Urban-Rural Dialogue Project

The Urban-Rural Dialogue Project [URD] uses dialogic approaches to support people having difficult conversations across differences. The URD team is working to develop, implement, evaluate, and improve intergroup dialogue (IGD) curricula centered on urban-rural social identities. Goals of the project include learning whether IGD helps bridge the so-called urban-rural divide, increase shared understanding, and support creating socially sustainable communities.

Project Information

The Urban-Rural Dialogue Project (URD) is housed in the Department of Community Sustainability (CSUS),
College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR),
Michigan State University (MSU), East Lansing, Michigan 48824

The Project PI is Michael D. Kaplowitz, J.D., Ph.D. who is supported, in part, by USDA Agriculture Hatch Project #: 7001093. Dr. K gets to work with a talented and dedicated team of people on this project and related activities.

Activities

Today’s hyper-partisan world makes civil discourse across differences seem almost impossible for many adults, let alone young people. U.S. educational sectors are tasked with educating our young people with the goal that they each can be productive members of society. High school and college students participating in an intergroup dialogue can significantly grow in their intergroup understanding, intergroup relationships, and intergroup action.

Dialogue Participant Recruitment

Project Team

  • Michael D. Kaplowitz, JD, PhD

    Principal Investigator

  • Yuqing Liu, PhD

    Research Associate

  • Charles (charlie) Liu, JD, PhD

    Postdoctoral Researcher

  • Erika Crews, MA

    Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging in The Honors College

  • Jacob Dembski

    Undergraduate Research Assistant

  • Faith Rodriguez

    Undergraduate Research Assistant

  • Kaylah Higbee

    Undergraduate Research Assistant

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