A National Conversation about Thriving Communities, Tribes, Conservationists, Working Landscapes & Wolves.
A National Conversation about Thriving Communities, Tribes, Conservationists, Working Landscapes & Wolves.
Conflict happens. Let’s make it constructive.
Latest Update
Now Live: Meet the 25 Voices of the National Wolf Conversation!
Watch short 2-minute films introducing each of the 25 participants – captured before and after their first conversation together.
These 25 incredible individuals were selected to reflect the wide range of views, values, and lived experiences shared by over 7,400 people across the country during our nationwide listening effort.
While we work to secure funding for a full docu-series to capture the depth of this unprecedented conversation, you can also now watch a 30-minute proof-of-concept documentary that offers a powerful glimpse into what unfolded at the National Wolf Conversation.
Simply a conversation. Entirely a people’s process.
With a shared mission to transform deep-rooted, destructive conflict, Constructive Conflict and the Center for Conservation Peacebuilding convened a national conversation on thriving communities, tribes, conservationists, working landscapes, and wolves in January, 2025.
Under the leadership of Francine Madden, our highly experienced and widely trusted neutral convener, along with her team, this national conversation was designed with the people who impact or are impacted by these issues.
Understanding the Social Conflict Surrounding Wolves
Few issues in the United States ignite as much deep-rooted conflict, dehumanization and vitriol as the conflict over wolves. What’s more, the conflict over wolves is also a lightning rod for the conflict we face in society right now – urban vs rural, government vs citizen, state vs federal, liberal vs conservative, tribal vs non-tribal, and the list goes on.
This conflict harms individuals, communities, cultures, wild and working landscapes as well as wolves and other species alike. And while one side may claim victory today, that one-sided win too often fuels the other side’s battle tomorrow. Over time the cycle of wins and losses perpetuate a vicious cycle of destructive conflict across our nation. So what if – instead of swinging the pendulum back and forth again and again, as we’ve been doing for decades while causing harm to each side with each swing – we seek to collectively cultivate the long-term security and stability for our communities, cultures, and wolves, so all can thrive.
That’s where the National Wolf Conversation comes in.
National Chat Tracker
As of today, we have:
Shared information with 98220 people
982 cups of coffee shared
This project is focused on all species of wolves in the lower 48, but we welcome feedback from folks in Alaska and Hawaii.
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Phase 1: Build awareness and co-design the process
For over a year, we reached hundreds of thousands of Americans through in-person and virtual meetings, public virtual ‘across the divide’ facilitated group discussions, national media outreach, and through thousands of miles of travel to meet people where they live. While doing so, we also built fundamental conflict transformation capacity in nearly 1,500 people so they could better understand the roots of individual and societal conflicts in our nation.
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Phase 2: Identify an opening conversation group
Over 7,400 Americans contributed to creating the criteria that was used to select 25 individuals from across the nation that best represent the many and most requested views, values and perspectives across the nation.
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Phase 3: Convene and film the opening conversation
The 25 individuals representing the nation’s criteria convened for 3 days in early 2025 for an opening conversation to learn from one another; analyze the many dimensions and depths of the conflict; and explore current and future collaboration opportunities. This conversation was filmed to document the dialogue and insights shared.
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Phase 4: Expand the conversation
All 25 participants reflected on the unique value of the conversation and committed to securing funding for continued dialogue with Constructive Conflict and CPeace. People People Media, who filmed 175+ hours of conversation over 3 days using 5 cameras, is seeking funding for a docu-series.