Gun violence has sparked timely and important conversations about safety in schools, businesses and other settings vulnerable to mass shootings.

According to gunviolencearchive.org, there have been 63 mass shootings in the United States so far this year as of Saturday. The website defines mass shootings as incidents where four or more individuals are injured or killed, not including the shooter.

Suffolk residents can meet to discuss short and long-term solutions to gun violence in schools and churches this Tuesday at the CE&H Ruritan Hall in Eclipse. There will be social time at 6:30 p.m., with snacks and beverages provided.

The “Hot Topics” discussion will begin at 7 p.m. This will be arranged and led by ABetterSociety.Info Inc. Executive Director Joe Bass, who has decades of consulting experience for corporate and government entities.

“I don’t have any answers,” Bass said in a phone interview. “It’s not my role as a facilitator to come to any kind of conclusion. My role is to get them to talk about their different types of information and points of view so that they can come to a consensus.”

The meeting will be an informed conversation about measures to keep students and worshippers safe in the community. Bass will distribute facts and statistics on mass shootings in recent years, such as the security measures in place at Sandy Hook Elementary School at the time of the December 2012 shooting.

“If you’re going to have an informed discussion about any topic, then it’s necessary for people to know the full scope of the information,” Bass said.

This will be an opportunity for people with different ideas to meet in the middle and take helpful steps.

“At the moment, people are just shouting past each other and not talking to each other,” Bass said. “If we can set up a situation where people can actually talk to one another, then that’s progress in the right direction.”

Email ABetterSociety1@aol.com for more information.