Dialogue Facilitators
We are local community leaders, former Rotary Peace Fellows, and global development practitioners. Together, we facilitate dialogues that are inclusive and accessible in more communities across the U.S. and globally.
A Few of Our Facilitators
Based in Seattle
Linda Low (Canada/U.S.), Leadership Dialogues Founder
Linda is the founder of Leadership Dialogues and the Global Partners in Peace Rotary Club. Previously with the International Red Cross, she is passionate about convening representative voices in community dialogue and provides communications and advocacy counsel to international non-governmental organizations and corporate foundations. Linda was a Peace Fellow at the Duke-UNC Rotary Peace Center.
Based in Dnipro
Sakun Gajurel (Nepal/Italy)
Sakun was a Duke-UNC Rotary Peace Fellow and is a board member of the Global Partners in Peace Rotary Club. Currently a Community Engagement Officer with the World Health Organization, Sakun specializes in facilitation and international development focused on cultural sensitivity in humanitarian contexts.
Based in Brooklyn
Laurie Smolenski (U.S.)
Laurie was a University of Queensland Rotary Peace Fellow and is an honorary member of the Global Partners in Peace Rotary Club. Formerly with the Institute for Economics and Peace, Laurie is a dialogue facilitator, development and peace building professional, writer, researcher, and human rights advocate. Her focus includes human rights, quantitative research, access to justice, gender equity, and independent media.
Based in Denver
Hillary Baggett (U.S.)
Hillary is the Rotary network liaison for the Global Partners in Peace Rotary Club. She focuses on community building, lifting women changemakers, and women empowering women. Hillary is the host of the podcast HillTalks and Community Bloom.
Based in Detroit
Sofia Farah (Chile/U.S.)
Sofia is a board member of the Global Partners in Peace Rotary Club. As Development Director for the independent news source Mondoweiss, she leads resource development to support the production of independent journalism, news and analysis about Palestine, Israel and the U.S. Sofia is passionate about building stronger, equitable and inclusive communities locally and globally.
Based in Mexico City
Branka Panic (Serbia/Mexico)
Branka was a Duke-UNC Rotary Peace Fellow and is a founding member of the Global Partners in Peace Rotary Club. She is the founder of AI for Peace, a think tank focused on studying the impacts of artificial intelligence (AI) and related technologies on society. She strives for a future in which AI benefits peace, security, and sustainable development and where diverse voices influence the creation of AI.
Become a dialogue facilitator in your community
Are you or someone you know interested in leading local dialogues? To respond to community facilitation needs, we are training Community Facilitators. These facilitators are part of your community, represent diverse groups in your region, and are passionate about convening people in dialogue. They are trained in the Leadership Dialogue facilitation techniques, so that they can facilitate substantive dialogue in both small and large group settings.
By training local facilitators, this ensures that those leading the conversation are representative of the local community and have lived insight into local issues, which fosters inclusion and helps remove barriers to participation.
“We have facilitated dialogues in Rotary clubs and local nonprofits like United Way, Chamber of Commerce and One Place. The dialogues are also being utilized in a local high school to teach students ways to engage in meaningful, respectful communication while learning to see another’s perspective.”