Programs
Among its varied programs, Consensus Council facilitates a number of crucial community initiatives.
Restorative Justice
Restorative Justice aims to provide a respectful, compassionate, and healing response to crime and conflict. With program services offered statewide in North Dakota and in Clay County, Minnesota, Consensus Council’s Restorative Justice program helps restore, to the extent possible, those harmed by an offense, encourages accountability from the person responsible for causing the harm, and promotes safe, secure, and peaceful communities.
International Legislators’ Forum (ILF)
Consensus Council leads and facilitates the International Legislators’ Forum to cooperatively study and resolve regional and international issues of common concern between Canada and the United States, with a specific focus on the northern plains region of Manitoba, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The Forum has addressed an array of topics including water quantity and quality, tribal sovereignty, regional energy production and transmission, renewable fuels, health and food safety, rural access to health care, broadband technology, behavioral health and addiction, transportation and freight, and more.
Community Service Initiatives
Consensus Council supports and facilitates the work of a wide variety of private, public, and nonprofit organizations and agencies, bringing together diverse viewpoints to seek common ground in achieving long-lasting public policy agreements and improved community services. The Council works with coalitions of community service providers, seeking improved efficiency and effectiveness in areas as diverse as housing and food insecurity, disability rights, behavioral health, and more.
Custom Client Services
Consensus Council designs facilitation and professional services specifically focused to meet the unique needs of any client seeking assistance in advancing and improving its operations, structure, and management, including public and private organizations, government agencies, schools, churches, businesses, special interest associations, and more. These services may include strategic planning, board governance, workplace conflict resolution, and/or other unique needs.
ND Community Innovation Grants (Now Closed)
Consensus Council administered North Dakota Community Innovation grants, a partnership with the Bush Foundation, from 2013 to 2021. These up to $15,000 grants offered nonprofit organizations and units of government an opportunity to advance innovative processes that addressed a wide span of community challenges, including homelessness, quality housing, childcare, education, medical and behavioral health, immigration, job training, and other pressing community needs.
North Dakota Economic Security and Prosperity Alliance (NDESPA)
From 2008 to 2020, Consensus Council convened a 30-member statewide coalition of community service providers, the ND Economic Security and Prosperity Alliance, a diverse coalition of stakeholders working to eliminate poverty, provide essential social supports, build assets, and secure the economic well-being for low- and moderate-income North Dakotans through service collaboration, awareness, education, and advocacy.