IAF EUROPE JUNE NEWSLETTER by IAF Europe

IAF Europe Newsletter

Jan. 2010

INDEX

# 06 JUNE 2011

Europe is one of seven regions within the International Association of Facilitators. The IAF Europe team members volunteer their time to plan and support activities and services for IAF members living in Europe, supported by Entendu Ltd. Contact us at pamela.lupton-bowers@iaf-europe.eu; robert.verheule@iaf-europe.eu; kristin.reinbach@iaf-europe.eu; rosemary.cairns@iafeurope.eu. IAF Europe is currently the only region to benefit from having its own Administrative Office. Please make this your first point of contact for matters relating to your membership, the upcoming IAF Europe Conference or other activities in the region. Ben Richardson or Bobbie Redman are available during normal European working hours by calling +44 (0)1923 400 330 or just email office@iafeurope.eu.

ABOUT THE NEWSLETTER The IAF Europe Newsletter is published monthly by the IAF Europe Regional Team for members of the International Association of Facilitators living within Europe. Editor: Rosemary Cairns Design: Christian Grambow | www.christiangrambow.com Contributors: Ann Alder, Mary Alice Arthur, Christina Baldwin, Helen Titchen Beeth, John Dawson, Jonathan Duddington, Maureen Jenkins, Jan Lelie, Ann Linnea, Pamela Lupton-Bowers, Tony Mann, Gillian Martin Mehers, Penny Pullan, Stuart Reid, Ben Richardson, Carol Sherriff, Amanda Stott Cover picture: Participants at the Embodying (Y)our Calling workshop, held in Brussels at the end of April and facilitated by Mary Alice Arthur and Ria Baeck, unpacked suitcases and prepared Life Journey Maps, in a fascinating blend of storytelling and bodywork/constellation work. Mary Alice shares the story in this monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2013;s Newsletter. (Photo by Helen Titchen Beeth).

Please send your contributions to your Newsletter to rosemary.cairns@iaf-europe.eu

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CONTENT

# 06 JUNE 2011

WHY CIRCLE IS THE CORE GROUP PROCESS FOR EMERGING PARTICIPATORY LEADERSHIP By Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea

LIFTING THE VEIL

ONCE UPON A TIME, AT THE CASTLE…

By Robert Verheule

By Mary-Alice Arthur

A QUICK GUIDE TO PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS By Ben Richardson

FACILITATING RISK MANAGEMENT By Penny Pullan

METHOD OF THE MONTH: THE SILENT MINDMAP By Maureen Jenkins

WORKSHOPS AND MEETINGS

PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS

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Christina with the group in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo courtesy PeerSpirit, Inc.)

Why circle is the core group process for emerging participatory leadership By Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea We are in charge of how we meet together. Chairs and tables do not have to be bolted to the floor in long rows facing a speaker‖s platform. The voice of upper management is not the only voice with power. If our current ways of meeting, interacting, speaking, listening, and decision-making are not working, we can claim another form of interaction. Since the early 1990s, we have developed and practiced an alternative infrastructure for collaborative conversations that calls on long-held principles and practices of circle. We named this process PeerSpirit Circle—“peer,” because every member of a circle shares responsibility and leadership, regardless of their position or social

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status outside the circle; and “spirit” because putting purpose in the centre invites emergent wisdom and action that rises directly from collective synergy. As author Margaret Wheatley writes in the preface to our book, “In today‖s world, dozens, if not hundreds, of group processes are available. In the midst of so much choice, it‖s important to remember the long lineage of circle and its role in human community. Circle process is not a technique; it‖s a heritage.” Through circle, and other circle-based collaborative conversation modalities, people are remembering ways to reattach to this heritage. We teach circle as a foundational practice that is

also embedded in World Café, Pro Action Café, Open Space, Dialogue, and other hosting methodologies. For two decades we have brought the use of PeerSpirit Circle Process to individuals, organizations, corporations, churches and other religious institutions, government agencies, health care systems, university faculties and student bodies. Through reading our books and experiencing our seminars, managers, teachers, consultants, and facilitators have added circle to their repertoires of effective group process tools. Returning to Europe From our home base near Seattle, Washington, we have taught and consulted across the United States and Canada, Europe, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. We are returning to Germany and Belgium this September to train more circle facilitators within a growing movement of collaborative conversation. One of the stories highlighted in our book, The Circle Way, is about a facilitator who attended one of our 2008 trainings and used his learning to tackle a challenge back in his home in Nova Scotia, Canada. For several years, residents of a small agricultural village near Halifax had struggled with whether an abandoned rail line, which had been converted into a trail that ran through the community, should be open to use by motorized vehicles. Many residents were opposed, believing that community tranquility was better served by preserving a path for bicycling, walking, and skiing. Others favored motorized use by all terrain vehicles (ATVs) and snowmobilers whose drivers wanted to access hundreds of kilometers of interconnected trails. The issue had created a palpable community rift. Jim Neale, a public policy consultant, was asked by the department of natural resources to develop a process for conversations that would ideally produce a consensus view for trail use and begin social healing. He started consulting with community representatives to establish their fundamental and common intentions and discovered a clear desire for a strong and united community, honoring its long tradition of neighbors helping neighbors.

Jim designed a series of three circles, one for each of the three primary special-interest groups: landowners, hikers, and motorized vehicle users. In the preparatory circles Jim established a centre that reflected the shared vision for the community as a friendly town. Then he led people into practicing clear statements and neutral language so that they would be confident in their ability to maintain focus and make their point in the midst of whatever energies were swirling in the all-community meeting. Jim would serve as the host and guardian of the circle and enforce the etiquette of circle process. One of his skills was his ability to coach each of the polarized interest groups and offer each of them a sense that they had his support for making positive contributions to the conversation.

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Compelling compromise Then came the open circle for all interested community members. One of the participants, an elderly woman with terminal cancer, lived very close to the trail. The quieter environment needed for her care appeared incompatible with motorized use. “Many residents had become involved in this issue to protect her right to live in a health-preserving setting,” Jim said. “As this woman told her story, it became clear that the rift in the community was also a cause of pain for her and that her deepest wish was to see reconciliation and healing. She surprised everyone by announcing that for that

The circle group in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo courtesy PeerSpirit, Inc.)

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reason, she was going to support reopening the trail to vehicles. “She offered a clear and present challenge to the circle that compelled compromise and creativity. It was a magnificent breakthrough moment. Participants reframed the trail as a community commons—shared land. Closing the trail to motorized use had prevented members of the community from using a village commons and was therefore inconsistent with the vision they held of a united community. Opening the trail became the only acceptable conclusion.” Several actions set the modern circle in motion. Participants are called by an invitation that clarifies the intention. A circle host welcomes people, followed by a round of check-in so that every voice is heard. People respect agreements that define how individuals treat each other. Topic and intention guide the conversation and action. To elicit story and wisdom, practices of listening and speaking are observed. Besides the host, the circle employs a volunteer guardian who watches over timeliness, energy, and from time

to time pauses the action and offers space for brief reflection. Before people leave, the group conducts a round of harvested insights or action points. Jim reported, “The circle went exceptionally well—like nothing the residents (or I) had experienced before when addressing divisive issues within a small, close, and very conservative community. A strong consensus view emerged that included better understandings, beginnings of real forgiveness, a fresh faith that they could work together, and acceptance of the need to move forward even when some people were disappointed. Circle provided an extremely powerful process to reinforce basic community values.” Stories such as this one illustrate the power of PeerSpirit Circle Process, and its cross-cultural adaptability. We look forward to our return to Europe and the chance to introduce and deepen these practices.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea are the authors of The Circle Way, A Leader in Every Chair (Berrett-Koehler, 2010) and co-founders of PeerSpirit Circle Process (www.peerspirit.com). From their home base in the USA, they have taught and consulted across the United States and Canada, Europe, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. They will be in Germany and Belgium this September to provide another training for circle facilitators. PeerSpirit‖s ―Basic Circle Guidelines‖ is available as a free download in six languages. To register for their upcoming seminars, contact www.peerspirit.com or the authors at cbaldwin@peerspirit.com & linnea@peerspirit.com. 6 | IAF EUROPE NEWSLETTER | 04.2011

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A quick guide to pre-conference workshops By Ben Richardson

Sept. 26-Oct. 10 The Virtual Facilitator Simon Wilson and Carol Sherriff, Wilson-Sherriff This virtual facilitation event is for people who facilitate face to face and would like to apply their skills in teleconferences, virtual meetings and online, and for people who find meetings at a distance frustrating and want to learn ways to make them successful. Carol and Simon will facilitate an online learning experience in which you will experience and test out your own virtual facilitation skills. The session will run for two weeks, with an estimated commitment of 10 to 20 hours of distance learning, working in online groups and supported by personal coaching, and will conclude with a face to face get-together at the Istanbul conference to meet virtual colleagues and review the experience. More information/booking: Carol Sherriff carol.sherriff@wilsonsherriff.com

Wednesday Oct. 12 Dealing with Conflict: Using Alternative Dispute Resolution Techniques to Help Build Bridges and Facilitate Difficult Conversations Kimberly Bain, Bain Group Understanding alternative dispute resolution is a critical skill for facilitators. Facilitators need to understand their own conflict handling styles and how to adapt those styles to different situations. To help clients build bridges, we need to be able to identify and diagnose conflict and understand our own contributions to conflict situations.

Building bridges requires us to understand how to foster effective and open communications among participants, decreasing conflict and increasing collaboration. This one-day course will provide facilitators with an understanding of the theory behind conflict and alternative dispute resolution and will provide a number of tools that can be used to help groups move beyond conflict. More information/booking: Kimberly Bain kimberly@baingroup.ca

Wednesday Oct. 12 and Thursday Oct. 13 Facing up to Change: understanding the challenge by using metrics. Enabling facilitators and change agents to design a powerful change process Tony Mann, Resource Strategic Change Facilitators Tony will introduce the “Change Dashboard”, a series of metrics that help an organisation plan for change much more effectively and wisely. Tony will show how ―metrics‖ provide a crucial insight that will help us as Facilitators, design and manage the change/project process. The workshop will provide an opportunity for participants to practice interpreting the various metrics and using them to plan a change process. More information/booking: Tony Mann tony.mann@resourcestrategicchange.com Facilitated Learning: Optimizing facilitation skills to transfer knowledge and transform the experience

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Pamela Lupton-Bowers & Amanda Carrothers, PLB Consulting Know when not to ―teach‖! In this workshop you will explore how facilitation skills can transform a learning or development initiative. You will clearly distinguish training from facilitating, and learn some of the critical principles and beliefs that help uncover people‖s thinking and collaborative energies. Learn how some knowledge cannot be taught; and how you can help people attain it. You will learn how to unleash the power of learning through understanding adult motivation, applying brain rules for learning, experiencing the impact of visual and kinaesthetic senses. You will also learn how to unleash creativity through getting in touch with your other intelligences and through creating visual mind-maps. More information/booking: Pamela LuptonBowers plb@plb-consulting.com Introducing Kumi: a new facilitation method designed to enable social transformation in situations of conflict Jonathan Dudding, ICA:UK & Ann Lukens, Groupworks This course draws on the experience and lessons learnt from five years of working in the Israel/Palestine conflict, developing and testing a new approach which integrates three separate methodologies relating to identity conflict, conflict transformation, and community development. Participants will be able to share their experiences of working in conflict and relate this to the Kumi approach, to explore the approach and what makes it different, and to consider how they might apply it in their own work with conflict. The course will include exploring our own roles as facilitators in conflict situations. More information/booking: Jonathan Dudding jdudding@ica-uk.org.uk IAF Certified Professional Facilitator (CPF) Assessment Two one-day assessment processes to be run, one on Oct. 12 and one on Oct. 13. Find out more about your opportunity to qualify as a CPF in October by going to: http://www.iaf-world.org/index/events/news/11 -04-08/CPF_Assessment_Program_in_Turkey.aspx More information/booking: certify@iaf-world.org

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Thursday Oct. 13 The Secrets to Facilitating Strategy: Building the Bridge from Strategy to Action Michael Wilkinson, Leadership Strategies If you have ever facilitated a strategic planning session, you know how tough it is to get agreement on a mission statement, to separate goals from objectives, to get consensus on the right strategies, and to prevent the team from undertaking too much. Using the widely-acclaimed Drivers Model as the basis, this workshop provides facilitators with all the how-tos for facilitating each component of a strategic plan. Each participant will receive: The presenter‖s new book The Secrets to Masterful Planning, 60day access to the 4-hour online strategy course, Springboard Online and the 28-page detailed Strategy Facilitation Guide that our facilitators use, complete with explanations, chart set-up, deliverable outline and sample words to say for each step in the strategic planning process! More information/booking: Michael Wilkinson mwilkinson@leadstrat.com . Person Centred facilitation: An Experiential Workshop for Facilitators John Dawson, Zenergy This one-day workshop will introduce participants to the person centred approach to facilitation developed by Zenergy Limited (Dr. Dale Hunter and colleagues) in New Zealand. This workshop will combine theory and practice. The experiential part of the workshop will train participants in the attitudes, personal qualities and presence which distinguish a “person centred” facilitator, grounded in place, space and grace. This approach draws on practise and techniques used by people over many centuries, including the indigenous people of New Zealand. More inform ation: John Dawson; john@zenergyglobal.com Booking: www.zenergyglobal.com Developing Learning Power: How effective learners learn and how great facilitation develops individual and team learning capability Ann Alder, RSVP Design Ltd Learning is fundamental to our ability to change, develop and move forward in our lives and careers. When we facilitate groups, we are

almost always asking them to engage in a learning process so that they can change and progress. But how can we best support this learning process and build learning capacity as a byproduct of our facilitation? This one-day workshop introduces ELLI: the Effective Lifelong Learning Inventory and the application of the seven dimensions of Learning Power. It is of particular value to facilitators who also work with team development, change management and innovation, or with individuals and teams at a transition point in their lives or careers. More information/booking: Ann Alder annalder@rsvpdesign.co.uk Pragmatics: Behavioural aspects of Human Facilitation Jan Lelie, mind@work Participants will learn to deal with the behavioural (pragmatic) effects of human facilitation. We will learn about frames of reference, the notion of content and relationship, ways to use digital and analogue communication, the notions of symmetrical and complementary interactions, double bind and the role of interpunction and paradoxes. We‖ll see how 12 paradoxes energies groups, generating both stuckness and movement. At the end participants will understand that facilitating is a system, not a simple model like action and reaction, a way of engaging, becoming part of a process and can only be comprehended on the transactional level. More information/booking: Jan Lelie janlelie@wxs.nl

tion of specially chosen improvisation games and exercises and introduced to some of the building blocks of improvisation - saying ―yes, and…‖; doing less; accepting offers; enjoying your own mistakes; and being ordinary! More information/booking: stuart@stuartreid.org.uk Walking the power of Now in Istanbul Amanda Stott and Partners in Facilitation Join Partners in Facilitation at 13:30 Thursday for a three-hour walk through the streets of Istanbul where we will use the stimulus, silence and space of the city as a bridge to exploring ourselves and our practice as facilitators. You can see the remains of ancient civilizations and their culture in harmony with Turkish culture, old versus new, traditional versus modern, a city full of contrasts and colourful views. Join us for a walk and talk, using your observations, experiences and curiosity to gain deeper insight into what you pay attention to, build connections and enjoy the city through the eyes, ears, head, heart and body of fellow facilitators. More information/booking: Amanda Stott amanda@facilitatethis.com

Improvisation for Facilitators Stuart Reid When you are facilitating, how often do your sessions run exactly to plan? Do you ever find yourself needing to change your programme, deal with the unexpected, or ―make it up as you go along‖? Improvisation is an essential skill for all facilitators. This workshop will help you be more relaxed working in the moment as a facilitator, connect more quickly with the groups you work with, and actually enjoy re-writing your plans as you go along! Relax as you are guided through a selec-

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Facilitating

Risk

Management By Penny Pullan CPF PhD PMP illustrated by Vanessa Randle

It's a sign of the growing stature of our pro-

such, should include both negative threats and positive opportunities. We look at how risks matter. We investigate the ways people work out how risky a given situation might be. Tapping into Ruth's work on Risk Attitude with David Hillson, we look at how different people can assess identical risks in very different Cutline missing

fession and the skills that facilitators offer the world, that facilitation is expanding in the business world and valued more and more for the changes it can bring. In this article, I summarise the key findings of my new book about the use of facilitation to make risk management in organisations far more effective. Ruth Murray-Webster is the co-author and the book, 'A Short Guide to Facilitating Risk Management', is being published by Gower in July 2011. Many organisations have spent small fortunes to set up risk management processes, but these often fail to deliver. Too often, the logical processes and supporting software systems fail because people just aren't interested. Ruth and I have found that the key to making risk management work is the intervention of skilled facilitators, who are able to engage people to identify, own and manage risk. I'm sure that will come as no surprise to facilitators reading this article! Writing for a general business audience as well as for professional facilitators, Ruth and I set out to cover the essential elements of risk management that people should understand. We define risk as 'uncertainty that matters' and, as

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ways. Risk facilitators also need to understand the different options available to respond to each risk, from accepting the risk as it is, to sharing it with others or treating it in some way. The risk register Most of what we have to say is common sense, as risk management comes naturally to human beings as part of life. Unfortunately, however, good risk management is far too often not common practice. Take, for example, the risk register. Many organisations and projects complete a risk register and feel that they have 'done their risk management', instead of using this as a first step in an ongoing process. The picture opposite shows a risk register which has been on the shelf for so long that a spider has taken up residence. This brings a guilty smile to many managers we've worked with who exclaim that this is what happens in their organisations. We ask, 'What is the point of creating the risk register if it is then ignored, rather than used proactively to manage the effects of uncertainly on the outcomes we value?' How can organisations be proactive with risk? The answer here is to get people not only to

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identify risks, but also to own their risks and be active in managing them. How can we do this? This is where the risk facilitator adds value. We don't imagine that facilitation is always their full time role, but they can use facilitation skills to engage people to manage risk. Their job title is probably something quite different; we've seen anything from risk manager to project manager or even operations manager. It doesn't matter. It's the skills that are important. Once these people have a good understanding of risk and how humans respond to risk in different ways, then we can add in facilitation skills to complete the picture. Vivien's story illustrates this nicely. The large pharmaceutical company where she worked used to have a risk department full of specialists and a complex software tool to support them. However, the specialists were ineffective in many ways. Vivien said: â&#x20AC;&#x2022;The very nature of the tool killed energy and creativity.â&#x20AC;&#x2013; People just left risk to these specialists and didn't use the tool in a proactive way. Once Vivien, a skilled facilitator, came on the scene, she was able to clarify the purpose and objectives of the risk management work. Simple templates and a network of risk facilitators have replaced the burdensome tool and risk specialists. Now risk management is alive and well in her organisation, with managers around the world playing their part in providing a clear picture to their leaders.

Blending events works well Ruth and I were surprised to find that people often tried to handle the whole risk management processes within one or two workshops. We lay out the combination of workshops, smaller meetings and one to one sessions which we feel works best in various situations. In our book, we cover the basics of facilitating workshops, so that those who need to facilitate risk workshops are clear on what they should be doing in preparation, during the workshop and afterwards to ensure actions are taken. Our research showed that many people are concerned about conflict and other things going wrong during risk workshops. Due to the nature of risk and the variations in risk attitude between different people, there is likely to be conflict during risk workshops. The risk facilitator should be prepared to deal with this in a positive way. The virtual environment is affecting risk workshops too, so dealing with conference calls and online meetings for risk is another necessary skill. The final piece we cover is to run through more than 60 pitfalls raised by risk professionals when we facilitated groups all over the UK in 2010. These range from issues with the risk management process, issues with facilitation skills and issues around the culture

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of the organisation concerned. Here are a few examples which you may well recognise yourself:  People don‖t understand what risk is, or have unclear or even conflicting definitions of risk.  No one takes ownership of risk.  People leave workshops with plans, then behave as if the risk has already been managed.  I don‖t know how it happens, but whenever I work with groups I always seem to end up with the actions. What can I do?  We have people who are meant to manage risk, but they are incompetent as facilitators.  People don‖t understand the point of the workshop.  Reactive heroes, not proactive risk managers, are valued in my organisation. Adding value Our final conclusion is that risk management is very important if organisations are to make good decisions in risky and important situations. As a risk facilitator, you can add real value by making the process easy for your colleagues, so they can be creative, productive and have fun. We'd be delighted to hear from other facilitators involved in risk management (at penny@makingprojectswork.co.uk). If you are interested in our book 'A Short Guide to Facilitating Risk Management', it's available for pre-order from Amazon now. Alternatively visit our site for more resources and a voucher for 35% off the book's cover price at www.facilitatingrisk.com. With many thanks to Vanessa Randle for the splendid pictures which have brought the book and this article to life. The pictures remain

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©Vanessa Randle 2010. Article ©Penny Pullan 2011

Penny Pullan, Penny Pullan PhD PMP CPF works with people in multinational organisations who are grappling with tricky projects and programmes of change. Tricky usually means a combination of:  risky, with uncertain outcomes;  working with virtual team members

dispersed around the globe;  complex and often ambiguous requirements;  complex and often culturally diverse mix of stakeholders, who need to be interested, engaged and involved. With this context, people say she brings order and clarity, providing support and tools to cut through the problems and to emerge successful, delivering benefits at the same time as developing the individuals involved. Her facilitation skills are fundamental to her work, especially in risk management. She's also known for her use of simple graphics to bring ideas and information to life. Penny is a director of Making Projects Work Ltd. and has been delighted to co-author ―A Short Guide to Risk Management‖ with Ruth Murray-Webster (It's available on Amazon now!) Her clients include Abbott Labs, Novo Nordisk, Mars, Cummins as well as other organisations in finance, utilities, universities and consultancy.

Complex Event? Anatomy of a Facilitator's Notebook By Gillian Martin Mehers I recently facilitated an enormously complex 2 -day event, with over 100 people (numbers shifted hourly), multiple process owners, and a continuously evolving agenda. The more exciting things got, the more interventions were sought (e.g. seat on a panel, announcement, chair role, changing speakers, changing titles, etc.) The nature of the event meant that each request needed to be accommodated if possible without jeopardizing the overall coherence. And, as this was an incredibly important international environmental governance event, I needed to be able to turn down the volume on the pulsating process enough so that I could listen, and be most effective in helping guide the discussions. I knew it would be like this, as this was a preparatory event for a much larger week-long political conference (600+ participants), with high stakes and even more moving parts. In going into this exhilarating environment as the main process holder, I needed to make sure that I had a hand on everything possible and could find it quickly. Being awake, well rested, and centred in my appreciative frame, was necessary but not sufficient. I had a stack of paper, emails, and last minute instructions and changes that made up the body of input materials. What I am about to write might seem totally basic, and still I wanted to record this, as often I go into events with my pink labelled GTD manila folder with papers loose inside. Once at the event, I just use my Facilitator's Agenda and my loose process notes, prepared session-by-session. I write them on a rectangular coloured Facilitation card, one per session. I use it to prepare notes for three fields: Preparation, Materials, and Script. This time there was just too much stuff and it was still coming in fast and furious. It took me about 3 hours - I put together a Facilitator's Notebook for myself to help me avoid shuffling through papers or worse, forgetting something

critical while standing in front of a hundred people.

Facilitator's Notebook Hardware: Two ring notebook 12 Dividers Additional Materials: Hole punch (which I took with me so I could add things on the spot) Label machine (mine is a Brother P-touch 65) Day-glow post-its Facilitators rectangular cards (different colours) Steps: 1. I labelled the folder and then all the tabs, so they would be easy to read and look good to me and others ; 2. For tabs I used the following fields: Agenda: This was first as it was my main guide. This included my Facilitation agenda, and also the Participants agenda so I could see how things were framed for participants (and how much info they had on each session) I also made for myself a one page snapshot agenda essentially a matrix overview of the 2 days with the timing, and session titles, so I could see the overall logic and flow and communicate that to participants (hard to do from a 13-page Facilitators Agenda). I also included it in a blank page for notes, to include any last minute changes to the agenda. Session-by-Session tabs: I had one called "Open", then Sessions 1-5, then "Close". Behind each of these I extracted that appropriate section of the Facilitators Agenda and reprinted it, so I could see the coherence of that particular session to introduce it. After that I had the bios of the

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speakers (if there were any, and there almost always were from one to seven!) After that I included the background papers that were being used and referred to in that session. I printed them 2 pages per sheet rectoverso so they wouldn't take up so much space. I used this on the plane to prepare myself, so the papers were marked up with my own notes and highlighted with essential points pulled out again for briefing purposes. I also included copies of any templates or job aids that we would be using in that session. Participants: Here I had the composition of the participants groups in numbers, as well as the Participants List. Notes: Under this section I had 5 pages of blank lined paper and I used it to take process notes under headings like: "For next time" and "overall", as I needed to write a short report afterwards with suggestions on what worked and what could be different. I didn't want to have to sift through everything to find those, and there were plenty of free moments during the event when I could jot down ideas here. Logistics: This section had filed all the logistics information I had been given, everything from my own flight and hotel details, participants logistics information note, to the layout of the room. Again more was added to this section once I arrived. TOR: In this section I included my own TOR and a copy of the contract, for reference. 3. On site, I used the rectangular Facilitators cards to write my script for each session. I actually used different colours for each session so I could grab them and not mix them up as there were so many of them. I also had a blank card of that colour to keep in my hand to write notes, such as the speakers list and announcements etc. I used the hole punch to put them in the right section before using them, and then put them back in the book when I was done so they were not flying around in my bag.

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Finally, the post-it notes came in handy for last minute notes and reminders, which I could stick anywhere and make sure they stuck out of the edges of the book so I could find them again quickly. The whole idea was to minimise the "noise" of extraneous paper, notes, and so on by organizing it in a logical way so that I can listen and help the group most effectively. It also helps me to have a system that can grow organically (thus the hole punch in my bag), and helps me not lose important information and changes (e.g. writing them on a slip of paper and forgetting it in my pocket). I simply had the book open on my designated desk and could walk back and get anything I needed or add things as they came up.

IAF Europe Newsletter columnist Gillian Martin Mehers is director and head of learning at Bright Green Learning @Atadore SARL, in Crans-prĂ¨s- CĂŠligny, Switzerland. She blogs regularly about facilitation and learning at www.welearnsomething.com. You can reach Gillian at gillian@mehers.com.

Once upon a time, at the castleâ&#x20AC;Ś By Mary-Alice Arthur | Pictures by Helen Titchen Beeth

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2013;ve always wanted to spend time in a castle. We have so many romantic notions of high ramparts, soaring towers, maybe a moat and drawbridge. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2013;ve visited many of those kind of castles and realised that our romantic ideas are not what it might have been like to live life there. This was something quite different. Kasteel Nieuwenhoven, about an hour north of Brussels, began its life as a Benedictine Abbey more than 1,000 years ago. At some point it was acquired by a noble family who lived there until very recently, when, like many families, it found that the children had left home and nobody wanted to care for the place. It was then that a group wanting to become an intentional sustainable

community bought it, and is slowly but surely transforming it into its next life stage. It has always taken a large group of people to run a place of this size, so on one level, nothing has changed. But now the focus on the inner work of the spirit and the housing of family has combined into something that speaks to our time. A deep sense of stillness and spaciousness for inner work envelops you there, but also the sense of family and of life, enhanced by the way Spring is showing itself on the land in the form of newborn animals and millions of dandelion seeds, ready to take to the air and find a new home. It was the ideal place to talk about transforming our life stories and stepping with courage into the challenge of the crossroads.

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The dandelion became our collective symbol over the weekend, a physical reminder of the seeds we all carry that are ready to find fertile, new ground. I‖ve continued to learn over my life that there is such a thing as divine timing. Ria Baeck and I first talked about combining our fields of storytelling and bodywork/constellation work more than two years ago and it has been an interesting journey sensing into right timing for a workshop. Every so often, we would talk about it again, but it wasn‖t the time to bring it to life. The time was right It finally felt like the time this past weekend and we decided to still use the name we‖d come up with more than a year ago: Embodying (Y) our Calling. We felt drawn to working with calling and also working with shadow, knowing deeply from our own journeys that your greatest gift can come from the deep wounds you carry. We had worked separately and together within other workshops with the potency of sharing stories, the release and focus of bodywork, and the ability of group constellations to show us the collective wisdom of a situation or system. It was finally time to dance as practitioners and co-learners together. We also wanted to

work in a new way, not to be the experts, but to play in a co-creative field with people who decided to be there and to see what would emerge, if we all took on the role of stepping into supporting each other into naming and

engaging with our calling. There were two main parts to our story work. On the afternoon of the first day, we talked about the “Legacy Suitcase” everyone carries. I remember distinctly when I discovered mine. I was 25 and I‖d just moved to New Zealand. I was very far away from anyone who knew me and I had the sudden inspiration that I could completely transform my identity and become someone totally new. I was the modern day example of someone escaping over the border with a new identity! I would be able to do whatever I wanted, be whoever I wanted to be and act however I wanted to act. It was time to throw off my past habits and embrace the new! The rush of excitement and possibility didn‖t last very long. I discovered I had an invisible suitcase that felt like it was attached to my ankle with a legchain. The suitcase was filled with conditioning from my family life and my experiences that caused me to react in certain, predictable ways. There seemed to be no way to leave the suitcase standing by the side of the road. I was forced to start unpacking. Bugger! Gifts in the same bag The bottom of the suitcase was filled with scars — both visible and invisible — as well as strengths — both known and unknown. They

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Once upon a time – A fairytale in the making Once upon a time, she said, is a very good place to start. It takes you very far away, yet stays close to the heart Of things that were and things that are, both difficult and true And yet, if you can look this way, they seem outside of you. Start right at the beginning, when someone gave you birth And tell a bit about the frame of sadness or of mirth Did you come into a castle, a village or a shack? Did you have everything you need or did you live with lack? What were those gifts, given there, that stayed with you since then? What have you used, what have you left, what have you to befriend? What was it in your character, your nature or your play That pulled you to the centre or made you stay away? Of course a child, must grow up soon and leave the family home So did you find a place to be or take to the world and roam? What were the challenges you met, what was the love you found? Where was the world a swampy mess and where was solid ground? What lessons still remain in you, what have you had to shed That makes you who you are today, with all the life you‖ve led? What brought you to the crossroads, the place where you now stand And by what name are they called, that place of sacred land? Who stands there now to challenge you, what message have they brought, About that which now could lie ahead, the calling that you‖ve sought? So take courage first, and take a breath and then pick up your pen And craft a story for us now, the journey can begin…

were thrown in there together and had become a bulky mess. There was also a toiletry bag filled with wounds and what I used to cover them up. Little did I know that my gifts were hiding in the same bag in the form of the shadows that needed to be integrated. In addition there was a whole pile of stories I was carrying that came from my family life, my cultural upbringing and all my life experiences. They were well-folded, but there was a musty smell about them. They desperately needed laundering. I somehow seemed to have lost the torch that I felt instinctively I was carrying, so I often got lost at night. And the sunglasses I had packed were particularly good at reflecting the shadows. I couldn‖t really see them; every so often I walked into walls and wondered how that had happened. It is a wonder I was never charged excess baggage!

I realised what I needed was a new set of instructions on the inside lid of my suitcase. I needed a new shaping of my story, a mirror that reflected the best of me, and a list of powerful questions that could be pulled out at any moment to focus me on possibilities instead of breakdown. As a longtime traveller I can tell you that it is a skill to know what to pack, when to unpack and to do that intentionally! The group grappled with the suitcase idea. ”I‖d rather have hand luggage!”, someone said, while someone else admitted that theirs was coffin shaped. It is a challenge to open the suitcase, have a look and not fall in. Having an idea of what the journey might look like, helps. That evening I shared the story The Queen‖s Cloak, by Joan Chamberlain Engelsman, as a first mapping of the road ahead. Mapping the life journey

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The following morning people got to work creating a Life Journey Map. Then they shared it and their suitcase in trios, with two supporting the storyteller to look for the red thread or the river below the river, to rename what is in the suitcase and together to identify the crossroad the teller was standing at now. After lunch we did a constellation in pairs, with one of us representing the calling and the other person sensing how it felt to move around it, now coming nearer, now facing away, now embracing the calling. We shared what we both experienced. Simple, but powerful work!

Deeply thoughtful stories like these are not heavy weights in the suitcase, but like the light but comforting sense of a warm angora shawl you can wrap around your shoulders against the cold of a long night and the loneliness of a challenging road. That ring of deep listening and glad sharing remains with me still, a castle I could live in.

Elements of a story On the morning of the third day, everyone wrote their own fairytale. Here are the story elements they worked with: Writing the fairytale & the key question for the workshop - How do we listen, watch & engage each other into wholeness & mastery?  Once upon a time there was…  S/he was given the gifts of…  And also…  And then…  Finally s/he came to the crossroads called…  Standing at the crossroads was…  Who tells her/him that _____ must be left behind and _____ picked up to move forward, and hands him/her a parchment which reads… While small groups had been working together the day before, the Muse came to visit me and I created a poem briefing of the exercise. It sounded like this: At the end of our time together, we heard the crossroads part of everyone‖s story. When they finished, we took a deep breath together and told them WE SEE YOU!, and then we gifted each person a round of words of power to accompany them on their journey. It was beautiful to see these words sink into the people and land. There was a quantum more strength and courage to go on, and the circle shimmered.

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Mary-Alice Arthur is a travelling storyteller and narrative practitioner who has been working with groups of all kinds for more than a decade and has been involved in both personal and organizational transformation work. Ria Baeck is a long-time self-employed psychotherapist with a passion for emergent tools and technologies, who seeks to bring deep transformation in individuals, organisations and society to unleash the unmanifested potential. Their workshop, Embodying (Y)our Calling, took place in Belgium April 29-May 1 in Brussels, Belgium. This story was posted on Mary-Alice‖s blog, Stories for Change, at http:// www.storiesforchange.com/?p=229 and also on Ria‖s blog at http://www.vitis-tct.be/ blog/2011/05/04/once-upon-a-time-at-the-castle% E2%80%A6/

Methods of the Month:

Method of the Month: the Silent Mindmap By Maureen Jenkins, IAF Methods Database This month I‖d like to draw your attention to something special: The IAF Methods Database is looking for Associate Editors! Help needed ranges from proofreading to adding new methods, assessing existing methods and working with online researchers. If you think you would like to contribute some time to the IAFMD, let us know and we can work together to create your role. You‖ll learn a lot, meet nice people and have something special to add to your CV. This month‖s method is a simple variation on brain writing that I saw used in two groups last week, and was most impressed. Somehow not talking seems to focus people‖s thinking. See if it helps your groups! Method of the Month The Silent Mindmap Purpose To generate a diversity of new ideas through silent, visual dialogue. Preparation Hang a very large roll of paper on several flipchart sheets attached together on the wall. Provide markers in a different color for each of the participants. Write the focus question in the center of the chart. Online, setup a whiteboard for the participants and ensure that each person chooses a separate color for their input. You might play some instrumental music in the background once the group has started their work. Steps Silently write as many ideas as you can to answer the focus question, each one inside of a circle. As you see responses from your colleagues, let

them stimulate new ideas. As you think of something new to add to a colleague‖s thought, add a circle clustered next to their circle. In this way as a group, continue to silently dialogue about the focus question until the space is filled. Reflection Now it‖s time to talk. As a group, read through the clusters and mark the two or three ones that most appeal to you, that seem to have the most possibility. Take each of the appealing clusters and develop it further with questions such as:  What other thoughts does this cluster bring to mind?  What do you like about it?  What is this about—what‖s the central focus here?  How can we take this further in our planning? Last month‖s Poll raised the question, With what configuration of support do you typically facilitate? It was great to see that, although about half of us facilitate alone, there are almost another half in this group who can afford to regularly cofacilitate with others. Congratulations! The responses were:  I usually facilitate on my own. 52%  I usually facilitate with one co-facilitator. 39%  I usually facilitate with someone to do graphic or audio-visual support. 3%  I usually facilitate with someone to take photos and/or minutes. 3%  I usually facilitate with more than one cofacilitator 3%

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Welcome, new and returning members (May 2011) We would like to warmly welcome the following new members who joined IAF in May:  Ioana Dragne, Romania  Aisling Gavin, UK  Miira Heiniö, Finland  Peter Hennessey, UK  Philippa Johnston, UK  Gaynor Mears, UK  Steve Moore, UK  Berna Muderrisoglu, Turkey  Sally Newton, UK  Anna Nilson, Sweden  Arthur Rahn, UK  Pauline Reid, UK  Allan Russell, UK  Monica Smith, UK  Russell Smith, UK  Ruben van der Laan, Netherlands

We also want to welcome back returning members who renewed their IAF membership in May:  Miha Derganc, Slovenia  Susan Donnan, France  Nicola Edson, UK  Arcan Güner, Turkey  Annika Kjellin, Sweden  Sladjana Milosevic, Serbia  Liliana Mircescu, Switzerland  Alenka Planinc Rozman, Slovenia  Jean-Philippe Poupard, France  Penny Pullan, UK  Jonas Roth, Sweden  Anna Royon-Weigelt, Germany  Johannes van Dam, Netherlands  Ria van Dinteren, Netherlands

Facilitation Workshops and Meetings 2011 Find out more details about specific events listed here by visiting the Workshops and Meetings section of the IAF Europe Forum (http://www.iaf-europe.eu) If you would like to let others know about an event you are organizing, please email rosemary.cairns@iafeurope.eu. JUNE 2011  Introduction to Group Facilitation, June 7, Manchester UK (ICA:UK)  Group Facilitation Methods, June 8-9, Manchester UK (ICA:UK)  The art of collaborative leadership ~ cultivating our capacity for hosting systemic transformation, June 9-12, UK (Hara Practice Collaborative)  Riders on the Storm virtual learning set (5 months) begins June 13 (Wilson Sherriff)

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 Lego® Serious Play® Facilitators

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Training, June 13-16, Brussels, Belgium (Per Kristiansen) Brain Friendly Learning for Trainers, June 14 – 16, Hunton Park, Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, UK (Kaizen Training Ltd.) How do we want to live together on Earth? June 14-15, Brussels (Dr. Albrecht Mahr and Rainer von Leoprechting) Change the Conversation, Change the Organisation, June 22, London, UK (Living Leadership) Facilitation Fundamentals, June 28-29, Knaresborough, Yorkshire, UK (facilitate this!)

JULY 2011  Facilitator‖s Practice Group, July 4, London (Ashiq Khan)

ARTICLE MEMBER NEWS

 Group Facilitation Methods, July 5-6, London

UK (ICA:UK)  Nonviolent Communication Intensive, July 16

-22, Scotland (Findhorn) SEPTEMBER 2011  Group Facilitation Methods, Sept. 1-2, Gateshead UK (ICA:UK)  Group Facilitation Methods, Sept. 7, Manchester UK (ICA:UK)  Action Planning, Sept. 8, Manchester UK (ICA:UK)  PeerSpirit Circle Practicum, Sept. 19-24, Frankfurt, Germany (Ann Linnea and Christina Baldwin)  Facilitator Masterclass, Sept. 20-22, Hunton Park, Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, UK (Kaizen Training)  (Preconference Session) The Virtual Facilitator, Sept. 26-Oct. 10, online (Simon Wilson and Carol Sherriff)  Kaizen 101: Essentials of Continuous Improvement, Sept 27-29, Hunton Park, Hertfordshire, UK (James Rosenegk, Kaizen Training)  Participatory Strategic Planning, Sept. 28-29, Manchester UK (ICA:UK)

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OCTOBER 2011  Brain Friendly Learning for Trainers, Oct. 1113, Hunton Park, Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, UK (Kaizen Training Ltd.)  Preconference event CPF Certification events, Oct. 12-13, Istanbul, Turkey (IAF)  Preconference event Dealing with conflict: using alternative dispute resolution techniques to help build bridges and facilitate difficult conversations, Oct. 12, Istanbul, Turkey (Kimberly Bain)  Preconference event Facing up to change: understanding the challenge by using metrics. Oct. 12-13, Istanbul, Turkey (Tony Mann)  Preconference event Facilitated learning: optimizing facilitation skills to transfer knowledge and transform the experience, Oct. 12-13, Istanbul, Turkey (Pamela LuptonBowers & Amanda Carrothers)  Preconference event Introducing Kumi: a new facilitation method designed to enable social transformation in situations of con-

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flict, Oct. 12-13, Istanbul, Turkey (Jonathan Dudding & Ann Lukens) Preconference event The secrets to facilitating strategy: building the bridge from strategy to action, Oct. 13, Istanbul, Turkey (Michael Wilkinson) Preconference event Person centred facilitation: an experiential workshop for facilitators, Oct. 13, Istanbul, Turkey (John Dawson) Preconference event Developing learning power: how effective learners learn and how great facilitation develops individual and team learning capability, Oct. 13, Istanbul, Turkey (Ann Alder) Preconference event Pragmatics: behavioural aspects of human facilitation, Oct. 13, Istanbul, Turkey (Jan Lelie) Preconference event Improvisation for facilitators, Oct. 13, Istanbul, Turkey (Stuart Reid) Preconference event ―Walking the Power of Now in Istanbul‖, Oct. 13, Istanbul, Turkey (Partners in Facilitation) IAF EUROPE CONFERENCE, OCT. 14-16, ISTANBUL, TURKEY Power & Systems UK Accreditation for the Organization Workshop, Oct. 17-21, The Cotswolds, UK (John Watters) Group Facilitation Methods, Oct. 25-26, London UK (ICA:UK)

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Pre-conference workshops Index Between 26th September and 10th October 2011 Page XX

The Virtual Facilitator A Virtual Workshop hosted by Simon Wilson and Carol Sherriff, Wilson-Sherriff

Wednesday 12th October 2011 Page XX

Dealing with Conflict: Using Alternative Dispute Resolution Techniques to Help Build Bridges and Facilitate Difficult Conversations A one-day workshop with Kimberly Bain of Bain Group

Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th October 2011 Page XX

Facing up to Change: understanding the challenge by using metrics â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Enabling facilitators and change agents to design a powerful change process A two-day workshop with Tony Mann, Resource Strategic Change Facilitators

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Facilitated Learning: Optimizing facilitation skills to transfer knowledge and transform the experience A two-day workshop with Pamela Lupton-Bowers and Amanda Carrothers, PLB Consulting

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Introducing Kumi: a new facilitation method designed to enable social transformation in situations of conflict A two-day workshop with Jonathan Dudding, ICA:UK and Ann Lukens, Groupworks

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IAF Certified Professional Certificate (CPF) Assessment Two one-day assessment processes to be run on the 12th and 13th October 2011

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Pre-conference workshops

Thursday 13th October 2011 Page XX

The Secrets to Facilitating Strategy: Building the Bridge from Strategy to Action A one-day workshop with Michael Wilkinson of Leadership Strategies â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The Facilitation Company

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Person Centred facilitation: An Experiential Workshop for Facilitators A one-day workshop with John Dawson, Zenergy

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Developing Learning Power: How effective learners learn and how great facilitation develops individual and team learning capability A one-day workshop with Ann Alder of RSVP Design Ltd

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Pragmatics: Behavioural aspects of Human Facilitation A one-day seminar with Jan Lelie, mind@work

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Improvisation for Facilitators A one-day workshop with Stuart Reid

Thursday 13th October 2011 Page XX

(between 13:30 and 16:30)

Walking the power of Now in Istanbul Three-Hour walk in old Istanbul with Amanda Stott and Partners in Facilitation (meeting place to be announced)

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Pre-conference workshops Developing learning power: how effective learners learn and how great facilitation develops individual and team learning capability Ann Alder, RSVP Design Ltd / Oct. 13, 2011

How do really effective learners learn? How do we become ―Superlearners‖? Learning matters to everyone. Being an effective learner offers great advantages in a world of constant change. The ELLI model of ―learning to learn‖ is built upon extensive research from the University of Bristol, which has identified Seven Dimensions of Learning and created an extensively validated tool to measure and develop individual ―Learning Power‖. In this practical, one-day workshop you will learn:  The Seven Dimensions of Learning and how they connect to create Learning Power, including receiving your own ELLI Learning Power Profile  How to use the Seven Dimensions to create powerful learning environments and programmes that build individual, team and organisational learning capability  How to use the ELLI profiling tool as the basis for developmental coaching and mentoring conversations  How to select and create engaging, interactive learning activities that stengthen the learning dimensions The workshop is a full-day training (0900 -1700). Your programme fee includes a personal ELLI profile, and ELLI support materials to enable you to begin to use the principles of ELLI within your own facilitation, coaching, training or consultancy work. This workshop is intended for learning and development professionals, coaches, facilitators and consultants who are responsible for supporting the learning and development of others. You will learn:  How to structure coaching conversations and practise your ―coaching for learning‖ skills under the expert guidance of a skilled ELLI facilitator  How to design and deliver more powerful learning events and interventions  How ELLI can be used to measure the progress of individual learners and to evaluate the success of your learning delivery Participants will also have the opportunity to find out more about ELLI Accreditation and explore its potential value in their future work. For those interested, this workshop equates to Day 1 of a full ELLI Accreditation, which gives access to individual profiles, permission to use the methodology in commercial work and support in introducing ELLI projects, including training ―ELLI Champions‖ in their own client organisations. For more information, contact Ann Alder at annalder@rsvpdesign.co.uk

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Pre-conference workshops Walking the Power of Now in Istanbul – step in and step up to the unknown Partners in Facilitation / Oct. 13, 2011

We invite you to join us on a walk through the streets of Istanbul where we will use the stimulus, silence and space of the city as a bridge to exploring ourselves and our practice as facilitators. ―Istanbul is an old city, you can see the remains of many ancient civilizations and their culture in harmony with Turkish culture. The old versus the new, the traditional versus the modern is a conflict that a visitor often observes. The city is full of contrasts, and colorful views.  Where the blowing winds from the seven peaks of Anatolian Olympos merge into each other..  Where Amazon's cooled their bodies in the waves that break apart from the Black Sea and roll mightily against the shore ...  Where love is symbolized in the Tower of Leandros ...  Where stand the rocks of Symplegad that brought nightmares to the Argonauts ...  Built on seven hills on Asia and Europe ...  Capital of three empires ...  Where romance and traffic jam go hand in hand, lively and exciting, a world metropolis ... www.IstanbulCityGuide.com Join us for a walk and talk, using your observations, experiences and curiosity to gain deeper insight into what you pay attention to, build connections and enjoy the city through the eyes, ears, head, heart and body of fellow facilitators. ―Partners in Facilitation‖ are professional facilitators with an immense desire to learn and grow. We first met and formed part of the organising team for the IAF Edinburgh Conference in 2007 and realised that we wished to continue and share our journey of personal and professional development together. We set up our Practice Development Group in 2008 and meet six times per year, and it is this experience that has inspired us to offer this session. For more information, contact Amanda Stott amanda@facilitatethis.com

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Pre-conference workshops Improvisation for facilitators Stuart Reid, RSVP Design Ltd / Oct. 13, 2011 As a facilitator, how often do your sessions run exactly to plan? Do you ever find yourself needing to change your programme, deal with the unexpected, or ―make it up as you go along‖? Improvisation is an essential skill for all facilitators. This workshop uses improvisation games from the world of theatre to help you relax more when working in the moment with clients, connect more quickly with the groups you work with, and actually enjoy re-writing your plans on the spur of the moment! You need no performance skills for this workshop – it is suitable for absolute beginners. You can relax as you are guided through a selection of specially chosen improvisation games and exercises. You are introduced to some of the building blocks of improvisation: saying ―yes, and…‖; doing less; accepting offers; enjoying your own mistakes; and being ordinary! The workshop is entirely practical, so you'll be on your feet practising most of the day - in pairs and in small groups. As well as improving your own practice as a facilitator, you will be able to use the same activities with your clients to help them:  be more creative;  solve problems faster and better; and  work more effectively as a team. You take away a handbook of improvisation games, exercises and other resources to use in your next facilitated session. Don‖t prepare, just turn up! The workshop will be taught in English by Stuart Reid, an experienced facilitator, trainer and improviser. Stuart has been using improvisation games for 20 years. He was taught improvisation by Keith Johnstone, one of the founders of improvisation, and is a member of the London-based improvisation group Just Add Lib. For more information visit Stuart‖s website at http://www.stuartreid.org.uk/index.php/istanbul-workshop/ or contact him at stuart@stuartreid.org.uk or on Skype at stuartreid.org.uk

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Pre-conference workshops Pragmatics of Human Facilitation Jan Lelie CPF, mind@work / Oct. 13, 2011 All facilitating is about connecting, making bridges, making and breaking connections, bonds, relations. In this seminar we‖ll investigate the processes of facilitation from a pragmatic or behavioural perspective. By behavioural I mean that we‖re not so much concerned with theory (what? explanation) or the practice (how-to ?), but with our behavioural patterns (habits) in their concrete results. The seminar is interactive, full of exercises based on material the participants supply themselves. Participants will be asked to submit at least on case in a certain format. They‖ll also required to fill in a Reality Inquiry Questionnaire. Change is of two kinds: change within fixed patterns, frames or habits (like being in motion, accelerating or decelerating) and changing the patterns of habits, frames. The latter requires a system to have a memory function, to detect patterns, store them, evaluate them and change them. Facilitating is about supporting changes in patterns of behaviour, supporting learning, and, as we‖ll learn, inherently paradoxical. First I‖ll introduce a map of four different habits, views on reality, frames of reference or learning styles. Participants share their positions on the map. We‖ll use this map to explore the six games of change. These different patterns are mutually exclusive and true. So we have a paradox here. Paradoxes  After the break, we‖ll dig deeper into the axioms of communicating, as proposed by Watzlawick in “Pragmatics of Human Communication” (ISBN-13: 978-0393010091 – having read it isn‖t necessary but helpful).  We‖ll explore the paradoxes associated with communicating and the implications on human behaviour and communication. We‖ll deepen our understanding of the paradoxes of change, groups and facilitating. Paradoxes both supply and drain the energy of a group.  I‖ll introduce a simple approach to look at the paradoxes in a certain situation and we‖ll apply it to cases by the participants.  After the seminar participants will be able to understand the basic behavioural patterns in groups and how to use them in designing workshops, sessions and interventions. Participants are able to create space, time and movement in groups. Required Experience in conducting workshops or sessions (at least 10) Submission of a case Filling in a Reality Inquiry. Jan Lelie, CPF, has worked in facilitating for more than 20 years, in ICT, Sales and Marketing, Project Management, and consulting. He holds a Master‖s degree in Physics and Business Administration. He is the co-founder of the Dutch IAF Chapter. http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=916560 04.2011| IAF EUROPE NEWSLETTER | 27

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Pre-conference workshops The Virtual Facilitator Simon Wilson and Carol Sherriff / Sept. 26-Oct. 10, 2011 The session will run for two weeks, with an estimated commitment of 10 to 20 hours of distance learning, working in online groups and personal coaching. We will celebrate the end of the virtual workshop with a face to face get-together at the Istanbul conference to meet virtual colleagues and review the experience. Sign up for this workshop if:  your clients are interested in green and sustainable ways of working  your clients complain that their virtual meetings and teleconferences are worse than face-to-face ones  you despair of virtual meetings that destroy collaboration rather than support it  you want to add virtual facilitation skills to your toolkit  you want to practice your virtual skills in a safe and supportive environment The workshop will be based on the IAF facilitation competencies particularly planning appropriate group processes; creating and sustaining a participatory environment and guiding a group to appropriate and useful outcomes. By the end of the workshop, you will be able to:  Offer a range of virtual facilitation techniques to your clients  Use a range of creative approaches to working virtually that will help groups evoke creativity, stimulate energy and tackle problems  Choose to work in a range of virtual environments such as telephone conferences, videoconferences, online forums, virtual summits, social media and blogs  Improve your virtual facilitation skills based on practice and feedback from the workshop facilitators To take part in this workshop, you need access to the internet and an interest in developing your virtual facilitation skills. You don't need particular software or prior experience. All you need to do is sign up now to emails@wilsonsherriff.com Facilitators Carol Sherriff and Simon Wilson, certified Professional and virtual facilitators, are directors of Wilson Sherriff, a UK-based facilitation company offering face-to-face and virtual facilitation services. Earlier this year they designed and facilitated The Riders on the Storm International Virtual Summit for facilitators and coaches. They will provide coaching and support as part of this virtual workshop. For information, please contact Carol Sherriff carol.sherriff@wilsonsherriff.com

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Pre-conference workshops Person Centred Facilitation – an Experiential Workshop John Dawson / Oct. 13, 2011 This workshop, led by John Dawson, will introduce participants to a person centred and “whole person” approach to facilitation developed by Zenergy in New Zealand and described in the classic book The Art of Facilitation (2007) by Dr. Dale Hunter and colleagues. The four dimensions of the Facilitator Education Model (as outlined by Glyn Thomas in the IAF Handbook of Group Facilitation) will serve as a theoretical framework for the workshop. The experiential part of the workshop will introduce participants to the attitudes, personal qualities and presence which distinguish a person centred facilitator, grounded in place, space and grace. This approach draws on the work of Carl Rogers, John Heron and others, including the indigenous people of New Zealand. As a result of this workshop, participants will come to understand the person-centred approach and Zenergy‖s approach to facilitating, and will practise some of the Zenergy skills. John Dawson is a group facilitator, coach and mediator and an Associate at Zenergy Limited (www.zenergyglobal.com), who co-leads Zenergy’s Diploma of Facilitation. He has been working in the field for over 10 years in New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and Egypt, using a person centered and co-operative approach. John is a director of 4thWay Associates Limited (www.4thway.co.nz), a New Zealand-based company providing facilitation, mediation, and coaching services to government, business and community sectors. His background includes scientific research, teaching and business experience which supports his work as a consultant in leadership, personal, team and organisational development; change management; process improvement; strategy and planning.

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Pre-conference workshops Facilitated Learning: Optimizing facilitation skills to transfer knowledge and transform the experience Pamela Lupton-Bowers and Amanda Carrothers, PLB Consulting / Oct. 12-13, 2011 This two-day workshop will show you how a facilitative approach will help you transform training initiatives into meaningful and energizing learning experiences. Learn how facilitating learning liberates both you and the learner, and allows you to co-create a synergy that unlocks potential and can smash limiting beliefs. The content is based on the latest science and theory behind accelerated and adult learning. Take your teaching ability to a whole new level by learning to facilitate peoples‖ experiences, their understanding, and their future application of new ideas. At the end of the workshop, you will be able to:  Understand the critical difference between trainer and facilitatator  Design activities that respect the knowledge and experience of the learners  Develop activities that take advantage of individual learning styles and cognitive preferences  Apply ―brain rules‖ to help increase attention and retain new information  Produce activities that will energize both learners and trainers  Receive and provide effective and productive ―feed-forward‖ This course will be of benefit to anyone looking to improve their facilitation skills, anyone involved in designing and delivering learning programs, and anyone wanting to clearly understand and differentiate the roles of trainer and facilitator in preparation for the CPF assessment. For more information, contact Pamela at plb@plbconsulting.com. Pamela Lupton-Bowers is a professional facilitator and master trainer with 30 years‖ experience in professional development. She has been a CPF since 2005 and is currently the IAF Europe Representative, and President of the IAF Geneva Chapter. Pamela has facilitated meetings large and small, from team to strategic planning for the world‖s largest UN agencies and international organizations. Through her intense programme Facilitation Plus© she has trained hundreds of trainers and facilitators worldwide. Pamela is certified in Team Management Systems, DISC, Honey and Mumford Learning Styles, Culture in the Workplace. Amanda Carrothers is a master trainer with 15 years in adult learning and professional performance. She is based in Denver, USA and has worked with major corporate and non-profit clients world-wide. She is a certified coach with the International Coach Federation, and also has professional accreditation in Emotional Intelligence; Ontological Coaching; Managing Thought; Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and Living Change. Amanda‖s passion is working with women through her Embody programme to help them achieve optimal performance both personally and professionally.

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Pre-conference workshops Enabling facilitators and change agents to design a powerful change process Tony Mann, Resource Strategic Change Facilitators / Oct. 12-13, 2011 Designing a change strategy, introducing continuous improvement or setting up a project requires understanding the crucial factors in order to know how to manage the change. However, experience and evidence suggests that a large percentage of change projects go wrong and often fail to deliver the desired outcomes. Mergers can fail to unite the two entities; ITC projects don‖t live up to expectations, and culture change can end up alienating the very people who need to deliver in the new culture. In this Pre-Conference Workshop, Tony Mann of Resource Strategic Change Facilitators will introduce the “Change Management Dashboard”, a series of metrics that can help an organisation plan for change much more effectively and wisely. He will show how these metrics provide a crucial insight that will help the design and management of the change/project process. The two-day workshop will provide an opportunity for participants to practice interpreting the various metrics and using them to plan a change process. Every participant will be given the opportunity to complete a metric to use in the workshop.

Understanding the critical factors - complexity of the change issues, readiness for change, the balance between the economic and values imperatives, the degree of resistance to change and finally the required strategic leadership style - is key to designing an effective change process. ―Change Factor Metrics‖ can help identify the issues and set the change on the right course. Workshop participants will have the opportunity to explore the design of sessions and workshops to tackle issues that emerge from the metrics. This will be a shared experience. Tony will share his “Facilitator‖s Process Notes” and together the group will combine their experience to build a comprehensive ―guide to the change process‖. Those who attend will then be equipped to use the metrics in their facilitation and change practice. To learn more, contact tony.mann@resourcestrategicchange.com or ―tonymannresource‖ on Skype. For a booking form (with costs etc), please contact: sue.filio@resourcestrategicchange.com.

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Friday 14th October 2011 BEGINNING OF THE CONFERENCE 08:30

Registration at Dedeman Hotel

09:30

Conference Opening by Rengin Akkemik & Robert Verheule

09:45

Keynote Presentation

THE FIVE CHOICES (by Suresh Gunaratnam and Rengin Akkemik, FranklinCovey Turkey) This is not just a one time action to arrive at a destination, but an on-going "sharpening-the-saw" process. 10:45

Refreshment Break

11:15

Worldcafe: strengthening the theme

12:30

Lunch

WORKSHOPS | 13:30 - 17:00 13:30 13:30 - 15:00

17:00

15:00 The 5 W’s of Basic Facilitation.

15:30 - 17:00

Linda Mather, Beacon Consultants – (USA)

Consensual circle: The art to build common understanding Jean-Philippe Poupard, Formapart – (France)

Visual Thinking Tools for Facilitating Change Virginia Hamilton – (USA)

13:30 - 15:00

Assessing and improving organisational culture using Appreciative Inquiry Karen Delau, Synexe Consulting – (Australia)

13:30 - 15:00

The creative facilitator: Working creatively when groups most need it and least want it Simon Wilson and Carol Sherriff, Wilson-Sherriff – (United Kingdom)

BREAK / SESSION CHANGE

13:30 - 15:00

15:30 - 17:00

Imagining ethics: Building professional ethical awareness Ellen-Marie Forsberg and Sven-Tore Kristiansen, Work Research Institute – (Norway)

15:30 - 17:00

The Secrets to Selling and Marketing Facilitation Services Michael Wilkinson, Leadership Strategies – (USA)

15:30 - 17:00

Working in Conflict: Challenging the role of the facilitator Jonathan Dudding, ICA:UK and Ann Lukens, Groupworks – (United Kingdom) Continued on next page >>

Levels:

Experienced

New to Facilitation

All levels

FRIDAY 14 OCTOBER 2011 WORKSHOPS | 13:30 - 17:00 13:30 - 17:00

Communicating Across Cultures: Primer with an emotional intelligence twist Jayna Johnson, UNHCR – (Hungary)

13:30 - 17:00

Creating and Nourishing a Living Strategic Plan Helen Wythe, Helen J Wythe & Associates – (Canada)

13:30 - 17:00

Facilitating Global Projects: Essential Techniques for Bridging Cultural Differences in Virtual Meetings Küresel Projeler kolaylaştırılması: Temel Teknikleri Sanal Toplantıları Kültürel Farklılıklar Bridging için (In English and Turkish) Julia Young, Facilitate.com with Zehra Eliçin and Alper Eliçin, BCD Business Consulting and Development – (USA/Turkey)

13:30 - 17:00

Jumpstart Facilitation Short but good, a first introduction to the Skills and Magic of facilitation

EVENING ACTIVITY 18:00 - 21:00

Welcome Dinner with evening cultural programme

Levels:

Experienced

New to Facilitation

All levels

SATURDAY 15th OCTOBER 2011 MORNING ACTIVITIES 08:45

Opening by Rengin Akkemik & Robert Verheule

09:00

Workshops Sessions

12:30

LUNCH

13:30

Workshops Sessions and Events

WORKSHOPS | 09:00 - 12:30 09:00 09:00 - 10:30

New Generation Facilitation Techniques: Building A Bridge For Y Gen (In Turkish - repeated in English 13:30) Elif Duru Gonen, DURUGÖNEN Professional Development Consultancy – (Turkey)

09:00 - 10:30

Building Trust as a Facilitator Linda Mather, Beacon Consultants – (USA)

11:00 - 12:30 BREAK / SESSION CHANGE

The Webmaster Bridge: Creating a powerful physical metaphor to bridge the gap between current and desired states Ann Alder, RSVP Design - (United Kingdom)

09:00 - 10:30

12:30

10:30

Facing up to Change: Understanding the challenge by using metrics Tony Mann, Resource Strategic Change Facilitators – (United Kingdom)

11:00 - 12:30

Defining the Essence of your Business or Organisation: For Effectiveness and Sustainability John Dawson, Zenergy – (New Zealand)

11:00 - 12:30

Over the Bridge: Enabling powerful facilitation with powerful platforms. TBA TBA

09:00 - 12:30

Building Bridges That Transform Nadine Bell, The Burrell Group and Annette Moench, Moench Networks GmbH – (USA & Germany)

09:00 - 12:30

Building Bridges With Meeting Clients Robert Moir and Janet Danforth, Facilitator4hire, Inc. – (USA)

09:00 - 12:30

Creativity tools for team facilitation Ann Epps, LENS International and Nancy Ashworth, Teaming Across Time Zones – (Malaysia & USA)

09:00 - 12:30

Strategic Planning with a difference: Delivering a 3 day retreat that is creative, fun, has personal learning, team building and a strategic plan for 2015 Pamela Lupton-Bowers, PLB Consulting – (Switzerland)

09:00 - 12:30

Jumpstart Facilitation (continues) Short but good, a first introduction to the Skills and Magic of facilitation

Levels:

Experienced

New to Facilitation

All levels

SATURDAY 15th OCTOBER 2011 WORKSHOPS | 13:30 - 17:00 13:30 13:30 - 15:00

17:00

15:00 Over the Bridge: Enabling powerful facilitation with powerful platforms (In Turkish - repeated in English 13:30) Jamie Thompson,

15:30 - 17:00

Mta Learning – (United Kingdom)

13:30 - 15:00

This presentation was a keynote at the IAF North America Conference in April 2011 Michael Wilkinson, Leadership Strategies – (USA)

New Generation Facilitation Techniques: Building A Bridge For Y Gen

13:30 - 15:00

A Practical Guide to Bridging Differences

13:30 - 15:00

Building bridges between virtual teams: Wiki for consultants and clients

Jan Lelie, mind@work – (Netherlands)

Thomas Huber, ToChange – (Germany)

13:30 - 15:00

Music as Metaphor

13:30 - 15:00

Enabling Dialogue

13:30 - 15:00

Using Facilitation in Innovation Process (In Turkish - repeated in English on Sunday at 09:00)

BREAK / SESSION CHANGE

Elif Duru Gonen, DURUGÖNEN Professional Development Consultancy – (Turkey)

PLENARY PRESENTATION The Anatomy of a Facilitation: Bringing Top Education Leaders to Consensus

15:30 - 17:00

Open Space Event

Ivor Bundell – (United Kingdom) Alper Utku, Management Centre Turkey, - (Turkey)

Yekta Özözer, ABC Consulting & Training – (Turkey)

13:30 - 17:00

Jumpstart Facilitation (continues) Short but good, a first introduction to the Skills and Magic of facilitation

EVENING ACTIVITY 18:00 - 21:00

Gala Dinner cruise on Bosphorus with evening programme

Levels:

Experienced

New to Facilitation

All levels

SUNDAY 16th OCTOBER 2011 MORNING ACTIVITIES 08:45

Opening by Rengin Akkemik & Robert Verheule

09:00 - 10:30

Workshops Sessions

10:30

Refreshment Break

11:00

Closing Ceremony Announcement of next years conference

12:30

Lunch

13:30

Departure

WORKSHOPS | 09:00 - 10:30 09:00 - 10:30

Enabling Dialogue (In Turkish) Alper Utku, Management Centre Turkey – (Turkey)

09:00 - 10:30

Facilitating for Cultural Awareness: Understanding how to BE more effective with Muslim Clients and Colleagues John Dawson, Zenergy – (New Zealand)

09:00 - 10:30

Building Bridges between people: How a facilitator can support people to be in contact Sieglinde Hinger, Siemens AG – (Austria)

09:00 - 10:30

The Circle of Intervention Arie van Bennekum, people make the differnece and Malin Hallman, Lorensbergs – (Netherlands & Swe-

09:00 - 10:30

The Future of Facilitation using Future Snapshot Miira Heiniö and Aki Koivistoinen, Dazzle Oy – (Finland)

09:00 - 10:30

Building Bridges Among Generations Evrin Kuran, Dinamo Training and Consulting – (Turkey)

09:00 - 10:30

Using Facilitation in Innovation Process Yekta Özözer, ABC Consulting & Training – (Turkey)

13:30 - 17:00

Jumpstart Facilitation (continues) Short but good, a first introduction to the Skills and Magic of facilitation

Levels:

Experienced

New to Facilitation

All levels