Step 1: Prepare. Master listening

Difficult conversations need a sense of safety and good communication skills. Before watching, set the tone and practice the most important communication skill: listening.

Seat participants in a circle so everyone can see each other at the same level. Explain that this is a different kind of debate: the first goal is to understand others, and the second is to be understood.

Explain to participants:

• The group will explore a complex global issue, considering several worldviews and using a systems thinking approach.
• The room is a space for open dialogue and learning from different worldviews.
• How participants communicate and listen is the key to success.

Ask participants to write 3 to 5 group agreements for how they will behave. Examples include listening respectfully, letting others finish, staying curious, and inviting everyone to speak. Participants write and commit to their own.

Discuss:

• What makes a conversation go well?
• What does it mean to listen?
• What does it feel like to be truly heard?

Watch the short Master Listening video and discuss:

• How is saying you understand different from saying you want to understand?
• What questions show that you want to understand someone’s perspective?
• What are the challenges and benefits of a world where conflicting stories can coexist?

Expanded lesson plans for this step: Set the Tone for the Majlis and Master Listening. A majlis is a traditional gathering place for open discussion, used across the Arab world.

Step 2: Engage. Watch the films

Before viewing, introduce The Discernment Protocol. For this lesson, we suggest emphasizing the Perspective lens (whose experience defines the story?) and the Interpretation lens (how might others see it differently?). Participants can also use the SIFT Worksheet to record their reactions.

Screen the films. After each one, give participants time to share reactions as a group or in pairs.

Tip: This reflection is where participants make an emotional connection to the issue through the storytelling.

Step 3: Reflect. Make a personal connection

Give participants a few minutes to journal on the prompt: “I used to think ______, but now I think ______.”

Then discuss as a group or in small groups:

• What surprised you about the film? What stood out?
• What did you learn?
• How did the film change what you already thought about the issue?

Tip: Differences of opinion may surface. These questions help the group find common ground and connect personally to the stories. Remind participants that the goal is to understand more than to be understood, and return to the Step 1 agreements if needed.

Step 4: Map. See the whole system

Explain that participants will create a systems map of the issue to understand their own perspective and the perspectives of everyone involved.

Use the Systems Thinking slide deck to explain elements and interdependencies. Show the sample map of global hunger.

As a group or in small groups, map the issue from the films on a whiteboard or shared screen:

1. Elements. Write and circle the people, places, and things in the system: organizations, institutions, products, technologies, policies, and people. Include the people most affected by the issue. Who are the people in the film, and what are their roles? Use circle size or color to show how influential each element is.
2. Interdependencies. Draw lines for the relationships between elements: funding, supply chains, services, education, and advocacy. Use line thickness or color to show how strong each relationship is.

Tip: Listening is essential to mapping. Each time someone adds an element or connection, model curiosity by asking a good question.

Step back and look at the map as a whole. Explain that systems thinking helps us understand an issue’s complexity and seek out perspectives that are often missed, before talking about solutions. Close with a group discussion:

• What new perspectives did the mapping reveal?
• What action might have a positive impact on the issue?
• Looking at the map, how might that action have a negative effect on part of the system or on someone in it?
• What is one simple action your group could take?

Expanded lesson plan for this step: Map Your Worldview.

Tip: The map is not the goal. The conversation and curiosity it creates are. The map will be messy because the issue is complex, and any change to one part affects the rest.