To escape the dilemma between being right and being happy, we need forms of discourse that are more than a sum or a combination of monologues.
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Newsletter of the SSCG / February 2022
Editorial
Dear Reader
“Do you want to be right, or do you want to be happy?” is the fundamental question asked by Marshall Rosenberg in his thoughts on nonviolent communication. In recent months, countless people worldwide have chosen not to be happy. Their insistence on being right about Covid vaccinations and governmental Covid measures has become a pandemic in itself, spreading globally, with lightning speed and painful consequences. To escape the dilemma between being right and being happy, we need forms of discourse that are more than a sum or a combination of monologues.
Shortly before the Covid referendum in November 2021, the SSCG launched a national appeal, #LiebeSchweiz (Dear Switzerland), encouraging the Swiss population to engage in constructive discussion. Over 30,000 people signed up to this invitation to a nationwide dialogue. Ten years ago, an SSCG working group came up with an idea for setting up discussion rooms throughout the country. These were places offering a protected atmosphere beyond people’s personal filter bubbles and echo chambers, where they could meet to discuss relevant social issues and challenges and seek new solutions. Because of the Covid crisis, which has long since become more than a battle against a virus, SSCG is revisiting this idea and will implement it in different forms in the years ahead. In this way, the crisis can become an opportunity. We look forward to keeping you updated.
I wish you a stimulating read
Lukas Niederberger, Managing Director SSCG
New Leporello from the Federal Statistical Office with SSCG figures
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NGOs successfully ward off attack from political opponents
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Agenda 2022
Dates in the SSCG calendar for 2022 – Note them down now
5 May 2022: Volunteers’ conference at the Kursaal, Bern, 10 am – 3 pm
9 June 2022: Meeting of the Swiss nonprofit network, 9 am – 1 pm at the Kursaal Bern
9-10 June 2022: SSCG meeting in Bern and Burgdorf
1 August 2022: National Day celebrations on the Rütli
More information about the events in the Agenda of the SSCG.
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