Peace Circles bring people together for open and honest communication about various topics in a format that draws shared value from each participant. Participants sit in a circle and Mashaun will share prompts and activities with the group. Going around the circle one at a time each participant has the opportunity to share their perspective; personal and professional. 

 

Circles offer an alternative to contemporary meeting processes that often rely on hierarchy, win-lose positioning, and victim/rescuer approaches to relationships, decision-making, and problem-solving. The process is about bringing people together in a way that creates trust, respect, and individual and collective empowerment. The process works because it intentionally brings people together in a way that allows them to see one another as human beings and to talk about what matters.

​

• Circles can be used for healing, problem-solving, consensus-building, community building, and celebration.

• Circles can help people take responsibility and accountability.

• Circles allow quiet voices to be heard.

• Circles allow for shared leadership, learning, and teaching.

• Circles provide a container for anger, frustration, joy, truth, conflict, fear, opinions, and strong feelings.

• Circles make space for empathy, compassion, and respectful dialogue.

• Everyone in the circle is equal and has an equal opportunity to participate.

• The circle process builds on the values of respect, honesty, listening, inclusivity, truth, sharing in healing.

• Circles provide an opportunity to explain and discuss the impact of an incident, dispute, or conflict.

• Circles can help people explore issues on a deeper level by making a safe place for participants to share their concerns, feelings, frustrations, needs, fears, and hopes.

• Circles allow people to learn about each other and gain a better understanding of one another’s circumstances, experiences, and challenges. 

• Circles allow people to reconcile and foster relationships in an authentic manner.

• Circles are “simple but not easy.”