One of the tools for uncovering interests is open ended questions. Open ended questions are those that require a response other than “yes” or “no”. They often start with “how”, “why”, “what” or “tell me more about….” It is important to remember that the purpose of a question is to gain a greater understanding of what someone has said, NOT to challenge their facts or their perspective.
Asking a question to deepen your understanding will require that you assume an attitude of caring and of genuine curiosity. Balancing asking questions with active listening to feedback what you are hearing will help foster the safety and trust that is important if you are asking someone to reveal important and sometimes vulnerable information. We often refer to this as the “two step”: 1) ask an open ended question and then 2) give feedback (actively listen) to let them know what you heard them say and to check out your understanding of it. This will help keep the questions from feeling like an interrogation. The slide below outlines some questions that can help in exploring interests: 
As a participant in a collaborative process, it can also be helpful for you to ask these same questions of your own position. Stating your needs, wants and motivations rather than stating positions will help further the agreement seeking process as well.
Review the facts of the Winhootchy role play — what are some of the positions of the parties? What might be some of their interests underlying those positions? Post your responses below and discuss or comment.
Introduction to Collaborative Governance 
The position of the Explorers and their allies is to keep the road open to vehicles, but their interest is access to the recreational activities (hiking, camping, rafting) the road connects to. The position of the staff is to cloe the road to vehicles, but their interests are managing their budget by avoiding costly and redundant repairs to a road that is not fiscally or physically sustainable.
Excellent!