BBC marks 100 years by bringing together people from 100 countries for Crossing Divides around the Globe

[quote]The ability of the BBC to air diverse views and facilitate open debate is central to our role in a divided world. So we are delighted to partner with the British Council on this project to celebrate BBC 100. Training young people from 100 countries with deep listening skills and sharing some of their journeys on the BBC can encourage many more people to take part in respectful challenging conversations.— Tim Davie, Director-General[/quote]

To celebrate 100 years of the BBC, the BBC World Service are partnering with the British Council for Crossing Divides around the Globe, an ambitious project to train young people to listen and understand those with very different perspectives.

The programme, which opens for applications, will be available to 1000 young people (aged 18-34) from 100 countries across the world.

The participants will take part in a virtual ‘Deep Listening’ training programme for three weeks, beginning later this spring. The training will enable people to develop the tools and confidence to talk, listen and discuss important polarising questions and develop understanding.

The BBC will broadcast some of the Deep Listening journeys on BBC World Service Outside Source and BBC World News as well as digital as part of the centenary celebrations later this year.

Deep Listening is a technique which encourages people to enter conversations with humility and an open mind, leading to conversations with less acrimony and more understanding.

It’s been found to be beneficial for adversarial discussions whether between colleagues, across political divides and even within the family by encouraging curiosity and attention.

The new project follows a successful pilot of the scheme by the British Council in partnership with the BBC in Lebanon, which saw 150 participants take part in a deep listening project to develop skills of empathy, silence and suspending judgement.

Participants found the project aided them in letting go of immediate judgements of those different to them, which helped some Lebanese participants struggling to find common ground with Syrian refugees in their country.

Tim Davie, Director General of the BBC, says: “The ability of the BBC to air diverse views and facilitate open debate is central to our role in a divided world. So we are delighted to partner with the British Council on this project to celebrate BBC 100. Training young people from 100 countries with deep listening skills and sharing some of their journeys on the BBC can encourage many more people to take part in respectful challenging conversations”.

Scott McDonald, CEO, British Council, says “We are delighted to work with the BBC World Service to offer the Deep Listening training programme to young people around the world. The pilot project in Lebanon last year evidenced the enormous power of being heard, and we know that when people feel recognised and understood, it helps open up communication between people and wider communities.”

“One of the biggest global challenges we face is division. The Deep Listening training gets to the heart of what we do at the British Council, by providing opportunities for people to step out of their echo chambers, to cross divides, and build trust and understanding. I have no doubt the skills gained through this training will be a great addition to the tool-box for young people as they navigate an increasingly complex world where communication and connection have never been more important.”

The World Service will work with the British Council in finding 1,000 young participants from 100 countries across the globe to take part in the next round of this ground-breaking project.

The BBC and British Council are encouraging anyone aged 18-34 who would like to learn Deep Listening skills and practise with others from across the globe to sign up and find out more about the programme on the British Council website.