Beyond the Echo Chamber. Strategies for Inclusive Health Dialogue

Polarization is a defining challenge in today’s health debates. Echo chambers amplify bias, entrench distrust, and erode the credibility of science and institutions. This workshop explores how science communication can remain effective and inclusive in divided contexts. Drawing on persuasion research, argumentation theory, and cognitive science, it addresses how to reach audiences who feel distant from or resistant to dominant health narratives. It is directly aligned with SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions), as it fosters communication practices that build trust, mutual understanding, and institutional legitimacy. Resonating with the conference motto “Attention! Engage!”, this contribution offers both a theoretical and practical path forward for reconnecting across divides and restoring the conditions for meaningful dialogue.