A focus of BTP's efforts-- and the model for our larger Citizen Deliberations-- is the convening of a random sample of citizens for dialogues centered around a Deliberative Opinion Poll®. For these events, a random sample of citizens is called, surveyed on an issue and then invited to attend an event. They are given background materials, attend the day-long Citizen Deliberation, and are surveyed again. Local and national media often cover the participants' changes in opinion.

Other types of Citizen Deliberations have included youth forums; videolinked dialogues on community college campuses; conversations at local libraries; and presentations and discussions hosted by community groups and broadcast on local radio-all on topics ranging from humanitarian issues to security and terrorism.

BTP started its work at The Wye River Dialogue, held November 1-3, 2002, at the historic Wye River Conference Center. These conversations-including former U.S. Congressmen and Secretaries of State, civic activists, educators, foreign policy experts, national and local journalists, actors, theologians and others-helped BTP think about the best ways to engage the American public.

BTP is partnering with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation on the Dialogues in Democracy project. Ongoing BTP project funding partners include the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. BTP is nonpartisan and doesn't support any particular policy, position or viewpoint. Its sole purpose is to encourage informed dialogue. For more information about BTP, contact Ria Misra, Associate Director at rmisra@newshour.org.