facilitation
Brainstorming doesnt really work
Typically, participants leave a brainstorming session proud of their contribution. The whiteboard has been filled with free associations. Brainstorming seems like an ideal technique, a feel-good way to boost productivity. But there is a problem with brainstorming. It...
Australasian Facilitators Network
The Australasian Facilitators Network (AFN) is a self-organising community of practitioners based in Australia, New Zealand, South-East Asia and the Pacific. Our focus is on working, learning and sharing with each other. We share a passion for facilitation and...
8 skills of a well trained activist
George Lakey writes: “In the 1950s, there was no place I could go to learn this kind of activist facilitation training, even though Paulo Freire was doing groundbreaking work in his Pedagogy of the Oppressed and the Gandhi-influenced Muslim leader Abdul Ghaffar...
Courses with EarthCare Education
EarthCare Education focuses on Dynamic Groups, Dynamic Learning, the holistic learning methodology pioneered by Robin Clayfield and friends over the past twenty years.
Consensus decision making
Excellent resource on consensus, with names for all the non-unanimity gestures including “twinkly fingers”
No to two hour workshops
A short article by Daniel Hunter, training associate with Training for Change.
Resources for activists and organizers
Joshua Kahn Russell’s great resource collection of learning resources, including some from the Energy Action Coalition and Rainforest Action Network.
Tools for Organisers
Resources to build a strong, cohesive organization with a clear sense of its mission and an ability to focus its energies efficiently and creatively.
Action Group Meetings
Resources to help your group work well together and achieve your objectives; highlights some group habits and actions that resilient community groups have relied on.
Formation of Freirian Facilitators Phyllis Nobel, 1978
Food for thought for activist educators, including a useful review of literature by and about Paulo Freire.
Meeting facilitation: the no magic method
Overview of the role of the facilitator and some ingredients for undertaking productive and effective meetings as recommended by Berit Lakey.
How to build safety in a group
If the facilitator and the group do a good job of building safety, then the participants will frequently go out of their comfort zone in order to stretch and grow. This document outlines techniques for developing security within a group.
Open Space Technology Process Guide
A helpful process guide and case study for Open Space Technology facilitators.
Consensus decision making
An overview of requirements and guidelines for effective consensus decision-making, as well as some variations and difficulties that may be encountered.
Effective meetings for climate action groups
A 2 page guide to help climate action groups off to a good start with tips on meeting procedures and roles, setting realistic objectives and balancing group maintenance with campaign tasks.
Defining Consensus
This tool enables a group to arrive at a shared definition of consensus and to work together and strengthen relationships before dealing with decision-making.
Diagnostic Tools
A bundle of tools for facilitators to learn a group’s needs and move the group forward.