Peter Garrett

A New Kind of Dialogue Peter Garrett

A New Kind of Dialogue is a landmark in understanding the pervasive challenges of modern society.




It is a serious but easy read, written as a first-hand narrative that encourages dialogic thinking.




This is the story of how a new kind of Dialogue was conceived by the author and theoretical physicist David Bohm, and their eight years of participatory research until Bohm's death in 1992. Their seminal paper, "Dialogue - A Proposal", laid the foundation for the author's 30 years of work introducing Dialogue into prison systems and consulting to multinational organisations.




Across the span of this remarkable journey, the author's discoveries cover such diverse territory as . . .




Organisations. The author explores with compassion and insight the dynamic realities of these complex structures. Organisations are everywhere, and they struc- ture every part of our lives. But we are not running them - they are running us. We may be unaware of the cause, but we all experience the consequences that include social fragmentation and the proliferation of seemingly unresolvable problems.




Fragmentation of thought. It seems humans have changed little since Stone Age times, but our world has changed substantially. It is shaped by the way we now talk and think, that has become detached, fragmented and confused. The proposal that there is a single root cause is radical yet hugely encouraging. It is clear where to place our attention.




Dialogue as a profession. The author shows how one central way forward is the development of Professional Dialogue, which has proven itself to be effective and generative.