“Wir-m\u00fcssen-reden” is an open format for people who are looking for a real conversation – beyond exchanging blows and self-affirmation. It is about the “art of constructive encounters” with positions that seem strange or uncomfortable, about listening with curiosity and struggling for understanding without giving up one’s own stance.<\/p>\n
After an initial, intensive encounter with representatives of the AfD, the project is now entering a second phase. In further dialogues on topics such as democracy, belonging (integration vs. demarcation) or life in the city (living vs. celebrating), concrete spaces of experience are created together in which listening, reflection and a clear stance come together.<\/p>\n
“Wir-m\u00fcssen-reden” is not a course, but an invitation to experiment: to an open, critical and at the same time empathetic culture of discussion. The “playing fields” (topics) are identified and developed together.<\/p>\n
Moderator: <\/strong>Thomas Hegemann, who as an organizational developer and management consultant in the USA and Europe has focused on the topic of innovation capability, especially in organizations, and as a coach and television presenter has many decades of experience with successful and unsuccessful communication (and formats).<\/p>\n In times when opinions are hardening and spaces for dialogue are shrinking, this format seeks to foster encounters that do not immediately lead to agreement or resistance. We\u2019re interested in the in-between\u2014the zone where different ways of thinking, feeling, and experiencing intersect. Where people who would otherwise avoid each other talk: about politics and belonging, about city life, traffic, climate, freedom\u2014and about what is \u201cnon-negotiable\u201d for each and every one of us.<\/p>\n \u201cWe-Must-Talk\u201d<\/strong> is not a communication course, nor a seminar on empathy or conversation techniques. It is an expedition into uncharted territory: How do you stay in the conversation when the impulse to walk away or turn away becomes overwhelming? What happens when you try not to convince immediately, but to truly understand\u2014especially where it hurts?<\/p>\n We want to explore (for ourselves) how curiosity, listening, and a clear stance can go hand in hand. How \u201ctough facilitation\u201d and genuine openness are not mutually exclusive. We want to discuss what participants experience in \u201csuch\u201d situations and how they handle them. What happens when you commit to not \u201cconverting\u201d the other person, but rather to understanding what drives them\u2014even if you firmly reject their position.<\/p>\n The pilot project to date\u2014an encounter with members of the AfD\u2014has shown that productive conversational dynamics develop precisely when the focus is not on refuting opposing positions, but on understanding the underlying motives, emotions, and needs. Without abandoning a critical distance. This creates a space for experience in which democracy is concretely negotiated. People do not speak from a distance, commenting \u201cfrom the stands,\u201d but step out onto the communicative \u201cplaying field\u201d of direct encounter.<\/p>\n In the \u201cWir-m\u00fcssen-reden\u201d project, people come together who know themselves, their patterns, and their reactions well\u2014and who are eager to concretely venture into new communicative territory (rather than theorize). It is not about harmony, but about the art of staying in conversation without compromising oneself. It is about balancing distance and closeness, listening and contradiction.<\/p>\n Perhaps in doing so, we will discover more and more precisely what divides us\u2014but also what connects us: the need to be seen, to be understood, to belong. We explore: Where and how can bridges be built? Where are \u201cred lines\u201d needed while still fostering integration?<\/p>\n \u201cWe-Need-to-Talk<\/strong>\u201d\u2014because democracy cannot remain alive without encounter.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n Registration: <\/strong>events@dai-heidelberg “Wir-m\u00fcssen-reden” is an open format for people who are looking for a real conversation – beyond exchanging blows and self-affirmation. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":57895,"template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"dai_event_category":[7],"dai_event_type":[12],"dai_event_location":[],"class_list":["post-57886","dai_event","type-dai_event","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","dai_event_category-library","dai_event_type-in-dialogue"],"better_featured_image":{"id":57895,"alt_text":"","caption":"","description":"","media_type":"image","media_details":{"width":820,"height":370,"file":"2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden.jpg","filesize":120477,"sizes":{"medium":{"file":"260429_Wir-muessen-reden-300x135.jpg","width":300,"height":135,"mime-type":"image\/jpeg","filesize":20351,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden-300x135.jpg"},"thumbnail":{"file":"260429_Wir-muessen-reden-150x150.jpg","width":150,"height":150,"mime-type":"image\/jpeg","filesize":11725,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden-150x150.jpg"},"medium_large":{"file":"260429_Wir-muessen-reden-768x347.jpg","width":768,"height":347,"mime-type":"image\/jpeg","filesize":67826,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden-768x347.jpg"},"dai-list":{"file":"260429_Wir-muessen-reden-140x140.jpg","width":140,"height":140,"mime-type":"image\/jpeg","filesize":11074,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden-140x140.jpg"},"dai-selector":{"file":"260429_Wir-muessen-reden-240x170.jpg","width":240,"height":170,"mime-type":"image\/jpeg","filesize":18554,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden-240x170.jpg"},"dai-hof":{"file":"260429_Wir-muessen-reden-240x192.jpg","width":240,"height":192,"mime-type":"image\/jpeg","filesize":19119,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden-240x192.jpg"}},"image_meta":{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0","keywords":[]}},"post":null,"source_url":"https:\/\/dai-heidelberg.de\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/260429_Wir-muessen-reden.jpg"},"post-meta-fields":{"dai_autotranslate_source_post":["74447"],"dai_autotranslate_source_thumbnail":["74463"],"dai_autotranslate_should_translate":["0"],"dai_event_datetime":["2026-04-29 19:15"],"dai_event_featured":["0"],"dai_event_subtext":["Thomas Hegemann (Moderation)"],"dai_event_artist":["But different - deeper, more alert, more curious."],"dai_event_ticket_freeadmission":["1"],"_thumbnail_id":["57895"],"_edit_lock":["1776177582:10"],"_edit_last":["10"],"dai_event_status":["planned"],"dai_event_language":["de"],"dai_event_type":["at_location"],"_yoast_wpseo_primary_dai_event_category":["7"],"_yoast_wpseo_primary_dai_event_type":["12"],"_yoast_wpseo_primary_dai_event_location":[""],"_yoast_wpseo_content_score":["30"],"_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":["3"]},"yoast_head":"\nClick here for more information<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/summary>\n
\nThe program is designed as an ongoing series<\/strong>, the dates of which build on each other. We therefore recommend participation over the entire period:
\n29.4. (Meeting room, 2nd floor), each starting at 19:15
\n6.5. library
\n26.5. library
\n10.6. library
\n24.6. meeting room (meeting room, 2nd floor)
\n9.7. meeting room (meeting room, 2nd floor)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"