Action learning team ‐ building bridges within a local council

States that building bridges with political colleagues who do not share a common ideology can be difficult and that adopting a conciliatory approach without watering down one’s principles raises its own challenges. Reports that as both an elected representative and researcher, the author collaborated with a number of her colleagues in an action learning team to analyse the results of adopting a Heart Politics approach towards their political antagonists, using strategic questioning as a participatory tool. Reveals that in the process the action learning team learned a great deal about the importance of genuine listening and relationship building and about how to cultivate trust and respect among a diverse group of community representatives.