Balancing humility and conviction is the art of disagreeing well...

Dr Michael Spence, UCL President & Provost, at UCL East (Sep 2023)

Dr Michael Spence, UCL President & Provost

Read on for opinion piece in Times Higher Education

Upcoming event

Disagreeing Well on Diplomacy
Disagreeing Well event panel on stage

Disagreeing Well on Diplomacy

3 July 2025 - Join us on UCL’s Bloomsbury campus for this interactive panel event discussing the topic: Disagreeing Well on Diplomacy. Are diplomatic institutions effective at resolving global crises?

Watch An introduction to Disagreeing Well on YouTube.
Navigate to Disagreeing Well skills video series
Disagreeing Well icon - video

Disagreeing Well skills video series

This skills series is written and hosted by Mia Forbes Pirie, international conflict mediator, coach and UCL alumna. It covers what it means to disagree well, including useful tips and advice.

Navigate to Event recordings
Disagreeing Well icon - file

Event recordings

View recordings of past events under our Disagreeing Well campaign.

Navigate to Additional resources
UCL Disagreeing Well resources icon

Additional resources

Whether you prefer books, lectures, TED Talks, or podcasts, these resources aim to guide you in fostering constructive conversations and finding common ground in the face of disagreement.

Why ‘Disagreeing Well’ Could Save Us All: The hidden power of civil debate
Disagreeing Well graphic - civil debate

Why ‘Disagreeing Well’ Could Save Us All: The hidden power of civil debate

Find out why UCL’s Disagreeing Well programme is encouraging us all to embrace civil debate as the key to solving some of our biggest challenges.

Disagreeing Well: 5 fundamental skills for open debate
Disagreeing Well graphic - fundamental skills

Disagreeing Well: 5 fundamental skills for open debate

UCL’s Disagreeing Well programme promotes respectful dialogue, helping people listen, engage, and challenge ideas without hostility – here’s how...

Disagreeing Well news

Objectivity versus Agenda – Is media impartiality in conflict reporting beyond reach?
Objectivity versus Agenda – Is media impartiality in conflict reporting beyond reach?

Objectivity versus Agenda – Is media impartiality in conflict reporting beyond reach?

Hetvi Rutvikbhai Bhatt, postgraduate clinical neuroscience student, shares her reflections of attending the UCL Disagreeing Well event: Reporting Conflict.

04 Jun 2025

Provost's update: Our commitment to diversity and pluralism
Provost's update: Our commitment to diversity and pluralism

Provost's update: Our commitment to diversity and pluralism

A message from Dr Michael Spence, UCL's President & Provost.

26 Mar 2025

Comment: We’ve always had free speech on campus. It’s vital to ‘disagree well’
Comment: We’ve always had free speech on campus. It’s vital to ‘disagree well’

Comment: We’ve always had free speech on campus. It’s vital to ‘disagree well’

President & Provost Dr Michael Spence writes in The Times that universities are built on the principle of freedom of speech, and the proposed changes to the Freedom of Speech (Higher Education) Act can help develop the crucial art of disagreeing well.

20 Jan 2025