation and public engagement; De-polarization and social psychology; Collaborative problem-solving; wicked problems; deliberative journalism
Blackout Dates (Dates speaker is unavailable, Days/Month/Year): 25/12/2023
Distance Willing to Travel: Any/No Limits to Travel Radius
Scholarly Area: Social Sciences
Modality of Event : In Person and/or Virtual
Willingness to be recorded: Willing
Speaking Fee (Not including travel/lodging expenses): $0-$2,000 USD
Recent Appearance (1 of 5) -title, host institution, year: Deliberative Bootcamp: What Kind of Talk Does Democracy Need?, National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation Conference, 2023
Recent Appearance (2 of 5) -title, host institution, year: Tackling Wicked Problems: Building Capacity for Deliberative Engagement, International City/County Managers Association, 2023
Recent Appearance (3 of 5) -title, host institution, year: Introduction to Deliberative Journalism: Tackling Wicked Problems in Polarized Times, American College Press MegaWorkshop, 2023
Recent Appearance (4 of 5) -title, host institution, year: Building Community Capacity for Elevated Conversations: Deliberation and the Wicked Problems Lens, Colorado Resiliency Summit, 2023
Recent Appearance (5 of 5) -title, host institution, year: Solving our most wicked problems together at the local level, Follow up question podcast, 2022