Common Ground Collective

Humanity is plagued by division. While diversity of ideas is crucial to any democratic system, our unwillingness to deliberate with those of varying opinions is creating a continuously enlarging rift that is becoming more problematic by the day. This rift is exacerbating society's issues and preventing action. From various backgrounds, beliefs, and positions, we unite here with the collective goal to alleviate society's communication gap: to move forward, we must find common ground. As a collective, we wish not to push specific beliefs or opinions; rather, we want to create and facilitate a safe space for communication between disagreeing groups, as this current environment is lacking at UCLA and in broader society. We first aim to set up a Public Forum for deliberation on various topics to achieve this goal. These forums aren't meant to decide a winner or which side is right. The purpose of these forums is for disagreeing groups to gain a better understanding of one another. A student moderator assigned by our club board will ensure discourse remains respectful and the goal of understanding is accomplished. The Public Forum is the only event we have committed to planning as of now, but we plan to branch out further into the UCLA community as the organization expands. All future events, regardless of what they may be, will always hold the same fundamental goals: to promote understanding, foster a safe environment for discourse, and find common ground while not negating the importance of varying views. Public Forums planned by the Common Ground Collective will always be open to all UCLA students and faculty.

https://sites.google.com/view/cgcatucla/home
CGCatUCLA@gmail.com

Signatories: Aaden Poyuzina, Elaina Simonsen, and Frederico Lopes DE Farias Perillo

Advisor: Aranza Angelica Guzman