College of Arts and Sciences Home
  • Home
  • The CAS Experience
  • Bridging Difference and Developing Moral Imagination
 Favorites ()
Apply
Faculty on the Reckoning and Repair trip to South Africa walk across a bridge in the canopy

All For a Brighter Future

Bridging Difference and Developing Moral Imagination

What is the "Bridging Difference and Developing Moral Imagination" Initiative?

“Bridging Difference and Developing Moral Imagination” is an initiative of the College of Arts and Sciences that seeks to explore how individuals and communities can bridge differences, cultivate moral imagination, develop the capacity for empathy and strengthen the relationships that sustain a thriving democracy.

This initiative supports the development of faculty in navigating conflict in an era marked by polarization, social fragmentation and declining trust in institutions. Through interdisciplinary inquiry, dialogue, experiential learning and reflection, faculty will develop the pedagogical skills required to navigate the polarization present in today’s classrooms, with the ultimate aim of empowering students to address pressing challenges and contribute to the common good.

Guest speakers who come to campus will also help students move beyond simplistic narratives and entrenched positions to envision more just, compassionate and inclusive communities. By fostering curiosity, humility and moral courage, these seminars will ultimately prepare Tommies to engage a pluralistic world with wisdom, hope and a commitment to the flourishing of all.

Contact

Email
artsandsciences@stthomas.edu
Bill Tolman

Discover a Shared Humanity

This initiative seeks to expand the definition of “we” for a radically inclusive vision of the state, the nation and world.

Faculty Seminars

Central to the Bridging Difference and Developing Moral Imagination initiative are seminars that invite faculty to examine the cultural, historical, political, religious, psychological and/or ethical dimensions of a community that has navigated political polarization and conflict, highlighting pathways toward empathy, solidarity, civic friendship and constructive action. These seminars are tied to the College’s strategic initiatives to enhance transformative education and foster an inclusive community.
Dr. Flonzie Brown Wright speaks with students about the struggle for civil rights

We March For Justice

By encountering those who were foot soldiers in the struggle for justice, the We March for Justice trip provides an intergenerational group an opportunity to visit the sites of the Civil Rights movement in the United States.
Faculty in front of the Nelson Mandela at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, South Africa

Reckoning and Repair

By engaging with those who participated in the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, this seminar immerses participants in South Africa’s ongoing journey of racial reckoning and repair in the pursuit of truth, justice and social transformation.
Trip members gather around a large bonfire

Unlearning and Co-Creation

This seminar brings participants into collaborative relationship with Indigenous communities in the Ecuadorian Andes and Amazon and invites participants to engage processes of unlearning and co-creation as pathways to responding ethically to environmental challenges facing the world today.
The iconic Geirangerfjord in Norway, a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its dramatic landscapes

Disagreement and Dignity

Norway has played a significant international role as a facilitator of dialogue in conflicts around the world. This has fostered expertise and institutions dedicated to dialogue, mediation and reconciliation. St. Thomas faculty will engage with leaders to bring more techniques back to campus.

Speaker Series

The Bridging Difference and Developing Moral Imagination initiative brings prestigious speakers to campus to engage with audiences on pressing topics of the day, giving shape to the College’s strategic initiatives to promote interdisciplinary and intercultural excellence, enhance transformative education, and foster an inclusive community. Some recent speakers are featured here, with links to video from their visits when available.
Colum McCann Sharon Brous Anthony Ray Hinton

Colum McCann

Author of Apeirogon, Colum McCann uses the true story of two bereaved fathers—one Israeli and one Palestinian—to explore how empathy, storytelling, and shared grief can create possibilities for reconciliation even in the midst of seemingly intractable conflict.

Sharon Brous

Author of The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Heal Our Hearts and Mend Our Broken World, Rabbi Sharon Brous argues that in an age of loneliness, polarization and grief, the most powerful way to heal ourselves and our communities is to show up for one another with genuine presence, empathy and solidarity—essentially saying, “I see you; you are not alone.”
Sharon Brous Video

Anthony Ray Hinton

Author of The Sun Does Shine, Anthony Ray Hinton recounts how he survived nearly 30 years on Alabama’s death row for crimes he did not commit and argues that hope, forgiveness and human dignity can endure even in the face of profound injustice, while exposing the failures of the criminal justice system and the death penalty.
Anthony Ray Hinton Video (Internal Only)

Upcoming Events