Connecticut Land Conservation Conference

Climate and housing crises threaten Connecticut’s communities. While these human needs were once cast as competitors, today conservationists work with housing groups to find alignment. The ways people communicate about affordable housing can create obstacles or opportunities. Litchfield County housing advocates developed a PlayBook with strategies to counteract untrue beliefs, charged words, and devolution of dialogue into debate and entrenchment. This workshop will identify unhelpful narratives, why they block productive communication, and how to respond with alternatives that resonate and refocus discussion. Participants will reflect on narratives in their hometowns, practice the PlayBook’s strategies, and leave with further resources.