Inclusivv Dinners

Food for Thought

Inclusivv facilitates conversations on tough topics over intimate meals

By Collin Kelley

Jenn Graham believes in the power of big ideas and taking chances.

She arrived in Atlanta in 2006 to take classes at the Portfolio Center and had her sights set on a fast-paced tech career in San Francisco, but then the job market crashed during the global recession. She went to work at tech company Unboundry, which led her to organizing TEDx talks.

“I fell in love with Atlanta – the diversity, resilience, and innovation,” Graham said.

While she was planning TEDx talks, she realized that people were looking for different ways to engage on pressing civic and social issues. More than someone talking at them in an auditorium and certainly not heated debates and shouting matches that left people angry rather than enlightened.

“I started thinking about how to make civic engagement more fun and meaningful, and the answer was bringing people together over food,” Graham said.

In 2015, Graham created Civic Dinners, small dinner parties where people could enjoy a meal and have structured conversations about topics relevant to Atlanta. As word of these dinners spread, the Atlanta Regional Commission came calling asking for help in facilitating discussions on future planning that would impact the entire metro area.

Then Graham started getting calls from other cities just as the contentious 2016 presidential election was creating social divide.

“I felt like communication just stopped with half my family after 2016 because of the election,” Graham said. “It was obvious this was happening all over the country. As a people, I think we lost the art of conversation.”

Civic Dinners turned its attention more sharply to social issues, partnering with the King Center to facilitate discussions on bridging the racial divide, making sure women’s voices were heard as the #MeToo movement gained momentum, and achieving what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. called the “beloved community.”

More meals were planned and giving people a seat at the table was more important than ever. “People walked away from the dinners and conversations more deeply connected to each other and felt motivated to take action,” Graham said. “Having a conversation that didn’t resort to debate or win or lose made sure everyone at the table was being heard.”

Graham said creating a comfort level and safe space at the dinners was imperative to

Jenn Graham is the founder and CEO of Inclusivv.

NEW RESTAURANT RADAR

Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ has opened its third location in Adair Park, 680 Murphy Ave., serving up vinegar-based, Eastern South Carolina-style ‘cue at The MET development. See the menu at rodneyscottsbbq.com Downtown speak-easy Red Phone Booth has opened new outpost in Buckhead at 3242 Peachtree Road, Suite A. Cocktails, food and cigars (with state-of-the-art filtration system) are available. Visit redphonebooth. com for more. Mrs. P’s Kitchen & Bar is now serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the Wylie Hotel, 551 Ponce de Leon Ave., with a menu of “comfortable, familiar fare.” Visit wyliehotel.com/ dining.