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Videos & Talks

Rotterdam clean-up story

Bernhard Holtrop

Bernhard Holtrop recounts a striking case from Rotterdam where structured dialogue transformed an intractable neighbourhood conflict. This conference presentation shares practical lessons from Dutch dialogue practice about engaging divided communities and creating unexpected openings for constructive change.

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Bernhard Holtrop presents a case study from Rotterdam demonstrating how dialogue can shift seemingly intractable community conflicts. Drawing from his extensive experience with dialogue practice in the Netherlands, Holtrop shares the story of how structured dialogue processes engaged local residents, authorities, and other stakeholders to address neighbourhood challenges that had resisted other interventions. The presentation illustrates principles that have emerged from the Dutch 'Netherlands in Dialogue' movement, which spread structured dialogue practice across 56 cities over many years of sustained effort. Holtrop, one of the movement's key practitioners, brings both theoretical grounding and practical wisdom to this case study presentation. The recording offers valuable insights for practitioners facing community conflicts where positions appear fixed and relationships appear damaged beyond repair. The Rotterdam case demonstrates dialogue's capacity to create unexpected openings when other approaches have failed to make progress.

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Dialogue in organisations and systemsPublic sector and government

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