DeKalb County Public Library and Inclusivv Join Forces to Promote Inclusivity and Community Connections

Event Aims to Expand Under­stand­ing of What It Means to Belong 

DECATUR, Ga. – (June 1, 2023) – DeKalb Coun­ty Pub­lic Library, in col­lab­o­ra­tion with Inclu­sivv, is hold­ing a spe­cial event to address the evolv­ing con­cept of belong­ing in work­places, schools and com­mu­ni­ties in the post-pan­dem­ic era. Titled ​“Cul­ture & Com­mu­ni­ty: Let’s Talk About Belong­ing,” this event aims to cre­ate a safe space for mean­ing­ful and open dialogue. 

Par­tic­i­pants will engage in struc­tured con­ver­sa­tions with­in small groups, and reflect on the essence of belong­ing. By shar­ing their unique per­spec­tives, atten­dees can con­tribute to pos­i­tive change. Inclu­sivv, an orga­ni­za­tion ded­i­cat­ed to con­ven­ing coura­geous con­ver­sa­tions and forg­ing con­nec­tions, will facil­i­tate the event.

“We have seen the pro­found impact that the pan­dem­ic has had on belong­ing and con­nec­tion,” said Tere­sa Tot­ten, adult ser­vices and pro­gram­ming coor­di­na­tor, DeKalb Coun­ty Pub­lic Library. ​“Even though every­one comes from dif­fer­ent walks of life, we hope this event helps peo­ple bet­ter under­stand the role we all play in fos­ter­ing a sense of belonging.”

“It’s so impor­tant to cre­ate space for human con­nec­tion,” said Jenn Gra­ham, the founder and CEO of Inclu­sivv who will be in atten­dance. ​“We’re expe­ri­enc­ing an epi­dem­ic of lone­li­ness with 86% of peo­ple not feel­ing con­nect­ed to their com­mu­ni­ty. This impacts our phys­i­cal health, our men­tal health, and our per­for­mance at school and work. But stud­ies have shown that shared dia­logue is one of the most effec­tive tools for fos­ter­ing belong­ing and cre­at­ing a stronger sense of com­mu­ni­ty. That’s why the Inclu­sivv mod­el, for­mer­ly known as Civic Din­ners, is so powerful.”

“Cul­ture & Com­mu­ni­ty: Let’s Talk About Belong­ing” will take place at the Clark­ston Com­mu­ni­ty Cen­ter, 3701 Col­lege Avenue, Clark­ston, GA 30021, on Tues­day, June 8 at 6:00 p.m. The doors will open at 5:30 p.m. for reg­is­tra­tion and light refresh­ments. The gath­er­ing is open to the pub­lic and free of charge. Reg­is­tra­tion is required to ensure that every­one has the oppor­tu­ni­ty to take part in the conversation.

Sup­port for this event is pro­vid­ed by DeKalb Library Foun­da­tion and Clark­ston Com­mu­ni­ty Cen­ter. This project is also sup­port­ed by Geor­gia Human­i­ties, in part­ner­ship with the Geor­gia Depart­ment of Eco­nom­ic Devel­op­ment, through appro­pri­a­tions made by the Geor­gia Gen­er­al Assembly.

To learn more about the event and reg­is­ter, vis­it the event reg­is­tra­tion page or find more infor­ma­tion on DCPL’s online events cal­en­dar.