{"id":628,"date":"2020-01-10T12:24:04","date_gmt":"2020-01-10T12:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.napier.ac.uk\/publicengagement\/?page_id=628"},"modified":"2020-01-10T12:24:04","modified_gmt":"2020-01-10T12:24:04","slug":"world-cafe-populism-nationalism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.napier.ac.uk\/publicengagement\/world-cafe-populism-nationalism\/","title":{"rendered":"World Cafe \u2018Populism and Nationalism\u2019 \u2013 A Recurring International Phenomenon?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On June 21st, 2018, Edinburgh Napier University Lecturer and Researcher, Dr Michael Kranert<\/a>, lead a special public dialogue event on the topics of populism and nationalism. Following the World Caf\u00e9 method, the event aimed to open dialogue, fostering collaborative learning and collective insight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“There\u2019s no expert \u2013 everyone\u2019s experience and opinions matter. Imagine a lively gathering, full of interesting conversations, and plenty of food for thought!”<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In the following case study, Dr Kranert has presented the details of the event – including critical insights, and recommendations for the improvement and enhancement of this type of event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Populism & Nationalism World Caf\u00e9: Public Dialogue Event<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"World<\/a>
World Cafe ‘Populism and Nationalism – Full venue, and buzzing conversation.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The World Caf\u00e9 took place on the afternoon of the first day of an academic conference, \u2018New discourses on populism and nationalism\u2019, hosted by the Languages group at the university on 21 and 22 June 2018. Through posters in public locations, online media engagement and individual invitations sent to NGOs and groups interested in politics, an interested public was invited to an afternoon of exchanging ideas with international researchers working on populism and nationalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The World Caf\u00e9 is a method<\/a> for facilitating collaborative and active dialogue even in large groups. Set questions are discussed in small groups which encourages everyone\u2019s contribution. Towards the end of the session, experiences and insights a shared with the whole group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The openness of the conversation allows academics and non-academics to share insights into a problem \u2013 in this case the intertwining between nationalist and populist discourses. Four questions were asked:\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(1)   How do online media fuel populism and nationalism?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(2)   What would \u2018good\u2019 nationalism look like?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(3)   How is language used to create nationalist and populist politics?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(4)   Should we resist populism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The visual facilitator Graham Ogilvie<\/a> created cartoons while the World Caf\u00e9 took place. This not only serves the purpose of documenting the event on the blog, but also gave participants the opportunity to see ideas come to life in a visual form and encouraged them to feel that their contributions have equal value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Graham<\/a>
Graham Ogilvie’s cartoons, created whilst the World Caf\u00e9 was taking place. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Graham<\/a>
Graham Ogilvie’s cartoons, created whilst the World Caf\u00e9 was taking place. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The World Caf\u00e9 methodology was combined with a multimedia campaign: Academics and non-academics were asked to produce short text introducing their thoughts on the topic in a clear and accessible manner. The text-based contributions were published on the event blog<\/a> and distributed via Twitter<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The blog allowed for engagement with a broader public beyond the participants, facilitating their participation in academics and practitioner\u2019s knowledge, as well as the methodology of knowledge exchange. It also formed the basis of the documentation of process and results, together with the cartoons and photographs of the event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"World<\/a>
World Cafe \u2018Populism and Nationalism \u2013 shared interrogation of questions posed.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"World<\/a>
World Cafe \u2018Populism and Nationalism \u2013 shared interrogation of questions posed.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"World<\/a>
World Cafe \u2018Populism and Nationalism \u2013 explaining the format, and providing questions for shared interrogation. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"World<\/a>
World Cafe \u2018Populism and Nationalism \u2013 explaining the format, and providing questions for shared interrogation. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Why did you choose these methods of engagement?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The discussion at the world caf\u00e9 was designed to allow both academics and non-academics to listen to each other\u2019s experiences and build a network for future knowledge exchange. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

World-cafes as mechanisms of public engagement have been underused in academic conferences. The standard public engagement element is a panel discussion, leading to a very limited and often one-way engagement with academic work. This world caf\u00e9 aimed to have an open, inclusive approach, acknowledging that knowledge and expertise does not lie solely in the academy.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What went well? <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The world caf\u00e9 was a great success in both numbers and quality of the debate. Out of 68 conference delegates 52 participated. We managed to have 12 bookings from general public, however, only 8 of those took part. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world caf\u00e9 proved to be a good method to allow a free and lively debate: All participants were engaged in the conversation and the mixing of the groups for the different questions allowed people to hear many different perspectives.  The anonymous feedback survey shows that both academics and non-academics felt the relaxed and playful atmosphere facilitated conversations and allowed to listen to a variety of perspectives. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The visualizations produced by Graham Ogilvie<\/a> provided another level of engagement with the ideas of participants, which became evident when participants were asked to vote for their favourite poster and had to give reasons.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A particular phenomenon was the change of the conversation within the academic conference itself \u2013 many presenters on the second day of the academic conference referred to the conversations in the world caf\u00e9. The world caf\u00e9 proved to be an ideal conversation starter for the academic discussion as well!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Populism & Nationalism World Cafe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Populism & Nationalism World Cafe – Breaktime Activities<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Populism & Nationalism World Cafe – Shared dialogue questions<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Populism & Nationalism World Cafe – shared dialogue and capture<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Populism & Nationalism World Cafe – shared dialogue reflections<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Populism & Nationalism World Cafe – shared dialogue reflections<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What might you have done differently?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The main challenge proved to be the engagement of public participants. The event was announced online through a blog, through regular tweets and also through posters in key areas of the city. We achieved to have 12 bookings, however, only 8 took part. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For future events, a more targeted and sustained advertising campaign might improve figures, and it might also be better to organize the event later in the day.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Testimonials from the anonymous survey:<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Q1) What are the two most important insights you took away from this event? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n