This Guide seeks to offer criteria, guidelines, and tools that will allow the different stakeholders in society to understand what the process of democratic dialogue involves and how to engage in successful dialogic initiatives. The Guide has four sections.

The first section provides an overview of the current conflict dynamics in Latin America. The views and opinions of analysts, researchers, and leaders from a variety of sectors in the region are included.

The second section introduces the basic concepts and elements of dialogue, which, in addition to providing a definition of dialogue, explains its governing principles and describes the various roles in a dialogue process, including that of the facilitator.

The third section describes and explains the various stages through which a
dialogue moves – exploration, design, implementation, and monitoring.

The final section provides an array of methodological tools that can be used at various points during a democratic dialogue process.