Dickinson College (Carlisle, PA) will host Manu Meel, CEO of BridgeUSA, to present a lecture titled, "A New Divide - The Possibility for Dialogue," on Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at 7:00 p.m. in the Anita Tuvin Schlechter (ATS) Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public.

Since its founding in 2018, BridgeUSA has become the largest and fastest growing student movement in the country empowering young people to engage in constructive dialogue and healthy disagreement to improve our democracy. With over 60 college and 20 high school chapters and a network engaging 10,000 students, the journey of building BridgeUSA has led Manu to uncover some hidden truths about the possibility for constructive dialogue at one of the most divided times in American history.

This lecture will outline how students, faculty, and administrators can leverage BridgeUSA’s learnings to facilitate constructive dialogue and difficult conversations on campus. The possibility for a more pluralistic and open-minded future is strong- this lecture will posit how Dickinson College can help lead the way.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and is part of the Dialogues Across Differences Project, which is funded by a grant from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations. In addition, it is part of the Clarke Forum’s Leadership in an Age of Uncertainty Series which is supported by the Churchill Fund and it’s annual theme, Alternative Models.

Biography (provided by the speaker)

Manu Meel is passionate about empowering young people to bridge divides. He believes that the biggest threat to American democracy is affective polarization. As CEO of BridgeUSA, Manu is currently building the largest and fastest growing student movement to bridge our differences and change how we talk politics. He also hosts the weekly podcast, The Hopeful Majority. Manu contributes to several news outlets, works on pro-democracy efforts nationally, and advises political leaders on reducing polarization. In the past, Manu worked as an associate at the venture capital firm Amplo and at the Department of State as a political analyst in counterterrorism. His work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other media platforms. In 2022, Manu was recognized as a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree for leading BridgeUSA.

Social Media Handles:

‪@manumeel_‬
@bridgeusa_