Cultivating Civility

Can compassion truly shape public policy? Can civic leadership be both bold and empathetic? In this compelling episode of Cultivating Civility, your host Diane Kalen-Sukra sits down with Mayor Ron Nirenberg, a leader who has made compassion the bedrock of his governance in San Antonio, Texas.

From his very first act in office—signing a resolution affirming San Antonio as a Compassionate City—to groundbreaking policies on equity-based budgeting and community-wide compassion training, Mayor Nirenberg has demonstrated how civic leaders can operationalize compassion to create tangible change.

At a time when incivility and division dominate public discourse, this conversation is a breath of fresh air. Mayor Nirenberg shares his personal and political journey, revealing why compassion isn’t just a virtue—it’s a leadership imperative. You’ll hear about:

✔️ How San Antonio became a model for compassionate governance
✔️ The power of actionable compassion versus passive empathy
✔️ The Ready to Work initiative, which breaks cycles of generational poverty
✔️ How to build a culture of shared understanding and mutual respect in civic life
✔️ Why long-term cultural transformation matters more than short-term political wins

If you're a civic leader, engaged citizen, or simply someone who believes in the power of people-first leadership, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

🎧 Listen now and be inspired to cultivate civility in your own community!

For more practical strategies on renewing civic culture, explore the Cultivating Civility Masterclass: https://KalenAcademy.com/civilitymasterclass.

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🌟If you have an inspiring story to share of how civility was cultivated in your community or would like support in cultivating civility, please message KalenAcademy.com/contact.🌟
🏛️Support the Cultivating Civility podcast & help the civility movement thrive! Subscribers receive exclusive access to special episodes & subscriber-only content. Subscribe today. (Only $5/month.)

What if Alexis de Tocqueville, the 19th-century thinker who warned about the fragility of democracy, could see our media landscape today?

Tocqueville believed a free press was both vital and dangerous—a powerful force that could protect liberty or manipulate public opinion. He saw that when the press fails to inform, democracy starts to unravel.

Fast forward to today: Corporate media consolidates narratives. Local journalism is vanishing. Outrage and misinformation flood our feeds. Would Tocqueville recognize the press he once admired, or would he see something far more insidious?

In this special Civility Dispatch with Diane Kalen-Sukra, we explore Tocqueville’s insights on the press, what they reveal about our current crisis, and three simple actions you can take today to ensure truth and accountability in your local community.

🎧 Listen now and ask yourself: If Tocqueville warned us, why didn’t we listen?

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🌟If you have an inspiring story to share of how civility was cultivated in your community or would like support in cultivating civility, please message KalenAcademy.com/contact.🌟
🏛️Support the Cultivating Civility podcast & help the civility movement thrive! Subscribers receive exclusive access to special episodes & subscriber-only content. Subscribe today. (Only $5/month.)

In an era of rising incivility, public leaders face an uphill battle. Governing has never been more difficult, with polarization, harassment, and institutional paralysis becoming the norm. The temptation to meet hostility with hostility is stronger than ever—but what if that approach only deepens the chaos?

On this special Civility Dispatch episode of the Cultivating Civility Podcast, I, Diane Kalen-Sukra, explore a vital truth: civility is not niceness—it’s leadership. True civility isn’t about being agreeable or avoiding conflict. It’s about engaging with strength, integrity, and accountability, even in the face of hostility.

This episode builds on my recent conversation with Larry Platt, former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed on the How to Really Run a City podcast. Together, we tackled the real consequences of rising incivility, the growing allure of ruthless power-seeking, and what it takes to lead effectively in these turbulent times.

I challenge the misguided idea that civility is weakness, drawing on history’s great leaders—Abraham Lincoln, Nelson Mandela, and Mayor Nutter’s powerful response to youth flash mobs in Philadelphia—to illustrate that true leadership requires moral courage and strategic wisdom.

Is civility obsolete? Or is it the only way to sustain governance in a divided world? Join me for this critical discussion on why winning at any cost leads to collapse, while true civility creates the conditions where democracy can thrive.

🎧 Tune in now on your favorite podcast platform and be part of the movement to restore civic culture.

🚀 Ready to take action? Enroll in the Cultivating Civility Masterclass for a step-by-step roadmap to renewing civic culture. Learn more at KalenAcademy.com/civilitymasterclass.

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Support the show

🌟If you have an inspiring story to share of how civility was cultivated in your community or would like support in cultivating civility, please message KalenAcademy.com/contact.🌟
🏛️Support the Cultivating Civility podcast & help the civility movement thrive! Subscribers receive exclusive access to special episodes & subscriber-only content. Subscribe today. (Only $5/month.)

On this Valentine’s Day, consider this a different kind of love letter—not to a person, but to a country.

In this special Civility Dispatch, Diane Kalen-Sukra, your host of the Cultivating Civility Podcast, shares Beyond Beer & Booing: Loving Canada Means Living Our Values.

Too often, national pride gets reduced to clichés and grievances, but love of country—real civic love—is about more than slogans. It’s about how we engage, how we govern, and whether we truly live out the values we claim to hold dear.

Because if we love this country, we need to act like it.

🎧 Tune in now.

To read a transcript, click here.

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Support the show

🌟If you have an inspiring story to share of how civility was cultivated in your community or would like support in cultivating civility, please message KalenAcademy.com/contact.🌟
🏛️Support the Cultivating Civility podcast & help the civility movement thrive! Subscribers receive exclusive access to special episodes & subscriber-only content. Subscribe today. (Only $5/month.)

In today’s polarized climate, where division is currency and conflict is stoked for power, what does real leadership look like? How do we, as civic leaders and engaged citizens, resist the pull of tribalism, stand firm in our principles, and rebuild trust in our communities?

In this compelling episode of Cultivating Civility, we explore these urgent questions with Ron Holifield, servant leadership provocateur and CEO of Strategic Government Resources (SGR). Together, we unpack the leadership crisis of our time and challenge the conventional wisdom that winning at all costs is leadership. Instead, we examine what it takes to lead with courage, character, and sacrifice—especially when it comes at a personal cost.

We take on one of the toughest and most necessary challenges of our era: holding our own side accountable. In a world where political loyalty often trumps integrity, we discuss why real leadership demands the moral courage to challenge bad actors within our own ranks—not just those across the aisle. The price of leadership, Ron reminds us, is not popularity but service to the greater good.

Together, we dig into:
🔍 Why trust is the currency of leadership—and how we can rebuild it
🔍 How to break the cycle of a conflict-driven culture and lead with integrity
🔍 What it takes to resist tribalism and refocus leadership on the common good

We don’t just talk about the problems—we explore solutions. If you’ve ever wondered how to engage in the public square without losing yourself in the noise, this conversation is for you.

🎧 Tune in now and join us as we chart a path forward for a more civil, courageous, and servant-hearted leadership.

Send us a text

Support the show

🌟If you have an inspiring story to share of how civility was cultivated in your community or would like support in cultivating civility, please message KalenAcademy.com/contact.🌟
🏛️Support the Cultivating Civility podcast & help the civility movement thrive! Subscribers receive exclusive access to special episodes & subscriber-only content. Subscribe today. (Only $5/month.)