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Iowa Company Promotes Civility and Rural Revitalization

At a time when many elected officials are facing angry constituents at their town hall meetings across the country, the Iowa-based company, Global Horizons, LLC --whose passion is growing rural communities -- has some tips that might help.  

Co-owner Kimberlee Spillers says they believe civility and words matter, and they’ve identified certain steps they believe help build civility in families, organizations, businesses and society.

“Look for and acknowledge that people view issues because of life experiences. See problem solvers – your people in front of you are your problem solves.  Separate the people from the problem -- be soft on people but hard on the problem. Focus on interests and what you have in common. Create multiple options and then identify common ground to move ahead together.” 

Spillers says the more engaged a community and society is, the more civil it is likely to be.  She says they also find that as people’s choices and input are taken away, incivility often rises, as does the amount of time, energy and money it takes to resolve an issue.

Global Horizons calls their approach to getting along, WUCA, which stands for welcome, understand, comfort and appreciate. 

For more information, see bewuca.com