Gathering Neighbors, Growing Trust.

- We Bring Communities Together -

Our Mission

PTU brings communities together by growing trust between neighbors.

    • Face-to-face relationships foster familiarity, understanding, and respect.
    • Shared meals, human conversations, and service projects nurture a shared vision for a thriving community.
    • Anti-bias workshops and media prepare and support the relationship-building process.

Our Vision

Communities where everyone belongs and can work together – So that all can thrive.

Who does PTU work with?

A thriving pluralistic democracy depends on collaboration between people of all walks of life. Civic engagement begins in our neighborhoods and fans out into ever wider circles of participation.

    • PTU strengthens the foundation of civic life by building face-to-face relationships between local community groups, including wisdom traditions, nonprofits, service organizations, cultural clubs, and others.
    • We work with formal and informal leaders who want to build trust and collaborate with each other across lines of difference. These role models invite more and more people from their communities into group-to-group relationships.

From Our Blog

How We Are Organizing Our Mission

October 7, 2025

Last week, I shared about our new mission statement at Paths to Understanding: “Gathering Neighbors and Growing Trust.” This new language isn’t just words. It’s shaping how we organize our work and where we put our energy. To live out our mission, PTU is focused in three areas: 1. Local Practice, Shared Tools At the…

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