Building Common Ground

Kaleigh Mrowka is a restorative practice scholar, trainer, consultant, and leader with over a decade of experience in restorative facilitation in college and university environments. Her work considers the ways that dialogue and restorative practice can be used to co-create healthier and more…

Trained as a clinical psychologist, Mylien Duong has spent the last 13 years developing and testing psychology-based tools for educational spaces, with an emphasis on tools that are evidence-based, easy to implement, and practical. She has secured over $25 million in grant funding and published…

Michael Gulker is a passionate leader deeply invested in the polarized intersection of faith and culture, exploring how both can thrive when grounded in love of God and love of neighbor. Since 2011, he has served as president of The Colossian Forum, which invites people to cultivate connection…

Daniela Paz Peterson is Welcome Places Director with The Trust for Public Land in Tennessee, where she leads inclusive engagement processes that center residents in the design and programming of public spaces. Trained as a social worker at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso in Chile…

Training and development leader with over a decade of experience designing and facilitating interactive, participant-centered training for in-person and online audiences. Most recently, as Training Director for Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) International, responsible for training the organization’s…

Kate Gannon is the Associate Director of Training and Capacity Building at Trust for Public Land. Her work focuses on building the capacity of parks and other green spaces to strengthen social ties and build a sense of belonging among community members. Kate has extensive community engagement and…

John Sarrouf is the Co-Executive Director of Essential Partners. He teaches people to facilitate dialogue across differences and transform conflict where people live, learn, work, and pray. Over more than two decades, John has facilitated dialogues on issues such as guns in American life, police…

Marissa has worked at the intersection of leadership development and peacebuilding for over a decade, supporting projects in Iraq, Rwanda, Armenia, Palestine, China, and the U.S. She is currently the Associate Director of Training & Field Support at Over Zero, where she leads a national…

Meg Griffiths is the Director of Programs at Essential Partners and a facilitator, process consultant, and trainer. Her professional background is at the intersection of education, dialogue, ministry, and community partnerships, with 20 years of professional experience in higher education and non-…

Join Resetting the Table (RTT) and the Council on Foundations for a training that offers a comprehensive framework for facilitating courageous and constructive communication across lines of difference. Through this intensive training, philanthropic leaders will build advanced facilitation skills…

Join us for the Council's Annual Member Meeting! The virtual Member Meeting will include: A vote to approve the nominations of new members for the Board of Directors Reports on Council's annual financials and membership milestones A State of the Council address from Kathleen Enright,…

On Wednesday, July 29, the Department of Justice released a memo that included new guidance for federal funding recipients about what the Administration views as unlawful discrimination based on protected characteristics. The memo includes what it calls "non-binding suggestions" to help…

Join us for a discussion with Johns Hopkins professor Hahrie Han, author of “Undivided: The Quest for Racial Solidarity in an American Church.” Dr. Han will reflect on heartset: who do you need to be to bridge divides with others?

The Bridging Differences Leadership Cohort is a facilitated virtual learning experience meeting monthly from April 2025 through November 2025, hosted by the Council on Foundations in partnership with the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley (GGSC). Cohort members expressed their interest in…

Liz Vogel is the Interim Executive Director of New Pluralists, a funder collaborative investing together in a culture of respect and belonging for all. Liz brings her roots as a practitioner in education and civic engagement to her leadership—grounding philanthropic strategy in the realities of…

Linda R. Tropp is Professor of Social Psychology and Faculty Associate in Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (USA). For nearly three decades she has studied how members of different groups experience contact with each other, and how group differences in status affect cross-…