How do we support people to build their power so they can self-organise to bring about change in their communities?

WHY NOW?

We all want to see flourishing neighbourhoods where people are connected, where they know and are able mobilise their resources, co-design and co-produce their services and have a real power and a collective voice and influence over local decision making. ​

Over the last 30 years through many regeneration programs large amounts of resource have been pumped into disadvantaged neighbourhoods, often driven by top down processes having little effect in changing inequalities faced by these neighbourhoods.
It is recognised that some neighbourhoods in the city have more challenges to overcome than others and in the context of reducing budgets and services the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods could be the hardest hit.
So the question remains how do we support local people to build their power so they can self-organise to transform the places where they live?​
Over the last four years Bristol City Council has adopted an Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) approach to its work, working with residents, partners and colleagues in neighbourhoods across the city to adopt similar values and principles which enable people to take the lead and make the changes they want to see. ​

​Since July 2017 Community CoLab and Barton Hill Settlements' Bristol Social Action Hub has been building a network of community organisers in the city.

The Bristol Social Action Hub and Bristol City Council's Community Development team have teamed up to call this event, because we believe it is vitally important that we maximise our resources together by bringing the council, community organisers, activists, active residents and voluntary sector partners to share, learn and build a movement for social change in the city where people can make the changes they want to see in the neighbourhoods where they live. ​​
Individually we are doing great work, but are we harnessing our collective potential?
THE PURPOSE OF THIS TRAINING
  • To experience new tools which can support community building and community organising in neighbourhoods
  • To develop facilitation skills of the participants so they can practically use these tools in their neighbourhood work
  • To share practice and network with other practitioners and activists in the city
  • To have a strong vision of what a powerful, self-determining neighbourhood will look and feel like
  • To develop skills in asking the right questions to have deeper conversations and bring about new ideas in the neighbourhoods where they are working
  • To feel confident and have the skills and knowledge to host conversations around equalities and power
  • To explore what comes next - after you’ve brought people together and they have formed groups around shared interests – how do you grow it to something bigger?
  • To connect community organisers, community development workers, activists and active residents in Bristol to move from neighbourhood action to a city wide movement

''​WHAT IS THE ART OF BUILDING POWER AND SELF-ORGANISATION? ''


This training is a blend of 3 very powerful practices: The Art of Hosting and Harvesting Conversations That Matter, Community Organising and Asset Based Community Development.

Based on the assumption that people give their energy and lend their resources to what matters most to them - in work as in life - through this blended practice we invite people to step in and take charge of the challenges facing them.

Groups, networks and organisations using the Art of Hosting as a working practice report better decision-making, more efficient and effective capacity building, real collaboration and greater ability to quickly respond to opportunity, challenge and change.

From the civil rights movement in the USA to the living wage campaigns in the build up to the London 2012 Olympics, the ongoing campaigns for better quality and affordable housing across England Community Organising is becoming a more widespread practice across the globe used to support self-organisation and self-determination communities wanting to create people led lasting change and strong community organisations.

WHAT WILL THIS TRAINING COVER?​

During this three day participative and highly interactive workshop we will explore:

  • How to initiate, design, host and harvest: meetings of any size,  gatherings, networks and organisations that are more participatory, inspiring, fresh and creative.​
 
  • How to improve the quality of conversations by improving the quality of our questions and our ability to listen beyond the words and build stronger relationships?
   
  • Models for understanding how to work with complexity, emergence and self-organisation
 
  • How to focus on what works not just what’s wrong?
 
  • What’s the relationship between system change and personal change?
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  • The training will include space for participants to explore how to practically apply their learning to actual work situations
We will explore some of the Art of Hosting, Community Organising and ABCD tools, models and practices, by entering into conversation around topics such as listening, power/ power dynamics, how self-organisation happens, what works what doesn’t.
What are your questions around these topics that you would like to bring with you to explore together? 
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Whats The Time Commitment?
Day 1 and day 2 start at 9:30 and finishes at 5pm, from 5:30-7pm we will coach willing participants to facilitate the following days 
Day 3 starts at 9:30 and finishes at 5pm

WHO IS THIS TRAINING FOR?

This is an invitation for anyone interested in exploring and practicing new ways of creating highly participatory and meaningful conversations with groups of any size, and wanting to explore how to encourage self-organisation in communities and organisations by harnessing the power of passion, responsibility, personal transformation and collective intelligence.

We are particularly inviting community organisers, community development practitioners, community leaders, facilitators and activists in Bristol who realise the need to build power in communities and people's ability to self organise to bring about the change they seek through listening, deeper connection and collaboration

THE TEAM

For this training we are bringing together a diverse team of community organisers, community development workers, activists, Art of Hosting practitioners and campaigners from across Bristol and  England bringing the best of their experience and practices to support power building ad self organisation in our city.
PAULETTE SINGER
Paulette is a Community Organiser, Art of Hosting Practitioner, Community Development research facilitator and Permaculture gardener/trainer. Her frustrations working across the homeless sector led to a desire to connect locally to her community and ultimately to her becoming a Community Organiser.  

Paulette believes most systemic and structural issues can be overcome through the power of truly connected and resilient communities.

​Co-founder of Our Yard and Field to Fork workers co-operative Paulette has a keen interest in innovative social businesses and their role within communities to support individual and collective power.

TATIANA GARAVITO

Tatiana Garavito is an organiser and facilitator who uses direct education in her approach. She delivers training to groups in organising and movement building, movement ecology, power and privilege, facilitation skills and strategies as well as training tailored to specific groups' needs.

​Tatiana is the co-director of Organising for change. She also writes for Open democracy and the New Internationalist on issues related to racial justice and the peace process in Colombia.

JOSE AUGUSTO BARCO

Jose is Community Organiser, Art of Hosting Practitioner and trainer, as well as  a social entrepreneur based in Bristol,  and founder of Community CoLab. He is passionate about people power, social change and social justice and creating spaces for meaningful participation and collaboration at at organisational and grassroots level.

Over the last 7 years Jose has been organising and training people from diverse communities, his experience includes working with public and third sector organisations in Colombia, Spain and the UK.
​
Jose is a Member Organiser for Community Organisers Ltd, organisation which he is a former founding director of.
His work is influenced by his creative practice, musical roots and permaculture principles.

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JON DORSETT

Jon is a graphic facilitator/ practitioner and trainer in The Art of Hosting based in Leeds.
He is an associate of  Together for Peace where he is facilitating the Poverty Truth Commission, and being a learning partner with local Gypsy and Traveller organisation Leeds GATE.
​
Jon works across the country helping groups and organisations to harvest their learning, and making films for organisations to communicate complex information simply and engage audiences creatively. Jon's background is in campaigning for various NGOs, and in running programmes that create space for activists to reflect, learn and do inner work. He is continually interested in the dynamic between inner well-being and outer change, and sees a powerful potential in the combination of Art of Hosting and Community Organising practices. 
TERRY BLACK
Terry Black has been practicing community development for the last twenty years and Asset Based Community Development over the past 4 years. He is passionate about social justice and always wanted to make a difference here he's lived.

​Terry is an active community builder in his own neighbourhood and manage part of the Bristol City Councils Community Development team where he has developed a strong base around the values and principles of community building and has been supporting local people to take action and working in many ways  to strengthen their voice and influence.

Through this training (which he has called) Terry wants to grow a movement and network of social action in the city. 
ISMAIL OMAR
Ismail Omar  passion is bringing people together to make changes and address social inequalities. He has ben a health promotion specialist for the past 10 years providing community health advice contributing to the health of individuals and communities.

Ismail's work has involved campaigns to raise awareness of heart disease, stop smoking and physical inactivity particularly focussing on equality groups. Recently his role has  changed and he is now Community Development Practitioner for Bristol City Council  prioritising issues identified by communities themselves and supporting them to set up community led activities. He is trained in Art of Hosting and is developing his Asset Based Community Development practice 
Liz Mitchell
Liz Mitchell has bounced from dance practitioner to artistic programmer, copy writer to project manager and is now enjoying time as Senior Community Development Practitioner at Bristol City Council. Her passion for equality and the arts has seen her pull together celebration events for Bristol City of Sanctuary, the European Year for Combatting Poverty and Refugee Week.

​Liz has worked for many years in grass roots organisations, building communities in London, Leicester, Cardiff and Bristol. She takes an active role in her local community and reaps the benefits of being connected on many levels with her neighbours, many of whom are now dear friends.
Kathryn Jefferson
​​ Kathryn was born and raised in Vancouver (Canada) and  has liven in the UK for the last 29 years traveled many countries and interacted with many cultures. 
Since her punk days in the 80s, Kathryn has embraced diy/social action culture through her music, her partying, her housing, her politics and all of her life choices. She's experienced the tremendous benefits of engaging with community on all scales.
Kathryn brings vision, drive, determination, excitement, willingness to listen, lots of love and good food to all her work. She is very happy to be helping to facilitate nuituring the seeds of community organising which have been recently planted in Hartcliffe & Withywood where she lives and is looking forward to the growing experiences that community organising will bring in Bristol and beyond.
Hannah John
Muhayadin Saed

WHERE?

​Lockleaze Hub
​1 Fedden Buildings, Gainsborough Square, Bristol BS7 9FB

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

Why different prices?
We recognise that our privileges and economic situations may vary and whilst we want to value our practice and our work as trainers, we are also very keen to invite diversity and make sure this training is accessible to all. For this reason we invite you to consider your privileges or needs and consciously choose one of the following options  
Below you will find our financial forecast for this training including details of how the money will be spend and the number of places allocated to each of the fees mentioned below.
​Offer what you can and a little bit more!
  • STANDARD: £350
Choose this fee if you are from an organisation and paid to do your work. This covers the full cost of the training, please see our budget below to know how the money will be spent.
  •  STANDARD 
​​​(EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT): £300
Receive £50 off your chosen fee by registering and paying before the 11th of Jan 2019

  • DISCOUNTED FEE: £200
Choose this fee if you can't afford the standard fee and really would benefit from what we are offering. The Bristol Social Action Hub can cover the gap. (you will need to sign up to a free Community Organisers Membership)
  • CONCESSION £100
Choose this fee if you have taken part in our Intro To Community Organising, you are unable to afford the discounted fee and this opportunity would have a massive impact on your work and community.
​(you will need to sign up to a free Community Organisers Membership)
Please remember to fully secure your space you must both sign up via this link and also make your payment using the details provided on the registration form link above.

Once we've received your payment we will send you a confirmation email.

Additional economic support:  ​​If your economic situation doesn't allow you to pay the lowest fee, we would like to invite you to consider what you can offer and get in touch so we can discuss your situation and we will do our best to make sure you can attend. Offer what you can and ask for what you need. 
Priority will be given to those who have taken our Introduction To Community Organising

Cancellations and reimbursements.
  • 90% reimbursement before Jan 11th, 2019.
  • 50% reimbursement before Jan 14th 2019.
  • After the 14th of January we can no longer offer you a reimbursement for you space unless you are able to find someone else to take your place.
In the name of transparency here is our budget projection for this training:
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HOW TO BOOK?
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We are excited you are ready to sign up and reserve your space at The Art of Hosting and Sustaining Networks.

To sign up, Please follow this link, fill up the questionnaire to tell us more about you so we can get to know you.

After you have finished registering we will send you an email with payment instructions and other logistic details.

Once we've received your payment you can consider you place confirmed

Looking forward to meeting you!
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CONTACT
Have any questions? Contact us: info@communitycolab.co.uk
+(44)07739195011

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