In this episode, Bert, Janani, and Rachel talk about the things they imagined when they were children, how they imagine what’s possible for themselves, and the role of imagination in creating a more just and equitable world.
IDP Resource: Listening & Learning with "I" Statements
Episode 9. Imagination
Discussion Questions
- How has your experience of imagination changed throughout your life?
- Where do you notice social identity showing up in what you imagine for your own life? For the society you’re part of? For the world and its future?
- Who is a role model of yours and how does this person spur your imagination?
Writing Prompt
Describe a time when your imagination “filled in the gaps” of an incomplete story: what did you know, and what information did your imagination add? What kind of emotions, assumptions, or stereotypes emerged in what you imagined?
Related Readings
- Why social movements need the radical imagination (Khasnabish & Haiven, 2014)
- The importance of diverse role models (Evenson, 2019)
- What happens to creativity as we age? (Gopnik & Griffiths, 2017)
- The coronavirus is rewriting our imaginations (Robinson, 2020)
Experiment with IDP’s latest offering: Listening & Learning with the “I” Statements podcast. This guide is an accompaniment to our podcast, “I” Statements, where people with different identities come together to share their own beliefs, experiences, and perspectives, demonstrating both the power and the possibility inherent in communicating across difference.
These episode guides are for people who would like to incorporate the podcast into their work with students and/or colleagues.
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Cite this IDP Resource:
- APA: Intergroup Dialogue Project. (2020, September). IDP Resource: Listening & Learning with “I” Statements, Episode 9. Imagination. Intergroup Dialogue Project – Dialogue Across Difference. https://idp.cornell.edu/idp-resources/idp-resource-listening-and-learning-with-i-statements/idp-resource-listening-and-learning-with-i-statements-episode-9/
- MLA: Intergroup Dialogue Project. “IDP Resource: Listening & Learning with “I” Statements, Episode 9. Imagination.” Intergroup Dialogue Project – Dialogue Across Difference, Cornell University, September 2020, https://idp.cornell.edu/idp-resources/idp-resource-listening-and-learning-with-i-statements/idp-resource-listening-and-learning-with-i-statements-episode-9/
- Chicago: Intergroup Dialogue Project, “IDP Resource: Listening & Learning with “I” Statements, Episode 9. Imagination,” Intergroup Dialogue Project – Dialogue Across Difference, Cornell University, September 2020, https://idp.cornell.edu/idp-resources/idp-resource-listening-and-learning-with-i-statements/idp-resource-listening-and-learning-with-i-statements-episode-9/