Welcoming all bridgers, connectors, community engagers! If you bring people together to find common ground you’ll want to join us on Friday, May 1, 2026 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. for Connect! Imagine! Ignite! an interactive conference dedicated to catalyzing intentional collaboration for expanding and supporting bridge-building in our communities.

As growing polarization impacts our communities pulling us apart, we collectively may hold the solution. Come to inspire and be inspired.

Collaboratively we will:

Connect! Learn more about each other’s work, models, processes as we connect with fellow bridgers;

Imagine! Envision what we can do individually and collectively, as we begin mapping a network ecosystem for bridge-building in Minnesota; and

Ignite! As we uncover opportunities for collaboration!

Your Hosts: MN Bridge-Building Network Planning Committee, Marnita’s Table, Minnesota Council of Churches, Diane P. Lynch LLC

We seek to welcome bridge-builders and connectors of all kinds.

People from any part of Minnesota and of any ideological orientation are welcome to attend. The only requirement is that you are willing to build shared understanding and a deeper connection to fellow Minnesotans

Meet your fellow bridgers! They engage a wide variety of strategies / frameworks including:

• Civic education and youth leadership
• Violence prevention and safety
• Bridging urban-rural divides
• Conflict resolution and community mediation
• Political bipartisanship
• Civil discourse
• Ensuring equal access and opportunities to decision making and resource sharing
• Peacemakers / keepers
• Community builders
• Interfaith understanding
• Media and storytelling
• And more!

Whether this work is your profession, passion, or something you do voluntarily. How do you know if you’re a bridge-builder? Do you work directly and collaboratively with community members? Does your work intentionally bring together people or groups who don’t usually interact, or who may be divided by differences such as identity, ideology, geography, or lived experience? Do you encourage or lead collaboration across divides (political, racial, geographic, generational, religious, or others) to discuss challenges or solve shared problems? Do you seek to widen participation, elevate underrepresented voices, or ensure fair and meaningful access to decision-making? If answered yes to any of these questions, we invite you to join us!

Location:

Shoreview Community Center

4580 Victoria St N, Shoreview, MN 55126

Registration:

Professional Rate: $88

Community Rate: $45

Student / Youth Rate: $29

Scholarship: Send an email with one paragraph to jules@marnitastable.org to request a complimentary registration

Registration includes all meals, conference materials, and processing fees. Space is limited and demand is high! Take advantage of the early registration discount of 15%! Secure your place today!

Early Registration ends on Friday, March 14, 2026

Yes! You’re welcome to extend this invite to other bridge-builders in your network or workplace

Yes! A feast appropriate from vegan to carnivore will be provided.

Yes! Scholarships are available.

Yes! Dress comfortably – please no uniforms or lanyards.

Yes! There are many lodging options nearby to choose from.

Yes! Youth, elders and bridgers of all ages are welcome to join us!

What to Expect

An abundant feast will be served to allay any dietary concern from vegan to carnivore using the Marnita’s Table model of Intentional Social Interaction. Please dress comfortably. Expect to be enlivened and engaged as we come together in community to share our experiences, catalyze connections across differences, and support one another. If you are receiving this invitation you have been identified as someone who will add and receive extraordinary value through your participation in this critical conversation. If you know someone who would add and receive value through their participation, feel free to invite them to join you. Many community allies and partners are inviting community members to this conversation. As a result, you may receive more than one invitation.

Relational challenges require relational solutions. Our time together will be fast-paced, interactive and peer-to-peer, providing space for you to individually and collectively connect, imagine, and ignite future collaborations.

Questions? Email info@marnitastable.org or leave a voice message at 612.928.7744

About MN Bridge-Building Network led by Minnesota State Office of Collaboration and Dispute Resolution:

Minnesota, along with the rest of the nation, has witnessed growing polarization, division, incivility, and political violence recently. Nationally, it is estimated that incivility costs American businesses $2 billion per day in lost productivity and absenteeism, and research shows a growing connection between political polarization and negative impacts on public health and well-being. However, the vast majority of Americans (72%) desire to be a part of the solution in restoring civility to our country.

What if, across Minnesota, we could help people in our state be part of the solution? What if we could amplify efforts to find common ground and collaborate effectively? Minnesota has a remarkable network of people working to strengthen community ties and find common-ground approaches within today’s highly charged social environment. That’s why the Office of Collaboration and Dispute Resolution (OCDR) office began convening individuals and organizations doing “bridging” work starting in fall 2023 to foster cross-sector collaboration and innovation. (Bridging can be defined as efforts to create meaningful connections across ideology, geography, religion, race, gender, and other kinds of difference.)

Since 2023, we have grown from a small and mostly disconnected group of around 30 individuals and organizations to over 100, and the network continues to grow!

Our preliminary goal has been to connect, promote, and expand bridging efforts in Minnesota. We take a “big tent” approach and invite anyone to the table who is interested in bringing down the temperature on social division and working across differences to solve tough problems. We are fortunate to have many outstanding partners in this project and our work is evolving rapidly.

About Community Mediation Minnesota:

Community Mediation Minnesota is a collaborative hub that amplifies access to, and the impact of community-based mediation and restorative services throughout the state. We provide a variety of services along the conflict continuum, so whether you are facing a dispute involving neighbors, families, businesses, consumers, landlords, tenants or another matter, we can help. https://communitymediationmn.org/