Many perspectives, one Wisconsin
At the University of Wisconsin–Madison, we are advancing civil dialogue by cultivating a community where diverse viewpoints are expected, debated, and respected.
Our commitment to fostering vigorous discourse
In an era when disagreement often means disconnection or division, UW–Madison is focused on encouraging ongoing engagement and fostering the robust exchange of ideas.
The Wisconsin Exchange: Pluralism in Practice aims to help students, faculty, and staff engage, live, and lead in a polarized world. It will both connect existing programs on campus and create new opportunities. Our goals are to ensure we are a flourishing, pluralistic campus and, we hope, to serve as a national model for dialogue across differences.
We certainly don’t expect everyone to agree. We know there will be uncomfortable conversations. But it is vital that we talk — and listen — to each other.
With the Wisconsin Exchange, we’re turning civil debate into a regular practice, with events that model how to discuss — and disagree about — difficult issues with skill and care, in courses that teach civil engagement as an essential skill, through partnerships with organizations advancing this work on a national scale, and more. Pluralism is not just a concept for us: It’s a lived experience.
Learning happens best when people with different beliefs, experiences, and backgrounds come together. The Wisconsin Exchange aims to build robust opportunities for members of our community to share their perspectives, listen and learn from one another, and grow and collaborate through meaningful dialogue across their differences.
The divide we face
43%
of UW–Madison students said they would support disinviting a speaker with viewpoints that could be offensive to some people.
50%
of students nationally say they would not “dorm across the aisle” with someone who voted differently in the last presidential election.
National surveys
77%
of Americans report having few or no friends with different political beliefs.
National surveys
Our approach to bridging divides
Pluralism isn’t just about allowing different views; it’s about authentically and thoughtfully interacting with views other than our own. The Wisconsin Exchange aims to help students, staff, and faculty question, challenge, and debate ideas in ways that are respectful and constructive. We’ll help students build these skills as they grow into the thoughtful leaders and citizens our world needs. We’ll lift up and build upon what’s already happening at UW–Madison, gather for events that embody civil dialogue, and draw on the expertise and energy of our campus community.
Upcoming events
From collaborative conversations to a new speaker series on campus, the Wisconsin Exchange will strive to model what a culture of healthy debate and civil discourse looks like, especially through skill-building, leadership opportunities, and activities that advance pluralism.
Grants and fellowships
The Wisconsin Exchange is looking for innovative ideas to advance viewpoint diversity and civil dialogue at UW–Madison. Grants up to $10,000 will be awarded to selected student-led projects and up to $50,000 for faculty- and staff-led projects. Applications for a Postdoctoral Fellowship Program will open in January 2026.
Current initiatives
Efforts to foster pluralism are already happening on campus. Programs like Deliberation Dinners and BridgeMadison are focused on building connections while also breaking new ground.
Civil discourse is the foundation of democratic engagement and self-government — it means discussing today’s issues with respect, depth, and a commitment to hearing others, even when we disagree. That’s what the Wisconsin Exchange is all about.
What’s pluralism?
As Chancellor Jennifer L. Mnookin told incoming students at Fall Convocation 2024, “Pluralism is about bringing people with many different backgrounds and sometimes conflicting perspectives and ideas together to discuss and debate, or, as we sometimes talk about it here at UW–Madison, to sift and winnow — our way of describing a kind of inquiry that generates insights and discoveries.”
Insights and discoveries. Inquiry and ideas. Building on UW–Madison’s long tradition of open inquiry, the Wisconsin Exchange creates space for people with differing viewpoints to challenge, inform, listen to, and learn from one another.
