Disagree Better

Healthy Conflict for Better Policy

Disagreeing better isn’t just about being nicer to one another—it’s about finding a way to disagree that moves us toward solutions rather than deepening divides.

The reality is clear: most Americans are tired of the gridlock and bickering. The “exhausted majority” craves a new approach, and research shows that there are proven methods to reduce polarization. As doers and builders, Governors are in a unique position to model what healthy conflict looks like.

The Disagree Better initiative, which I started during my time as Chair of the National Governors Association, looks at the problems of polarization, elevates the solutions that groups around the country are already implementing, and features Governors showing what disagreeing better looks like. Through public debates, service projects, and public service announcements, Americans are seeing a more positive and optimistic way of working through our problems.

We know that conflict resolution takes work and involves difficult conversations. It’s much easier to sow division than to persuade or find solutions. But we also know that no one ever changed someone’s mind by attacking them.

Through healthy conflict, we’re confident that we can find common ground and improve our families, our communities and our nation. Together, we can disagree better.

– Utah Gov. Spencer Cox