Our first Co-Creating Desired Futures (CCDF) Gathering - January 23rd, and 24th, 2026

We recently hosted an experimental, in-person, grassroots community conversation toward co-creating desired futures with a small group of people at the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Brooklyn, NY.

 

Together we explored one guiding question:

“How might we improve the quality of life for everyone in our community?”

How this Gathering was Different 

This wasn’t a debate, a town hall, or a committee meeting. It was an experiment inspired by The Gatherings screenplay — a story about how small groups of people begin listening to one another in new ways and spark social change.

 

For one weekend, we started to bring that story to life. The process we used — CCDF Facilitation — helps people speak from the heart, listen deeply, and uncover shared insights that no one could have imagined alone. It transforms disagreement into discovery and reveals practical, compassionate solutions that arise from collective wisdom- and shows what’s possible when people think, feel, and imagine together.

​​

Why It Matters Now

Participants reported feeling the strain of political divisiveness and uncertainty about the future. This Gathering offered a rare opportunity to connect locally, build trust, and rediscover what’s possible when we move beyond positions and start listening for what truly matters.

​

Facilitation is the key

Co-facilitators Rosa Zubizarreta (author of From Conflict to Creative Collaboration), along with Laurie Simons, & Terry Sterrenberg (Bay Ridge residents) guided the group through a lightly structured and heart-centered process. Participants shared what was most important to them, heard other participants' perspectives, and explored together what next steps could make life better for everyone in their community.​​​​

​

If you subscribe to our newsletter so you will get a notification once we are ready to share the harvest from this Gathering. 

​

To have a conversation with us about hosting or participating in future CCDF Gatherings, please Contact Us .

​

    Let’s see what can happen when people come together
            to imagine - and begin - a better way forward.

​

*