Better Conversations. Deeper Connections.
Our belief : Less, but better.
We don’t need more conversations. We need fewer, but better conversations—conversations driven by curiosity, authenticity, and thoughtfulness. Meaningful conversations improve the quality of human connection, even within a limited time.
At World Café CAT, we believe every person we meet—even a random stranger—is living a life as vivid, complex, and meaningful to them as our own is to us.
Why the World Café method?
The World Café method is a practical facilitation approach for generating collective wisdom, meaningful dialogue, and deeper human connection. Compared with many other facilitation methods, World Café is especially effective for large groups of 12–50 people and can be completed in just 2–3 hours.
During a World Café session, participants are placed in small groups of 3–5 people to explore a key question intentionally designed by the host. After 15–20 minutes, participants move to a new group and join the next round of conversation. Typically, there are three rounds of conversation. Afterward, everyone comes together to identify shared themes, emerging insights, and collective wisdom.
This process helps break down silos and reconnect people in a way that allows everyone to feel equal, heard, and valued.
Drawing inspiration from the World Café Community Foundation, Shirley Lam founded World Café CAT in 2024 to promote and facilitate broader access to the World Café method. The initiative leverages underutilized spaces—such as coffee shops during off-peak hours, community spaces, and hallways in exhibition centers—to host conversations that matter to target audiences.
Shirley Lam, founder of World Cafe CAT
(LinkedIn)
The CAT framework
Community
Community
Community
We collaborate with communities to create meaningful impact.
Whether supporting a newly formed community in finding its direction and unique value, or helping an established one connect siloed members, strengthen engagement, and generate fresh ideas, World Café offers a participatory process for people to listen, exchange, and think togeth
We collaborate with communities to create meaningful impact.
Whether supporting a newly formed community in finding its direction and unique value, or helping an established one connect siloed members, strengthen engagement, and generate fresh ideas, World Café offers a participatory process for people to listen, exchange, and think together. Through meaningful dialogue, communities can better understand themselves and move toward purposeful collective action.
Asset
Community
Community
We support local neighborhood assets through meaningful actions.
Local cafés, community venues, and underused spaces are more than physical locations; they are valuable neighborhood assets that support connection, exchange, and everyday cultural life. By hosting World Café events in these places, we invite participants to explore and redis
We support local neighborhood assets through meaningful actions.
Local cafés, community venues, and underused spaces are more than physical locations; they are valuable neighborhood assets that support connection, exchange, and everyday cultural life. By hosting World Café events in these places, we invite participants to explore and rediscover areas of the city they may have overlooked, while helping strengthen the vitality, visibility, and survival of these important local assets.
Topic
Community
Topic
We facilitate collaborative conversations around topics that matter to us all.
For us, a good topic begins with genuine curiosity and the sense that a deeper conversation is needed. Whether exploring universal themes, popular interests, or niche and challenging subjects, World Café creates a safe and focused space for people to step outsid
We facilitate collaborative conversations around topics that matter to us all.
For us, a good topic begins with genuine curiosity and the sense that a deeper conversation is needed. Whether exploring universal themes, popular interests, or niche and challenging subjects, World Café creates a safe and focused space for people to step outside their own bubbles, share diverse perspectives, and discover new ways of understanding the issues that shape our lives.
Highly intentional design for group conversations
What is unique about World Café CAT
- Targeted Audience: Participants share a common interest in the topic, ensuring higher engagement.
- Thoughtful Questions: Thoughtfully crafted discussion questions by the World Café host to stimulate deeper conversations.
- Hospitable Space: Spaces designed to create a relaxed atmosphere that facilitates discussion while maintaining focus.
- Collaborative and Engaging: Participants share their viewpoints, actively listen to others, share and connect ideas, fostering a sense of group cohesion and togetherness.
Upcoming Events
Check out our monthly World Café event from the below calendar to experience it firsthand. If you want to request a World Café, please reach out to lcwshirley@gmai.com