Facilitator Training 3-Day Flow

8/11/2019 Facilitator Training 3-Day Flow

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THREE-DAYFLOW FORFACILITATORTRAININGS

January 21, 2011


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Summary Flow for 3-Day FacilitatorTrainings

This Agenda/Flow design is, of course, subject to the leaders sense of what iscalled for in your trainingfeel free to change this Flow if something else isneeded. Also, time estimates are approximate, and assume focus!

RolesPresenters:

Training Team:

Team Arrival time: 7:30 am

Team Meeting: 7:45 am to 8:15 am

In position, and ready to welcome participants by 8:30 am.

Friday

I. Welcome and Coming PresentIntention: For participants and team to enter a space of hospitality, belonging andconnection and to create the training with the possibility of excitement, anticipationand humor.

9:00 am

A. Welcome, overview of day & 3 day training (20 min)

B. Acknowledge Sacred Space, personal objects on the altar (15 min)

C. Participants Introduce Each Other to the Group (45 min)D. Whos here, how to be here (20 min)

E. Complete on Preparation Assignment (20 min)


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11:20 am BREAK (15-20 min)

T=140 min. (2 hrs. 20 min)

II. Framing the inquiry: The context and state of being of our workas Community Leaders and Facilitators

Intention: To acknowledge the call of Pachamama in us all and for each of usto experience a deeper connection to bringing forth an EnvironmentallySustainable, Spiritually Fulfilling and Socially Just human presence on earth.

A. Background of The Pachamama Alliance and the Symposium (20 min)

B. The Context for Our Work (20 min)

C. Honoring our Ancestors / Descendants (whose behalf are we here) (40 min)

T=80 min (1 hr. 20 min.)(to 12:40)

LUNCH (80 min)

Start: 2:00

2-minute shares

D. Pass out Training Notebooks: P & IR for Training (20 min)E. Discussion: What moved you from your Symposium? (25 min)

F. Review: P & IR for Symposium (15 min)

G. Notes to Ourselves (60 min)

T=120 min

BREAK (15min)

Start: 4:15

2-minute shares

H. Taking the Flow of the Symposium Into Yourself (40 min)


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I. Relational Presence (45++? min)

DINNER (50 min)

Start: 7:30 p.m.

K. Opportunity Before us Re: Social (in)Justice (100 min)

9:30 pm Team Meeting

Saturday

III. The Symposium and the Presenters Manual

Intention: To familiarize participants with the Symposium material as a narrativeand experience its deep coherence and potential for transformation.

7:30 am Team Meeting

8:45 am Movement

9am A. Opening (20 min)

2-minute shares

B Presentation of, Orientation to, the Presenters Manual, 3 sentences (50 min)

10:10 am C. Walk-through of the Presenters Manual

Welcome Where are we; (45 min)

How did we get here?; (30 min.)

A New Story (20 min)

Milling exercise (25 min.) and LB

12:30 pm Set up preparation for 5 minute presentation during 2 hour lunch break.


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LUNCH (120 min)

2:30 pm 2-minute shares

Whats Possible (25 min.)

Where do we go from here (35 min.)

Getting into Action (20 min.)

Close (20 min.)

4:15 pm D. Creating & Holding the Space (15-20 min)

5pm E. Presentation of 5-minute sections of Symposium (45-60 min)

6:30 pm DINNER (50-60 min)

7:30 pm Evening Session: Rock-Reading


Sunday

IV. Grounding Vision into Action!

Intention: To be empowered in expression of the purpose as facilitators andcommunity leaders and to be clear what it takes to stay in the game. To see thepossibility of our participation in the emergent movement


8:45 am Movement


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9 am A. Opening (20 min)

9:20 am 2-minute shares

9:40 am B. Spiritual Fulfillment & Blessed Unrest As Change Agents (25 min)

9:55 am C. Next Steps & Resources to Support You including Licensing etc. (45min)

BREAK (15 min)

11 am D. Goals and Vision Exercise (60 min)

12 pm Feedback on Visioning Exercise what calls to you? (30min)

LUNCH (45 min)

1:15 pm E. Conversations about the Symposium (30 min)

1:45 pm F. Finding Your Group Name (15 min)

2 pm H. Feedback forms (15 min)

2:15 pm H. Completion Ceremony (30 min)

2:45 pm Farewells, clean up and pack up.


4:30 pm Gather to celebrate

Detailed Flow of the Training:

Pre-Training Team Meeting

Team Meeting! Review checklist at end of Flow Document to see that all jobs are covered.


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! Have you learned how many people have not yet done a Symposium, andwho?

! Get clear on what training completion options will be offered to trainees andhow: 1) mentors or resource team, 2) formal Symposium run-through day,3) introduction to local Community Group(s) and opportunity to be onSymposium teams.

! Find out name of local indigenous people, to use in acknowledging sacredspace.

Production Team :

! Contact info corrected as people check in

! All payments completed in full, or arrangements made

! Purpose of Symposium on flip chart paper

! Community Bulletin Board set up

! Agenda on flip chart

! Someone trained to ring bells in a respectful way, as a timer.

Note to Leaders : Any words written below are intended to hold a place or toremind you of general content of the message to be communicatedas long as

you get the essential message across, please let your own words come to you in away that is authentic for you. When a message or idea is especially important, it is

printed in boldface type.

Friday

I. Welcome and Coming Present

Intention: For participants and team to enter a space of hospitality, belonging andconnection and to create the training with the possibility of excitement, anticipationand humor.


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(15 min)

I-A. Welcome and Overview today & 3 days

Delighted to be here, recognizing their commitment (or other positive lead-off)

moved by what you are already up to in your life.

Leaders introduce selves

Introduce Production and Training Team

Overview of 3 days timing; residential and non-residential so some comingand going; agenda on the wall for each day. Meal and break times are a bit fluid.

Overview of the Day

Logistics: bathroom, breaks, mobile phones off. Meals diets. Marie and

Frances; look after your well being and let us know if there is anything you need.Meal Roster for dishes.

NOTE: Welcome to the students from Mill Park cross generational value mixamong adults.

(10 min)

I-B. Acknowledge Sacred Space Acknowledge Sacred Space

Major points, covered in whatever way is right for you:

1) let go of anything tugging at your attention,

2) come present,

3) consciously connect with each other and why you are here,

4) give thanks for any spirit or guide that assists us.

Have everyone come forward at one time, and mindfully place object on altar insilence. Invite each person to say their name, where from, what gives them joy inone sentence.


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(15 minutes plus 2-1/2 min. per pairfor 30 people, about 55 minutes )

I-C. Participants Introduce Each Other to the Group

SET UP PROCESS ( Ensure individuals have opportunity to express whole ):

! Ask each person to pair up with someone they dont know, five minutes tointerview the other person (10 minutes total), bells will ring at switch time.Be creative in questions, including What drew you to be here today? Take notes, or not. Try to get at the essence of the person.

! Find something you have in common, tell us about it when youintroduce that person.

! Then come up in pairs, one minute to introduce the other person. Try to giveus the essence.

! Set up with brief intro to relational presence.

! Suggestion re bell timing: 1) one soft ring when 10 seconds to go, 2) onering at one minute, 3) one ring every 10 seconds afterwards (so it is theirchoice if they go over, but it is publicly acknowledgedthis keeps theboundary in a consistent way).

! When begin introductions: explain context for keeping time, how bell willwork. Purpose of time boundaries:

! to make weekend work for everyone, in the limited time wehave

! learn how to stay within time boundaries

! sometimes more magic comes out in a limited time!

GROUP SHARE: What was that like for you?

(10 minutes)

I-D. Whos Here & How To Be Here

Acknowledge breadth & depth of experience & wisdom here


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Today, not about being leader or being seen that wont work for everyone, in thetime weve got.

Request & recommend: be a sponge, empty vessel, to engage with curiosity, to getthe most out of today. May be hard for some!

Guidelines:

! Self-manage time, return from breaks on time (well ask for volunteers to ring belland get us back in seats); focus your shares.

! Focused listening is powerful, too

! Step-forward, step-back suggestion (if you find that you are sharing or talkingmore than others, step back; if you find youre sharing or talking less than others,step forward.)

! Request permission to give them the please focus sign (hands pointed down,tips of fingers touching)and production team may give it to us occasionally!

! Ways to acknowledge others rather than clapping: American sign language forclapping, Namaste with hands, hand on heart and bow of head

! Dont have to stay seatedfree to get up and move, stretchtake care ofyourself & your body! If you feel the need for movement in the group, check insideto see if it is the right time to suggest, and, if it is, suggest it!

! Who loves movement? Are there some volunteers who would be ready to lead usin 2-3 minutes of group movement when we need it? (Write down to use in future,or meet with them at break to explain more)

OPTIONAL: Invite the Movement Team to prepare 10-15 minutes of movement thatwill start the day on the second day. ( Suggestion : coach them to come up withexercises that generate energy and have the group connect as a single unitforinstance, less free-form individual dance movement, and more

relating/connecting/laughing together)

(10 minutes)


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I-E. Completion of the Space of the Preparation Assignment

Purpose of the Preparation Assignment: to begin (or continue & go deeper with)the process of educating yourself in areas covered by the Symposium

NOTE: Presence the various aspects of the Prep Ax eg BIS, Resources,communities, conversations, Articles, Date of Symposium.

Good news: no matter how much of it you did, you all get an A! (Note: this isimportant so that what follows does not sound like it is about checking up onthem.)

So now thats established, we can acknowledge where we are and go forward:

How many feel they did all or nearly all of it? Great!

How many feel they did most of it? Wonderful!

How many did a good chunk, but less than half? Great!

How many did just a little or dont know what were talking about? OK, good!

It continues to be relevantyou can continue to read these articles, and othersmake the continuing process of educating yourself a natural part of being aFacilitator.

DISCUSSION: Any part of Preparation Assignment you really enjoyed and found of

particular value, want to tell others about? Especially any of the articles youd like torecommend? What did you learn?

2-minute shares throughout the 3 days.

(15-20 minutes) 11:20 am

BREAK (OPTION: get agreement to come back on time, self-manageturn bell

over to one of participants and give them job of supporting everyone in being backon time).


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II. Framing the inquiry: The context and state of being of our workas Community Leaders and Facilitators.

Intention: To acknowledge the call of Pachamama in us all and for each of us to

experience a deeper connection to bringing forth an Environmentally Sustainable,Spiritually Fulfilling and Socially Just human presence on earth.

(15 minutes)

II-A Background of The Pachamama Alliance & The Symposium

TRANSITION: In designing this Training, we realized there are three differentaspects to this role of being a communicator (whether you are a Facilitator orcommunity leader) who helps bring forth a New Dream using elements of this tool

called The Symposium: those aspects are Knowing, Being, and Doing.

Knowing is the information or content neededwhat you know with your head orintellect.

Being is who you are, the spirit and awareness that you come from when youfulfill that role.

Doing is the ability to bring it all together and make it all work together, to make ithappen .

In our culture, we often think that knowing comes first, we assume thats what it isreally about. But actually being is more important, and comes firstbecause itchanges the way you relate to everything, it actually changes the effect of what yousay. So well spend today on being, tomorrow we focus on knowing, and onSunday doing.

TELL STORY:

PACHAMAMA ALLIANCE & THE SYMPOSIUMTHE STORY OF THE CALL

Purpose of this Section : For participants to experience that they are being invitedinto a call that comes not only from indigenous people, but from the Earth itself, andto

see that this call is at the heart of the Symposium; to understand what this


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work is about, and informed by, something greater than ourselves.

NOTE: The point of telling this story is that it often plants seeds or evokes

something deep within the participants. So tell it with a sense that this issomething that can spark the imagination, can possibly spark their own senseof purpose or calling.

In early 1990s , there was a culture in a large section of the Amazonianrainforest of Ecuadorand that culture was known as the Achuar (ahh-chwar). At that time, they had had very little contact with the modern world, justa few missionaries, and their area of the rainforest had almost nodevelopmentnot a single road.

They are a dream-based culture each morning, the families in this cultureget up about 4:00 a.m. and gather in a circle , and everyone describes whatthey dreamed the night before. Then the elders of the family interpret thedreams and decide what the family should do that day, based on what theirdreams told them.

In the early 1990s, the elders of the Achuar were getting numerous dreamstelling them that something very destructive was coming their way andthat, if they did nothing, their culture would not survive. But their dreamstold them that, if they could find well-meaning people in the modern world to advise them, they could choose to engage with the modern world on their

terms--and then they would prevail . So the Achuar sent out the message that they were looking for well-meaning

allies in the modern world, through a man named Daniel Cooperman who wasone of the few people who had regular contact with the Achuar.

Daniel was a friend of John Perkins (who wrote Confessions of an Economic HitMa n) and contacted John about the Achuar. So John Perkins put together agroup of 12 people to go and meet with the Achuar in the middle of theirterritory, in a remote landing strip in the jungle.

John invited Bill and Lynne Twist, who had no previous contact with rainforestissues or with indigenous people (although Lynne had been having somevisions of the face of an indigenous man). They probably didnt know what theywere getting intoin fact, Bill has said that he went along thinking that it wouldat least give him some great stories to tell at cocktail parties.


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They all flew into the middle of Achuar territory and met with the elders andleaders for a week. Once they heard what the Achuar had to say, theyimmediately knew on an intuitive level that this was what the rest of their liveswould be about. It was totally transformative for them to hear this call from the

Achuarwhat they decided eventually resulted in the formation of ThePachamama Alliance.

At a later meeting with the Achuar elders, some of the elders also told them,Thank you for agreeing to work with us to save the rainforest and save ourculturebut if you really want to do these things, your most important work isback where you come from. You need to change the dream of the North,change the dream of your culture. The implied meaning was that the dream ofyour culture is what is driving the destruction of this rainforest.

The Twists took this message seriously from the beginning, and it appears as

one of the two parts of the Mission Statement of the Pachamama Alliance:

! 1) To preserve the Earths tropical rainforests by empowering theindigenous people who are its natural custodians, and

! 2) To contribute to the emergence of a new global vision ofequity and sustainability for all.

(Say the following with a sense that words can cause magical things to happenfor othersand they can! ) And heres maybe the most important part of thisstory, for you: in some ways it could be said this wasnt just a Call from

the Achuar, but from the Rainforestand ultimately from the Earth itself.And it wasnt just a call to Bill and Lynne Twist, but to anyone who hearsthat calland that includes you. Perhaps your being here today is yourresponse to this call, as well.

And heres another interesting part of this story: the message that came to the Achuar was that a great danger was coming toward them, and if they continuedliving the same way they were, their culture was in danger; but that if they hadthe courage to go forward and face the danger, and change the way they lived,consciously, they would prevail. In a paradoxical way, that is the samemessage that is coming to our culture today: a great danger is coming towardsus, and if we go on living the same way, our culture will perish. But if we can goforward to face the danger and consciously change the way we live, we canprevail.


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The Creation of the Symposium:

Even though they had that second part of the Mission Statement, the Board ofPachamama didnt know what to do about that part until after the election of2004, when Bill Twist, in particular, was stunned that the environmental crisisplayed so little a role in the election. He decided that The Pachamama Alliancehad to do something, even it it wasnt clear what needed to be done, even if itwas a mistake. What resulted was the Symposium.

The Symposium was composed from hundreds of people giving input, not acreation of one person: truly a product of group mind or collective wisdom.

Important goal of today: that you get some sense of that collectivewisdom and truly begin to find it or take it within yourself in yourrelationship with the Symposium, so that any changes you make to the

Symposium in the future are not guided by a personal agenda but ratherby a further expression of that collective wisdom that created it in the firstplace. You are free to make changes after youve tried it the way it iswritten 2-3 timeswe only ask that you do the best you can to make sureall changes are guided by that spirit of collective wisdom, and that you tellus what works!

First Symposium in April 2005, has gone through several major changes basedon thousands of inputs: from seven hours delivered by presenters with somevideo (S-1), to a flexible-length approach (C-1), to a version with most of thecontent delivered by powerful video modules and the facilitator free to focus on

processes & exercises (V-1), to the next version that will be truly world-wideinstead of Americo-centric (V-2).

In six years, about 3000 trained Facilitators in U.S., Canada, Mexico,Guatemala, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, U.K., Ireland, Belgium, France, Spain,Russia, South Africa, Ghana, Japan, Korea, China, Malaysia, India, Australia,New Zealand,and growing. Delivered to at least 100,000 people, probablymany more.

Dot Green heard about the Symposium in 2006 and felt called to bring it to Australia. Dot was part of Gaia Vic and then met Josie, and Michael from BeThe Change who had heard about the Symposium in the UK. A decision wasmade later in 2006 to have Be The Change be the auspicing body for theSymposium in Australia.


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Awakening the Dreamer has been in Australia 2006. With our first trainedfacilitators in Jan 2006 This is the 14th Australian training and there are over 300trained facilitators across Australia.

The meaning of the word Symposium and why it was chosen:

The term symposium was chosen because it evokes arriving at an agreed-upon deep truth by having a shared discussion provoked by questionsspecifically, the model of Socrates in ancient Greece, engaging in a discussionwith often ordinary people and helping them become aware of a truth that wasalready inside them merely by asking pointed and well-chosen questionsusually on the subject of how to live life with awareness and integrity.

The power of Socrates model was that the discussion revealed to people that,

if they only stopped to look deeply, they already had within them the knowledgethat they needed and that well-guided discussions could help diverse people,with different points of view, to arrive at commonly-accepted wisdomsometimes to their surprise, because they hadnt realized how common sense itwas. You can look at Platos The Symposium about some of the discussionsthat Socrates led, to see this demonstrated.

o --Symposiums in ancient Greece were often wine parties. The wordcombines sym (meaning together with) with a root of the word thatmeans to drink.

o Some people argue that Symposium is not a good name, because noone knows what to expect. We tend to think that is a positive factorifnothing else, it makes people wonder what it is, rather than assume theyknow what it means, and asking what it is can lead to a deeperconversation than if they thought they knew what it was. Seminardoesnt work, nor does class.

End with something like this: And it wasnt just a call from the Achuar, butfrom the rainforest, and ultimately from Life itself. And it wasnt a call to Billand Lynne Twist, but to everyone who can hear itin fact, it is possible thatyour being here today is your response to that Call.


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The Symposium was composed from hundreds of people giving input, not acreation of one person: truly a product of group mind or collective wisdom.

Important goal of today: that you get some sense of that collective wisdomand truly begin to find it or take it within yourself in your relationship with theSymposium, so that any changes you make to the Symposium in the futureare not guided by a personal agenda but rather by a further expression ofthat collective wisdom that created it in the first place.

You are free to make changes after youve tried it the way it is written 2-3timeswe only ask that you do the best you can to make sure all changesare guided by that spirit of collective wisdom, and that you tell us whatworks!

The symposium can also be thought of as a verb, rather than a noun. As a verb itis a conversation with a diversity of people where we explore common truths andaction. Lynne Twist describes leading the symposium as a shamanic experiencethat cleanses us each time we engage with it. This is possibly something to do thebirth and intention of the symposium.

o What we discover is when Symposiums happen, community is created.

(25 minutes)

II-B. The Context of Our Work

NOTE: Please consult the training video The Context of Our Work. You are free toshow this video in the training, or to use it as a source for your own presentation onthe context of our work. Have them consider the following:

This work is not just about putting on Symposiums , but about creating, bywhatever means we can, a cadre of awake, informed, grounded in optimism,possibility-generating people who see all aspects of our current crisis, but also see

that the possibilities outweigh the crisis. This is the work stimulated by theSymposium: creating that groundswell of people with that grounded optimism thatwill open a new possibility in this crisis. Find your role - what ever it is!


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(40 min)

II- C. Honoring our Ancestors / Descendants Exercise

(Might also consider who are you exercise from Joanna Macey)

Honouring Ancestors and Descendants Exercise

[Note to presenters: Take your time with this exercise; its not one to rush. Put in plenty of pauses, give people time to get into their bodies, into their imagination.]

Were going to move into a time of quiet internal reflection now. Please stand up you can leave all your stuff under your chair and find a place anywhere in theroom [If the weather is good and there is space outside where there wont bedistractions, its good to do this outside in nature.]

Lets all face the same direction [I suggest to the west, the direction of the settingsun] . Standing with feet shoulder width apart, feel your connection with theearth " . knees are soft " imagine a thread from the centre of the top of your head,supporting you, keeping your spine upright and connecting you to the sky,everything else is hanging from your spine your shoulders, your arms, yourribcage. And breathe into your centre, feel the cool air entering through your nose,and the warm air exiting through your mouth. Breathe in " let it out with a sigh, andagain.

Now open your arms a little to the side, with your palms out and open facingforward. Even though your eyes are closed, look straight ahead through your

eyelids.

Imagine your mother and father, or other elders that have been or continue to besignificant in your life, in front of you, looking at you with all their love and support.Behind them, their parents or elders in their lives, looking at you as though you arethe fulfillment of their dreams. And again behind them, their parents, and so on forcountless generations, all looking towards you as though you are the culmination ofwhat their lives were lived for. You stand on their shoulders. Their hopes live inyou.

Feel their blessings, receive them, take them in.

[Pause]


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PRODUCTION: Pass out Training Notebooks without the Basic Manual contentincluded. Handing out process reflective of circle energy

PROCESS & DISCUSSION:

NOTE: Invite participants to take in and embody what they are reading. (Practicebeing). Listen within whether this is yours to read. If more than one person reads ...then it is okay to do it together in sync

Read P & IR for the Training , popcorn style, open space for discussion.

--Possibility: Get the participants to take a moment and see what their intention isfor this training, and write it in their Notebook.

LEAD: orient them briefly to the rest of the Training Notebook. Highlight, inparticular, the Resources section.

(20 minutes)

II-E. What Moved You From Your First Symposium?

TRANSITION: Were moving now into talking about the Symposium, the spiritbehind it, and who we are when we are part of bringing one into existence (inwhatever role), where are we are coming from.

CLOSED EYE PROCESS: Go back to the Symposium you attended. During theSymposium, or maybe afterward, things must have happened that moved you, thatwere aha moments for youor you wouldnt be here now. What were they?Spend a few moments remembering them, feeling them inside you, and in a minutelets open our eyes and talk about what those moments were (are).

DISCUSSION: What moved you or stuck with you from your firstSymposium? What did you experience as the turning points? Possible:Start out in A/B/C triads, then join into one group.


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--One of the points of this discussion: you may think that there are just one or twoturning points in the Symposium (the one you experienced), so you might feelsome pressure to make sure that you get those one or two sections right. Butthere are actually multiple dozens of turning points, which takes the pressure off a

bit! (Recognition of inner turning points/ transformations, process, refine, embodythe call - one reason the Symposium works is that it speaks to something alreadydeep within us)

(15 minutes)

II-F. Purpose & Intended Results For The Symposium

PROCESS & DISCUSSION:

NOTE: Invite participants to take in and embody what they are reading. (Practicebeing).

Read the P & IR for the Symposium popcorn style from the Training Notebook,open space for discussion

(60 minutes)

NOTES TO OURSELVES DISCUSSION

PROCESS:

Point out by page number the Notes To Ourselves document in TrainingNotebook, explain numbering system ( designed so that no one would assumetheir was any hierarchy of importance to these ).

Explain what they are: for the group of 6-8 designing the Symposium, as theycollaborated with a variety of leading thinkers, these were concepts they thoughtwere important to remember as they designed the Symposium. Authors: Tracy

Apple and Jon Love, supplemented by talks with Drew Dellinger, Paul Hawken andVan Jones and touchstone conversations with Bill Twist. (Point out where in the

document). They could be considered design principles of the Symposiumand it isimportant to understand and embody these as we facilitate and manifest thepurpose of the Symposiums through our events or conversations.


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INSTRUCTIONS:

Please get into groups (ideal: about 5-8 persons in each group), giving each

group a section of the notes to reflect upondoesnt matter if some groups share1-2 notes in common. NOTE: Dont assign the Conversations from EcuadorNotesthey will be used later.

Assignment: 1) read together all of the notes in the section your group has beengiven, 2) discuss among yourselves why they may be important, 3) by somemeans, come up with a way that you can share with the others in this trainingwhich ones your group thinks are really important.

After about 20 minutes, well come back into one group and each group willReport. Well ring a five-minute warning bell.

DISCUSSION: Each group reports to rest of group (in any way theyd like),encouraging discussion & grappling.

Note : This Notes to Ourselves conversation is potentially one the richest parts ofthe training. It is where participants get some of the fundamental differencesbetween the Symposium and other programs and how they need to be tocommunicate that difference to participant s. Please be open to seeingtransformative moments in this conversation; open a space for it to be all that it canbe.

BREAK (15 min)

(40 minutes)

2-minutes shares

Taking The Flow of The Symposium Into Yourself

TRANSITION: Now beginning to enter the knowing part of the training (being isstill in the space, but knowing now becomes the major focus for the rest of today).

INTRODUCTION TO THE PROCESS:


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! Symposium isnt about merely communicating information, but aboutcreating a transformational experience for all of us: participants and team,so that we relate to the information in new and more powerful ways.

! What makes an experience transformational is that the program guidesparticipants into spaces of being and a particular way of seeing the worldand their role in it. The Symposium is designed to guide the participantsthrough those spaces in a carefully designed orderand it seems towork!

! We understand that some of you may not want to facilitate symposiums and if you want to work with the material and distinctions of the Symposium it isimportant to understand and get a feel for the flow - if we generate fromwithin.

! Symposium as story (additional information GenUp theory of change)

! You need to know what those intentions or spaces of being of aSymposium are, what order they come in, and how they relate to eachother, and have it thoroughly in your consciousnessfor severalreasons :

! Being clear about what the intention is for you and the team makes itmore likely that the intention will be realized. (Distinguish the powerof intention)

! Knowing the intention of each section gives you a basis to decide

what to say or do (or what path to follow) at any given moment: yousimply ask yourself what choice supports the intention of thatparticular section

! And knowing the flow of the intentions of the sections allows you tore-create the spaces of a Symposium in different formats (forinstance, give someone a Symposium experience in ten minuteswhile you sit beside them on a plane ride, if that is the only chanceyou will have!)

Thats the purpose of this process we are about to do, to help you take the flow ofspaces of the Symposium deeply and strongly into your own awareness, so youreally get it and can re-create it for yourself and others, in a variety ofcircumstances.


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SET UP THE PROCESS:

! Point out the Intentions of the Sections of the Symposium document intheir Training Notebook.

! OPTION: Have eight volunteers line up across the front of the room, andread the eight intentions from left to right (from the participants perspective)to physically manifest the flow. OR: Invite them to stand up, popcorn style,and read (in order) the Purpose of the Symposium and then eachintentionone person takes one intention, then another person takes thenext oneand to read them as words of power, because they do havepower. Pause a moment in between each, to let it sink in.

! Now have a discussion where the group goes through each the intentions inorder (dont bother with the Purpose of the Symposium), ask them to callout loud what they see as the key words within each intention, and eachperson underline those key ideas in his/her Training Notebook (thesenotes will help them get what they should be sure to mention when theyput that intention into their own words, later). If the group fails to mentionany key words, you can mention them in the group conversation yourself.

! Then, invite one person to stand up and say the Intention of theWelcome/Intro Section , more or less in their own words, looking at theirnotes as needed to see the key words they underlined. Repeat this foreach section of V-2, with a different person for each section. Acknowledgeeach person, and acknowledge them as a group when they finish.

! Then invite all participants to break into groups of three persons .

! Each person of the three will go through all of the Intentions in order ,telling the other two persons what the intention of all the sections is, inorder, referring to the written version as needed. Again, try to come frominside yourself , not just from your head-awareness. Focused listening also helps your partners!

! Each individual person completes the sequence of all of the Intentions inthis way to get the flow of all of them (before the second or third person

begin). Then go on to the second person, who does the same thing, thenthe third personeach person has a total of about five minutes to completetheir flow (a total of 15mins for the three people). Focus on the flow ofspaces, take that flow into yourself.


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! Keep track of the time & give them a bell at five minutes and at tenminutes. (Check how they are progressingyou may need to give themmore like 6-7 minutes for each person, particularly the first of the three).Giving them warning bells is important, because they can go way over in

time. Do not allow creations of groups of four (two groups of two is better)this will throw the timing off for everyone one.

DISCUSSION: What was that like for you? What did you learn?

--They will probably experience that the second and third persons did a better job,and you can reassure them that this is because group learning goes on betweenthe three of them.

(20-40 minutes)

RELATIONAL PRESENCE

SET-UP:

Have participants pair in A/B pairs, then explain Relational Presence:

Both persons sitting on same level, facing each other straight on, and as close asboth feel comfortable.

One person speaks from the heart, about things going on in real time,present time; begins with a deep breath, silence is OK (speaking from theheart will involve some silence), maintain eye contact and relational presencewith the listener at all times

The listener holds the speaker in complete loving acceptance,unconditional, also maintaining eye contact at all times

And listener does best they can to hold back on the little nods and smilesthat we often feel compelled to offer, as reassurance to someone that weapprove of them (these communications back the other way prevent theexperience from being complete listening).

If a real smile comes up, express it, but not a nervous, habitual smile


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Make it a truly one-way communication, complete listening, nothingcommunicated back from the listener except complete loving acceptance, andlistening.

First Part : Do one minute of mutual silence, both holding the other inRelational Presencebegin with a breath and end with a breath.

Second Part : Then one minute with one person speaking and the otherlistening. Begin with a breath and end with a breath.

Third Part : Switch roles for another minute of one person speaking and oneperson listening.

Fourth Part : Then two A/B pairs come together, all sitting on same level(and oriented as if they were at a bridge table). Each person does three minutes,with the other three people listening, all in Relational Presence, maintaining eye

contact with the speaker at all times. Rotate around the group, with the same timefor each.

After all have gone, open it up for a group discussion about what their experiencewas.

ANNOUNCE:

At end of the day on Sunday, youll have the chance to choose a group name.Begin to listen for it as we talk. Well post a flip chart page so you can list namesthat come to you. Before listing a possibility, we invite you to consider: listen within

yourself whether what you think of is really a possible name for the group, or just apersonal creationdoes it advance the group decision to add it to the list?

PRODUCTION TEAM:

- Correct group contact list if not done previously

- Commence taking photos of participants for website

- Post a flip chart page for possible group names.

Make sure Presenters Manual contents are collated with a cover sheet on eachcopy bearing the name of one person in the Training, with every participantcovered, and no extra copiesthey will be handed out tomorrow.


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6 pm DINNER (90 min)

(90 min) 7:30 pm to 9 pm

II-G. Opportunity Before us Re: Social (in) Justice (______)

AIM: To focus on Social Justice in such a way that it allows us to feel it inour bones and allow us to recognize that the pain we are feeling can be anexpression of our love and an avenue for positive healing action.

Context:

Social Justice is possibly the most difficult of the three strands of the Symposiumprocess. Because it is so big, there is a tendency to feel powerless and to wait forthings to become clearer.

The Symposium draws heavily on indigenous wisdom and experience and in thisexercise we will enter the world of indigenous Australians.

Bring an emotional presence to this activity.

Like most Social Justice we may know something but we dont know everything sothis is a journey of discovery together.

Instructions for activity:

(NOTE: It is helpful to have a presenter and guardian)

A. Form 4 groups (of about 5 people in each group so include team)

With respectful awareness we enter the indigenous Australian culture:


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KEY POINT: the pain we are feeling can be an expression of our love and an

avenue for positive healing action.

Generate a space that allows holding of this, perhaps talking about the spiritual practice that allows us to be fully present to the pain of others and to our own painthe fact that awareness is often the beginning of healing, in and of itself.Point to the connectedness that is possible in the following Relational Presenceexercise as a source of healing for many.

CLOSING: Ask them to pay attention to their dreams

Saturday

III. The Symposium and the Presenters ManualIntention: To familiarize participants with the Symposium material as a narrativeand experience its deep coherence and potential for transformation.


8:45 am Movement

(20 minutes)

OPENING :

# Welcome

# Any new people to introduce?

# Light the candle, remind about sacred space being open


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# Did anything come to anyone in dream space that might be a message forthe group? (Note: emphasize that you are asking only for dreams that mightbe a message for the groupyou are not asking just for interesting dreamsin general!)

# Anything that anyone needs to share, to feel complete about yesterday?

# Overview of the day

# Announce putting up a flip chart page for suggestions re: group name andresources

SET UP ROCK-READING, FORMS OF CREATIVITY

--General set-up: There is an exercise that we will be doing tonight after dinner thatis designed to allow us to access wisdom from the natural world. In preparation forthis exercise there are 2 things we invite you to do between now and this evening:

Part A: Finding their rock

! Come up with a question that you would like some guidance on. It should bea big, open-ended question. Examples: What needs to come forward in meto be most useful in the Great Turning?

! With your question in mind, go out for a quiet meditative work and look for arock, about grapefruit sized with multiple faces or planes not a smoothround river rock, Dont just take any rockwait for the one that you feel,This is my rock, for sure. Keep your question in mind as you make thisdecision.

2-minute shares

(25-30 minutes)

III-B. Presentation of the Manual, Orientation, Three Sentences

MANUAL PRESENTATION PROCESS:


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! Have stack of Manuals in front of the altar, stacked in alternate directions soeach set stands out easily, with one name on the cover of each copy. Makesure everyone in the training has a Manual in the stack, and that there areno extra Manuals.

! Ask people to come forward silently (all at once is OK), take one copy(checking to make sure that it does not have their own name on thecover ), then go and stand scattered around the room, be quiet and gowithin. Note : have them pick up their Manual first, before the guidedmeditation, so that the guided meditation flows directly into the ritual orpresentation (they go from a deep space into an intuitive space, with nologistics in between). And dont tell them that they will be presenting it tosomeone else, or they will start rehearsing it in their heads right away.

! Once all are in place, take them on a short guided meditation involving

things like ( fill in and change as authentic for you ):! What you are holding is a tool that can play a role in bringing forth a

sustainable, fulfilling, and just human presence on the planet.

! Like any tool, its effectiveness depends on the spirit and skill that itis used with.

! Take this tool and go present it, with your heart, to the person whosename appears on the cover , blessing this tool and them , that theymay use it to create a world that works for everyone, and in a waythat fulfills their purpose in life. Whatever words come to you arefine.

GROUP DISCUSSION: How was that for you? What did you experience?

ORIENTATION TO THE BASIC MANUAL:

Flip through main contents, explaining each in general terms (All they need issufficient understanding to find their 3 Sentences, belowso point out thedifference between words spoken by the presenter, words on the video, processes,

non-spoken instructions to the presenter, etc.)

Explain color coding for the Manual


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Suggestion: Ahead of time, find 2-3 consecutive pages in the Manual that illustratethe major color codes, so you can show them real examples.

THREE SENTENCES EXERCISE

Set Up: Have them go off by themselves and find one small section - one, two orthree sentences at the most - of the Symposium that move them (thats 1-3sentences that are together!), and that they can deliver to the rest of the group. Canbe either words spoken by the facilitator, or in a video module. This is about theirhaving a direct experience of a small portion of the manual coming through them,so it doesnt matter whether it is in a video module or not (in fact, the words of thevideo modules may come through them more easily). Take about five minutes tofind the 1-3 sentences and prepare themeither read them, take them into yourselfand say in your own words (looking at the Manual or not), memorize, or whateverworks for you.

! Option A: Have them go up in groups of 3-6 before the rest of thegroup and each person simply steps forward and delivers their 1-3sentences.

! Option B: Group stands in a circle, and each person in turn stepsforward and delivers his/her 1-3 sentences to the circle.

! GROUP DISCUSSION: What was that like for you?

(150 minutes)

III-C. Walk-Through of the Manual

ESTABLISH CONTEXT:

! You will not master this Manual today in fact, you wont really learn ituntil youve done at least three or four Symposiums.

! But what is important is that, at the end of the day , you feel a basicunderstanding of how it works and why it is designed the way it is abasic comfort with what kind of a tool it is and how you might be able toincrease your skill with it in the future.


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! It is kind of like one of those bus tours of in a big city that just points outthe major landmarks and streets to you, so that you can find your waythere and come back and look at each monument in detail later. This is amajor landmark kind of tour .

! Then, youll learn the details about how to use the Manual from practice and experience : working with your team, with your communitygroup, and/or by doing your own Symposiums.

WALK-THROUGH ( Notes for Training Leaders ):

! Walk through each section of the Symposium in order. Possibility: ask themto hold questions until the end of each section (or at a logical breaking pointinside the section?), since they may find their questions are answered.

! Start each section by having someone read the intention of thatsection.

! If the DVD player will allow it, play the first and last minute of each videomodule (this is usually possible on computers). And, with this option, youcan move the cursor slowly along the timeline for the video, so that thecontents of the video get flashed up on screen, like a quick review of thecontents. If you dont have this capability choose 1-2 sections to play just toget the energy of the video modules into the training space. Playing allvideos takes about 90 minutes, so you can only do a few in full.

! Give them a basic orientation to how the DVD is set up and operates,as you go through parts of the Modulesit comes naturally here (orgive them a separate orientation Sunday morning).

! Dont get bogged down in detailsfocus on broader topics such as:

! Reminding trainees where participants will be emotionally.

! Point out transitions in the spaces of the Symposium.

! Point out delicate balancing points, where the Facilitator has to strike a

fine balance between two extremes in order to maintain the desiredtone.

! Places to be cautious.


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! Tips on how to set up processes and discussions, as time allows.

! Tips on how to hold the space.

! NOTE: Please do the best you can to honor all roles in Symposium

facilitation, host & producer & alliance builder, etc.

! Caution : As a leader of the Training, there is a temptation to tell theparticipants things that you love to do in a Symposium that are differentfrom the Manual please resist this temptation as much as you can! Itwill only confuse them, at a time they need to learn trust in the Manual!

! Deal with common fears, like the fear that participants will ask hostilequestions. Or explain how to work from your own notes, rather than betied to the exact words in the Manual.

!

Reassurance is key--the tone you want to create for the trainees is,Hey, you can do thisyouve got a great tool that sets you up perfectly,and youll gradually learn how to use it with a team or with your mentoror community group, and youll find it is SO much easier and more funthan you might think now!

A. Welcome & Introduction (Allow about 25 minutes)

! The Symposium is designed to be a transformative journey, to give people adifferent relationship to whats happening on the planet and in their lives. Atransformative journey is a journey through certain spaces or energies that youas the Facilitator are holding for the people in the room.

! As a Facilitator, you are carrying (embodying) from the very beginning the placewhere the journey is designed to have them end up! [Youre embodying thespace of a change agent in Blessed Unrest]

Remember: the Symposium is not designed to convince anyone, to make surethey end up in a particular place, to cajole them into taking action, to scarethem. It is an invitation. Your job is to extend that invitation in the most graciousway you can, without being attached to the result.

You need to embody (not report on) Purpose of Symposium. That provides ananchor for people as they go through Where Are We? It demonstrates thatwere not here to show you the bad news.


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We start with welcome, an introduction, a framing of where it came from; itstarts with a story (the story of The Pachamama Alliance). In the welcomemessage, it is to make people anticipate with excitement the journey ahead.

Critical to that is presencing of the purpose, the statement of possibility, thedeclaration of possibility that you as Facilitator will stand in for the rest of theSym. So when you say the Purpose you want to be generating it throughout theSymposium, so participants will trust you, that you know thats where theSymposium is headed.

This section takes much longer than you would think, because general issues getcovered.

Possible points to cover in this section (with paragraph numbers, where applicable):

Know the people you are talking to.

W.4: Note that here you tell them that you are a volunteer, and that you arenot holding yourself out as an expert. These are two important disclaimers.

W.7: You are free to adapt the acknowledgment of sacred space to youraudience. For instance, in a church you might invite the minister toacknowledge sacred space, or in a Buddhist group you might have a shortmeditation.

W.8: Introduction Exercise: if the Symposium is small enough (e.g., a livingroom Symposium)let every individual speak. People have a fundamentalneed to be seen

W.9: Note that you are announcing that the Symposium is starting with thisparagraph. This is to avoid the implied message that they Symposium doesnot really begin until Where Are We?which might seem like a verydelayed start, if that were the real beginning.

W.15: This begins an important series of disclaimersthe first being that wedont think we have the answers, and wont be telling them what to do at the

end, but will empower them to make their own choices. W.16: The second disclaimer is that the Symposium is not a debate.


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W.17: The third disclaimer (or request) is that they hold their questions andspeak to the presenters at the break. This is very importantwithout beingclear about this request, you run the risk of your Symposium going off ontangents.

W.18: Dont hold the call as a story just about Bill and Lynne Twistit is acall to everyone, from the heart of the rainforest or maybe the heart of theUniverse.

B. Where Are We? (Allow about 25 minutes)

You are a tour guide, pointing things out. Space of observation, notconvincing. (Background References available if someone wants to checkthe facts.)

Can be hard to judge the impact of the process and videos just by watchingthe space. Often theres a deeper impact than can be observed.

Allow moments of pause between segments. Dont be afraid of pauses orsilence.

Create a space that allows for any kind of response to Where Are We?

Encourage people to feel their responses, to feel their bodies.

This section is not the bad newsdont hold it that way or present it thatway; its the news.

Possible points to cover in this section:

1.2: This paragraph is an example of holding the pole of doubt (thepractice of addressing some objections or doubts that some participantsmight be holding directly, before they are even spoken, so that theparticipants can know you understand and are respectful of theirdoubt which helps them to release their doubts and truly listen )

1.2: Option of having a copy of the Background References in the back,to reassure them that we are transparent about our sources .


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1.3: This is a very important holding the pole of doubtletting themknow that you recognize that they may be familiar with the information,but that your purpose is not necessarily to tell them new information, butto give them a different way to relate to the information . So you invite

them to let it in with their hearts, as if it were the first time they werehearing it. The response of I already knew all this information is one ofthe most common negative responses to the Symposium, and beingreally clear with this message prevents that reaction from being sostrong.

1.5: It is very important to pay attention to the energy in the room throughout the Symposium, but especially after each of the three videomodules in Where Are We?. The decision you have after the first andsecond videos is a little tricky: People are feeling deep emotions, andyou dont want to pass over that reality, but you dont want tonecessarily invite them to go as deeply as they could into their feelingsafter the first and second videos, because more emotional content isahead after each of these videos as well, and your goal is to have theend of the Where Are We? be where they reach the mostemotional depth . So note that there are several options after the firstand second videos: a) just a brief pause to let them take a deep breathand be with their emotions, b) an invitation to close their eyes for aminute and notice their feelings in silence, and c) a three-minute sharewith a person beside them. You can choose just (a), just (b), or (b) plus(c). You have a similar choice after the Social Justice video. Calibratethis to what your audience needs.

It is tricky to balance neutrality with urgency in this section, andthroughout. Try to deliver it and/or hold the space in a straightforwardway, not adding any emotional significance or urgency it has itsown.

At the same time, you dont want to make it about your emotions, orimpose them on others. When you get significant or dwell on youremotions, there is a subtle implication that others should be feeling thesame way as much as possible find a balanced, wise and deep placein yourself to present the material of the Symposium.


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If you begin to get emotional, one good way to be authentic but not let itoverwhelm you is to simply pause, take a breath (which will re-groundyou), and move on when you are ready.

A good hint for the production team: dont assume that everyoneneeds/wants a tissue thrown at themsome people do not respond withsadness or tears, and we shouldnt assume they will cry by tooassertively offering tissues.

C. How Did We Get Here? (Allow about 20 minutes)

Usually theres a tendency to want to jump into action when people see

something wrong; in the Symposium we stop and examine how it cameto be, what are the root causes.

So looking at the set of assumptions that goes into this worldview is whatallows people to feel powerful: if you know where something came from, ifyou can see it arising, you have some power with it. Its not a mystery toyou. How Did We Get Here? allows people to begin to investigate whatis driving the behavior.

Theres a tendency to step on the videos, and to explain theUnexamined Assumptions. Let the video do its work; then answer any

questions that may arise.

Remember we are looking at the set of assumptions that go into creatingour worldview. Highlight that these UA are woven into stories that are beingtold to us, bombarding us, pretending to be reality.

What is valuable here is that people discover and practice a capacitythey have for discerning examination and inquiry.

Possible points to cover for this section2.3: This slide summarizes theunexamined assumptions that were shown in the video. Sometimesparticipants didnt quite understand that they were seeing examples ofUE in the video, or what they were, so this slide helps you point that outto them.


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2.3: In this paragraph you supply some additional examples ofunexamined assumptions (participants often dont quite understand thisconcept, just from the video examples). Because it is so easy to identifyones that seem to be mostly environmental in their consequences,

make sure you are prepared to give some examples that seem to occurmostly in the Social Justice or Spiritual Fulfillment areas (See Notes forPresenters on this subject).

2.5: Youll probably find that this exercise marks a shift in the energy ofthe Symposium, because they are finally getting a chance to talk, and tobegin to find positive ways to respond to the Where Are We? section.The energy gets much more positive all of a sudden. Dont leave thisone out.

2.5 (second point): It is important that you be clear in your instructions

that these groups are looking for the unexamined assumptions of ourculture that create the unintended consequences that werediscussed in the Where Are We? section . The point of the exerciseis to get at the root causes of these unintended consequences, not justto examine the full range of unexamined assumptions in our culture.Without this clarity, people often come up with UEs that dont reallyserve the purpose of this process.

2.7: Note that this process/exercise (in either alternate form) is the oneexercise in the Symposium where we actually demonstrate (or allowthem to experience) that the three areas (environmental, social justiceand spiritual fulfillment) are deeply interconnected. The point of theexercise is for them to have a discussion about itthere is no rightanswer to it. So avoid communicating that you expected them to reachthe conclusion that all the UEs have their consequences between thethree areas. They may conclude this, or they may not. But they at leastget the point, even if it is not equally true of all UEs.

2.10: Up until now, this section of the Symposium has focused onbecoming aware of our cultural unexamined assumptions throughdiscussion, analysis and brainstorming. This section points out that

there is another way to realize what our cultural unexaminedassumptions are, and that is to try to understand that other cultureshave other sets of assumptions, different from ourswhich shows thatour UEs are not universally true.


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HDWGH ends with separateness, the fundamental unexaminedassumption that the Symposium posits underlies all the others.

If your training participants get into a kind of guilt about how wrong anddestructive our modern world view is, it may be important toacknowledge that separateness and objectifying the world worked wellup to a point, producing technology, medical progress, globalcommunication, etc. But science is beginning to head in anotherdirection, and the problems with the old view have been revealed. Thatswhy we have the opportunity to create something new, that will benefitfrom the best of both.

D. A New Story

Allow about 5 minutes if you dont actually do the Milling Exercise [which canbe a great break in the energy of the Walk-Through] and 20-25 minutes if youdo it)

The point of A New Story is a bridge to begin to evoke a deep sense ofmystery about this new way of being in the world of connectedness, thisnew worldview. It shifts peoples ability to go into the possibility section.

Its about an awakening sense of kinship and connectedness that BrianSwimme talks about, and its about love. We love what were connectedto.

NS is done in a way that not everyone will relate to. Its not a slam dunk foreveryone.

Possible points to discuss in this section:

N.3: You are saying something important here: that you are not tellingparticipants that this is story true, or that they have to believe it, but

just that it is a new story that is beginning to shape consciousness onthe planet. And that modern science and the indigenous world agree onthe fundamental conclusion of this story: that we are all profoundlyinterconnected.


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NS.4: At this point in a training, it is common for participants to expresstheir fears/concerns that religious fundamentalists (of any of severalreligions) who attend the Symposium will challenge them at this point, orbe offended. The main message is: it has rarely happened, but, if it does

happen, the disclaimer in N.3 is one important response. There is also aDiffering Stories option in the gray box under NS.4 that may be usefulin responding to this.

General Advice: On the rare times that a participant in a Symposiummight challenge you, the most important thing to remember is to findsome way to authentically acknowledge the validity of their concern and their viewpoint, and not to engage them directly, but instead togenuinely and openheartedly invite them to discuss it with you at thenext break.

Milling Exercise: This exercise is potentially one of the most movingexperiences of the Symposium, for many people. At its best, it createsthe possibility of a direct and immediate experience of their movingalmost instantaneously from an experience of painful separation fromothers, to an experience of profound interconnectedness with a personwho was probably a stranger before. It is one of the most embodiedexercises in the Symposiumit offers an insight that people get intheir bodies. It is poetry, and has to be read with the spaciousnessand heart that you would read a poem that moves you deeply to

someone you love the words are potentially transformational forpeople. Please rehearse it with others as many times as possible, andlearn how to create a transformational space with it.

Many facilitators feel that the Milling Exercise is most powerful at theend of Where Are We? because it starts with separation and movesinto interconnectedness. Others feel that its message ofinterconnectedness is most powerful right after the similar message inA New Story, and that the interconnection is a wonderful lead-in toWhat is Possible For the Future? It probably works either place youwould like to do it.


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Set Up Five Minute Presentations for Second Day : Ask them to prepare a four-to-five-minute section of the Symposium (one spoken by the live presenter, not avideo module) to deliver from their notes, using the Manual as they need to, todeliver in small groups (just about 5-6 people) this afternoon. They can work in

teams of two or more, to make it more like a real Symposium. Explain that, if theychoose a section that has a video or a group process in the middle of it, they willact like the video or the group process includes immediately.

Reminder re Finding their rock

! Come up with a question that you would like some guidance on. It should bea big, open-ended question. Examples: What needs to come forward in meto be most useful in the Great Turning?

! With your question in mind, go out for a quiet meditative work and look for arock, about grapefruit sized with multiple faces or planes not a smoothround river rock, Dont just take any rockwait for the one that you feel,This is my rock, for sure. Keep your question in mind as you make thisdecision.

Lunch Break: in middle of Walk-through (120 min)

2:30 pm

2-minute shares

E. Whats Possible for the Future? (allow 15 minutes)

There are two perspectives were taking in this section:

1. Things that people thought were impossible turned out to be possible; theyactually happened!


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2. Theres something emerging now that indicates that what were bringingforth is possible and happening. We give demonstration that its alreadyhappening.

Visioning process is an important part of this section, after the modules.Gives people sense of being able to create.

We are allowing people to discover and practice a capacity for they have forcreativity and visioning, so that they can ground themselves in theexperience and see that its not somebody elses idea of whats possible; itstheir vision of whats possible (that you are going to link to in the nextsection.)

The collected vision that gets created is more important than the individualones. Important to take some shares after visioning. (A/B/C then somegroup).

As a Facilitator you want to be current with the trajectory the world ismoving in, and have plenty of examples to hand

This marks the entry into solid positive energy, for many peopleparticularly the Paul Hawken piece, which shows them a reason to behopeful.

Possible points to discuss in this section:

3.3: Giving them the chance to offer what they are excited about locallycould open up a place where they want to advertise what they areinvolved in. Thats fine, but be ready to keep it within bounds byassuring them that they will have a fuller opportunity for this in theGetting Into Action section.

3.5: Another powerful exercise with the potential to transform people, inan embodied way. Again, please rehearse it enough so that you can

read it spaciously and with depth, like a poem that moves you deeply, tosomeone you love.


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4.2 through 4.4: These paragraphs invite them to see the power oftaking a stand and making a personal declaration that they arecommitted to bringing forth a sustainable, fulfilling & just humanpresence on the planet.

4.4: remember that the Declaration Card is a genuine offeringwe arenot asking them to sign it. There is no request here.

4.8: It is important to be clear about the overall structure of this SetUp Ways of Identifying Next Steps section. If you have time, you aregoing to offer them 1-3 different exercises or processes (and you willprobably find that three is too many) to help them identify what calls tothem to do. And then in 4.13, from the entire list of things that mighthave come to them in these 1-3 processes, they choose two things thatthey will commit to, write them on a piece of paper along with a time for

completing them. This is to make it real to themselves. And then theyturn to a partner to share what they have chosen to commit toalso tomake it real to themselves. And then there is an optional group share.

4.8If you only have time for one process or exercise, the gray boxunder 4.8 offers one that will stand by itself.

4.11: It is important to realize that you deliver paragraph 4.11regardless of which of the three exercises you choose to deliver,otherwise. This is an extremely important paragraph, for tworeasons :

o 1) when you invite participants to tell you where are places youcan imagine a Symposium might make a difference?, you canget the leads that will make your next several Symposiums mucheasier to create! That solves one of the most common problemsthat Facilitators have, finding good places for newSymposiumsso, in this section, collect their contact informationand get back to them about these new Symposium opportunities;and

o 2) While they are considering next steps that might call to them ,it is important to tell them about the opportunity to betrained as a Symposium Facilitator . If your one Symposiumgenerates three or four new Facilitators, the impact of that oneevent will be leveraged so that it reaches maybe thousands of


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other people, rather than just the people who actually attendedthe one Symposium. So information about people who want tobe trained as Facilitators is, in many ways, the gold of what youcreated! Please collect this information and make sure that it is

delivered to the person(s) in your community group who willfollow up on it and help them get trained.

G. Close (Allow 10 minutes)

o CL.1: Note that you have two different ways of telling them about theGIA section, depending on whether you included the time that youneeded for this section within the announced ending time, or outside ofit.

o Slide C-1: Here is where you tell them about the three Pachamamawebsites that they can go to as well as the 2 Australian websites.

o And here is also where you collect the contact information of anyonewho is interested in being trained to lead the Symposium. Even better ifyou have someone they can speak to about the training, and evenbetter if you have the dates of an upcoming training. Getting phonenumbers as well as e-mail addresses is very important, because e-mailscontacts alone rarely result in a successful enrollmentthe ability tomake a personal follow-up call makes all the difference in the world!Again, this information is the gold of your Symposium, the way tohave the highest impact from your Symposiumplease collect itand make sure it ends up with someone who will act on itappropriately !

o CL.3: Acknowledgements of the host and production team are veryimportant here.

o CL.5: If you acknowledged sacred space at the beginning of yourSymposium, it is important to have a similar acknowledgement at theend. The Bracelet Ceremony in CL.6 can be part of this closing

ceremony, or after it.

H. Getting Into Action (Allow 10 minutes)


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As group identify what are we going to do (which depends on what thepurpose of this particular Symposium is)

GIA meeting can have lots of formats work groups; what ourchurch/school should be doing; members of the community coming to makeinvitations to participate in what theyve got going; plan next event; examinevalues of our company, etc.

! You need to identify the purpose of this particular Symposium in advance. Is this Symposium just about public education, or are you offering it as a tool forsomething that this group is committed to making happen in their community?

! This section is what allows the Symposium to not be an isolated event; butrather a continuing process of building something that is important for youand your team as change agents in your community.

! Early on, invite them to be thinking of the Symposium as a tool they can use.

What are the collaborations that are going to be part of the GIA section, andwhat do we need to do to set it up so that the right people are in the room?

You need to prepare a sheet of how to connect in your community withwhats happening (in advance)the Getting Into Action Handout . Twomodels are at the end of Part B of the Manual, and one of these templates isavailable on the website to download (if you have printed out copies for thetraining participants to see, hand them out). Notice that the first page (front andback) of this template has websites that pertain to the U.S. and Canada, sothose two pages could be used as the first part of the GIA Handout in those twocountries. Then, you are invited to create other pages that offer organizationsand websites that pertain to opportunities in your geographical area. Thetemplate shows one way that you might choose to organize this information.But create your own.

Break 10 min

(20 minutes)

III-D. Creating & Holding the Space

DISCUSSION:


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During the Symposium, holding the space is something done in different ways bydifferent roles. How did some of you experience the space of your Symposium?What worked for you in terms of the physical space, the visual space, theenergetic space, etc.

Neil to draw mind map of different aspects of creating and holding space.

Jane to facilitate brainstorm on what has worked at your symposium and / orat this training.

PRESENTATION: KEY POINTS ABOUT HOLDING THE SPACE:

Creating & Holding the Space

One of the most important aspects of presenting, hosting, or producing aSymposium is holding the space for the benefit of everyone there.

What does that mean? Hard to definemaybe something like taking consciousresponsibility for what happens for all of the participants, on all levels: visual,verbal, physical, emotional, energetic, aesthetic, etc. Here are some examples:

on a production level, it is being conscious of all the physical needsof the participantsclear signs, easy enrollment, water and snacksavailable, a clean and orderly room, good lighting & temperature.

on a hosting level, it is being conscious of making participants feelwelcome & invited, that the environment is well taken care of, andthat participants are treated with consideration.

on a presentation level, it is being conscious that the presentation &instructions are clear, respectful of participants, that the emotionalstate of the participants is seen, acknowledged and responded to,that they generally know someone is conscious of them and theirneeds.

There are some fundamental elements, in whatever role:


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being present & aware of what is going on in the whole space youare holding

an attitude of servicethe intention to be attuned to the needs ofeveryone in that space (including the team) & meet them

projecting energy through the whole space, in a positive way

Holding the space can be done in an unhelpful energy, too: being nervous,controlling, frantic, etc.

--So the values that it is held with or from are important.

--The values to do it with or from are the ones that are the foundation of theSymposium, the same ones that generate the Symposium (refer to Notes toOurselves document):

Examples: respect for participants, acknowledging their wisdom, desiring toempower them, trust in what supports us, not being significant, etc.

Standing silently at the back of the room and being aware of all that is going on isextremely powerful, whether it is consciously noticed or not.

Attending to your co-facilitator

Some specific examples of how holding the space might manifest:

Tell the participants about logistics (breaks, bathroom locations, cellphones) early in the day, at a time that doesnt otherwise interrupt theflow.

Acknowledge when they may be feeling the need for a break

The promise not to leave them in despair, before beginning Where Are

We?, is important as showing you intend to be supportive emotionally.The same need is present elsewhere in the Symposium. Stay attuned totheir emotional energy and acknowledge it or come up with an invitation(if youd like, take a deep breath, and I invite you to do your best to letthis in).


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Naming what is going on (e.g., I sense that your energy is pretty lowright now) and deal with it.

Dont avoid difficult emotionsbe O.K. with sadness, grief, etc. (thisrequires getting comfortable with it inside yourself).

Speak with the intention to be heardproject your voice and energy sothat it is available to the participants.

Have a body posture that is appropriate for someone holding the entireroom in a relaxed and respectful way.

Give clear instructions for breaks, when to return & where to beandfollow through.

Continue to hold the space during the break (or get someone on the

team to do so, when you cant)the room should not dissolve intoenergetic whatever.

Sticking with agreementsif you say something will happen and itdoesnt, acknowledge it and deal with the departure from what you saidin a respectful way.

If possible, have your notes in your consciousness so that you donthave to have the music stand directly in front of youit blocks yourenergetic connection with the participants.

Even when dealing with something else (even an emergency), have partof your attention on what is going on in the room, or check to see thatsomeone else can hold the space while your attention needs to beelsewhere.

Practice being responsive to shares & questions that may be difficultground yourself in non-defensiveness and genuine respect for what theyare saying. Dont override their shares.

Dont let your concerns about the time or schedule get projected out onthemground yourself in there will be just the right amount of time.

Dont rush.

When you ask them to do something, generally create space for it to beacknowledged afterward in some wayfor instance, dont have them doa small group process and then just move on without referring to what


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DINNER (50-60 min)

- Complete correct group contact list if not done previously

- Complete taking photos of participants for website

! Announcement at dinner: reminder about question and rock. Afterdinner, come back into the room quietlyprepare yourself to do an internalprocess.

Evening Session: Rock-Reading

ROCK-READING, FORMS OF CREATIVITY

This exercise has two parts: a) having them go outside and choose their rock,which of course needs to be in daylight, and b) the actual rock reading, which isbest either at night or at the end of the day.

--General set-up: This is a shamanic process that appears in some form similar towhat we will do in most shamanic cultures around the world. It is a way ofaccessing wisdom and guidance from the natural world, experiencing the supportand guidance that the natural world has to offer us if we will only ask and listen. Or,if you prefer, you can view this process as simply a way to access your own internalwisdom and knowing, your own intuitive guidance. And, from a shamanicperspective, there is no difference between the the twothe wisdom inside youand the wisdom in the natural world are the same thing.

Part B: Rock Reading

Give them these instructions:

! Have them pair up with someone, then sit on floor or in chairs and go inside

for a few minutes, staying quiet.! Then each person discusses the question they want to ask with the other

person, to make sure this is really the right question and the right wordingopen ended, not a yes or no answer, one that is exactly what you want to


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know (the spirits will answer you literally!) Finding the exact phrasing isimportant. Allow about 7 or 8 minutes for the two people to settle on theirexact questions. (Give example of young man who asked How do I leavemy girlfriend?: and got multiple answers. Perhaps the real question he

wanted to ask was how do I leave my girlfriend with integrity? You will getthe answers to the question you ask.

! Well call the first person who will be reading their rock A, and B willserve as a scribe for A while A is reading his/her rock. So B writes downthe question of A on a piece of paper that he can later give to B, and viceversa (A writes down the question of B on another sheet of paper).

! Person A begins their rock reading by asking his rock his question, outloud , exactly as written.

! Then A looks for images to emerge into his sight from the patterns on therock, like a Rorschach test. As each image emerges for him/her, he states italoud to B, who writes it down on the sheet of paper. A does his best toremember where on the rock that image appears. Write down the name ofthree images that emerge from the patterns in the rock. Could be thingslike a mushroom, the face of an angry man, or a flying birdor anythingelse. Trust the images that emerge, as long as they are clear. Note wherethey appear on the rock, so you can return to themand if you forget, it isnot essential.

! Once three images are recorded, B tells A, Now, ask [state first

image] [state question]. A asks the first image the question, out loud.! Usually, A will experience words coming into his/her consciousness in a

fed or channeled waythey are his, but, at the same time, clearlycoming from beyond his normal thought processes. And the answersusually approach the question in an unusual way.

! Even if one word comes to you, say it out loud, and the others will usuallyfollow.

! As A speaks the answer, B writes down everything that A says, so that A

can concentrate on channeling.! A continues to channel until that image is through speakingA can

say, Face of an old woman, do you have anything further to say to meabout this question? And he will get an answer. Then A asks the second


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image the same question, while B records the answers, and so on for thethird image as well.

! When A has gotten answers from all 3 images, thanks all the images fortheir guidance. Then A and B can discuss what was given for a fewminutes. Often, additional wisdom/guidance emerges from the interplaybetween the three different responses, or from the interpretations that A andB come up with.

! Then B becomes the rock reader and A the scribe, repeating the wholeprocess.

! Another note: It may be helpful to role play how it works, in a summary way.This helps people get it.

This takes about 50 minutes for the two people. Some will take less than this, some

will take more. Just give them plenty of warning as their time is up, and warn themwhen the first 25 minutes is ending , as well, so that they dont spend most oftheir time on the first person. Participants have a tendency to lose track of time inthis exercise.

Sunday

IV. Grounding Vision into Action!

Intention: To be empowered in expression of the purpose as facilitators andcommunity leaders and to be clear what it takes to stay in the game. To see thepossibility of our participation in the emergent movement.

Day end 2:45 pm to be out of venue by 4:30 pm.

PRODUCTION:

! Have hard copies of the Feedback Form ready to pass out


8:45 am Movement


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(20 minutes)

IV-A: OPENING

# Welcome

# Light the candle, remind about sacred space being open

# Did anything come to anyone in dream space that might be a message forthe group?

(Note: emphasize that you are asking only for dreams that might be amessage for the groupyou are not asking just for interesting dreams in general!)

# Anything that anyone needs to share, to feel complete about yesterday?

# Overview of the day

# Reminder of flip chart pages for suggestions re: group name & resources

2-minute shares

TRANSITION:

This morning, were moving into the part of the Training where the primary focus ison putting it all together and DOING it. Obviously, you continue to learn about thebeing states, and to learn new knowledge.

(25 minutes)

IV-B. Spiritual Fulfillment & Blessed Unrest As Change Agents

# Read selections from the Notes From Ecuador at the end of the Notes toOurselves document, focusing on the spiritual fulfillment and BlessedUnrest Topics. ( purpose: to complete some aspects of the design .....whatwe are doing after the group has been empowered thru day 1/2 )

# Generate a conversation about what this means to them, what possibilities itopens up.

# Recommended preparation for delivering this section: watch the videos fromthe February 7 & 8 Facilitator Training in the Bay Area, where Tracy led aconversation on What is Spiritual Fulfillment?


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(45 minutes)

IV-E. NEXT STEPS & RESOURCES TO SUPPORT YOU IN MAKING IT HAPPEN

SETUP THIS DISCUSSION:

! Lots of resources to support youespecially online ones.

! You wont master these resources today--impossible. Thispresentation is another thing like that bus tour of the m

Facilitator Training 3-Day Flow

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