People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

PPP 452 | How to Build Bridges Across Divides at Work and Beyond, with Juliana Tafur

Apr 3, 2025

Juliana Tafur, inaugural director of the Bridging Differences Program at UC Berkeley, discusses practical strategies for overcoming polarization. Growing up in divided Colombia shaped her perspective on conflict and connection. She explores the psychological roots of 'othering' and emphasizes listening as a transformative superpower. Juliana also introduces resources like the Campaign for Connection Challenge to foster empathy and dialogue. Her insights encourage a move away from labeling and highlight the importance of humility and curiosity in bridging divides.

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INSIGHT

Early Life Shaped A Bridge-Building Mission

Growing up in a divided Colombia shaped Juliana Tafur's drive to understand peaceful societies and bridge divides.
Experiencing 9/11 after moving to the U.S. deepened her focus on cross-cultural understanding and led to Middle East studies.

INSIGHT

Tribal Brain Biology Drives Othering

Humans evolved to think in tribes which triggers threat responses to outsiders via the amygdala.
Bridging skills help bypass these impulses by signaling safety and encouraging curiosity toward others.

ADVICE

Practice Compassionate Deep Listening

Listen with compassion: show curiosity, empathy, humility, and courage to enter hard conversations.
Ask open questions and validate feelings while you still may disagree with the content.

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Summary

In this episode, Andy interviews Juliana Tafur, the inaugural director of the Bridging Differences Program at UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center. The conversation explores practical strategies for bridging divides in a polarized world, both in personal and professional contexts.

Juliana shares insights from her experiences growing up in a divided Colombia, her work in the U.S. post-9/11, and research on bridging differences. The episode also covers the psychological roots of 'othering' and offers practical advice for fostering connections despite differences. Additionally, resources like the seven-day Campaign for Connection Challenge and the Bridging Differences Playbook are highlighted to help you apply these concepts in your daily life.

What if you could get better at bridging divides in these polarized times? This episode will help you do that!

Sound Bites

"Disconnection is one of the evils of our time."
"Our brains will always go to labeling. That is just how our brains function."
"No one is a single label… we are so multi-dimensional."
"Listening is truly like a hidden superpower."
"Just by us listening, we are perceived as more trustworthy."
"You can affirm their feelings while still disagreeing."
"The value of humility, openness, curiosity, empathy—are not really front and center in our society."

Chapters

00:00 Introduction
02:11 Start of Interview
02:24 Juliana's Background and Influences
04:29 Understanding 'Othering' and Tribalism
08:42 The Power of Listening with Compassion
10:33 Practical Steps for Deep Listening
16:40 Real-Life Examples of Bridging Divides
24:54 The Problem with Labels
27:10 The Seven Day Campaign for Connection Challenge
29:54 Resources for Bridging Differences
31:47 Teaching Kids to Bridge Differences
35:29 End of Interview
35:55 Andy's Comments After the Interview
39:23 Outtakes

Learn More

You can learn more about Juliana and her Bridging Differences program at GGSC.Berkeley.edu/What_we_do/Major_Initiatives/Bridging_Differences. You can download the Bridging Differences Playbook and access the Bridging Differences Videos from that page.

For more learning on this topic, check out:

Episode 380 with Monica Guzman about her book on a similar topic.
Episode 371 with Amanda Ripley about her book High Conflict.
Episode 276 with Buster Benson about his book
Episode 284 with Peter Boghossian about having what seem like impossible conversations.

Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!

Talent Triangle: Power Skills

Topics: Listening, Empathy, Connection, Polarization, Leadership, Communication, Conflict, Project Management

The following music was used for this episode:

Music: Ignotus by Agnese Valmaggia License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Music: Tropical Vibe by WinnieTheMoog License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license