Although international in scope, Seeking Common Ground (SCG) continuously strives to foster a meaningful, local impact here in Denver.  SCG was presented with the distinguished opportunity and privilege to conduct a workshop at Denver Center for International Studies’ (DCIS) with the sophomore class in March. Over the span of three weeks, SCG worked with a total of 74 students from three cross-culture classes.  Facilitators from SCG introduced the Mask Project—a creative arts workshop that has been adapted from SCG’s best practices model—to the tenth grade class.

The Mask Project is designed to create a safe space, and invite participants to share their personal thoughts and feelings.  The Mask Project involves three stages, which include creating the mask, decorating the mask and sharing the mask.  Through this process, participants are encouraged to empathize with their classmates as they explore the meaning behind individual’s interpretations of how the world sees us as well as how we see ourselves.  In addition to the Mask Project, the SCG facilitators integrated other prevalent activities applied to SCG’s life changing work.  The elements of these various activities include, but are certainly not limited to, intentional listening, communication, establishing trust and explore issues of identity. 

After the project was completed, a number of participants commented on how much closer the workshop brought them to fellow classmates, and allowed for deeper understanding of similarities and differences.  SCG recognizes the value of building and maintaining relationships in the Denver community, and is looking forward to continuing a relationship with DCIS.  Thank you to all who were involved in organizing and participating in this successful workshop.