Setting up Creating Our Future Workshops

Workshops are very important because they give the needed skills to turn caring and concern into effective action. We have written this as a guide. Please let us know if you have any questions or difficulties.

Workshops are weekend training and planning intensives. They may include: lecture and discussion, brainstorming, circle sharing, role playing, visualization, meditation, New Games, and music-making. Participants develop and refine skills in: meeting process; project planning and execution; individual and group centering; and listening to ourselves and to others. A strong sense of community is developed between the participants.

If desired, workshops can focus on general meeting skills, issue analysis, and/or the development of a particular project or action, which may include generating and participating in direct action campaigns and other related events. The workshops are flexible, can be designed in advance to meet the needs of any particular local group, and can shift focus if other group needs emerge during the workshop.

MEETING SPACE
A good size range for workshops is from 15 to 25 people. It is possible to do larger groups. The preferred format is to start around 7 or 8 PM on Friday night and finish about 4 PM on Sunday, and to have everyone stay at the same place the whole time. We need a space that is private, where the chairs are movable, it should to be carpeted, and large enough for all of us to sit in a circle some of the time and break up into small groups at other times. If possible this could mean having a few smaller rooms available too. There should be a kitchen large enough for a few people to work in. It is nice to have an outdoor space.

OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATIONS
We prefer separate sleeping quarters for men and women and separate sleeping quarters for the workshop leader. And if possible, a separate room for early morning meditation for a small group. However, a large room with space for everyone to sleep in, plus at least one private space for the facilitator, will do. There should be adequate bathroom and showers for the number of people expected, although one or two will suffice if nothing else is available.

FOOD
The workshop participants will help with cooking and cleaning, but if possible, it is useful to have a nonparticipant volunteer as the main cook. The workshop facilitators are vegetarian so we request that you plan a vegetarian menu rather than trying to juggle dietary requirements. We can offer suggestions or a sample menu if you would like assistance with this. (Please review your menu with us - we know what quantities to buy, for what number of participants) Please do the shopping in advance. You may wish to get some of the food donated. Call local grocery stores, restaurants and wholesale grocers for this.

MATERIALS NEEDED
An easel board and pad or large sheets of paper that can be hung on the wall. Large water based (non-toxic) marking pens. Paper and pens for participants. A TV and VCR for viewing videotapes would be helpful (if videotapes are needed).

WHAT YOU WANT
We would like to know as much as possible in advance, what your groups needs are: are their any major projects coming up? are there any particular meeting or organizational skills that people recognize a need for? is there a need for civil disobedience training. The primary purpose of this workshop is to increase communication, project planning, and organizational skills so that your group can work together more effectively.

TO GET STARTED: Call COF at 510 895-2813 or email to satsantokh@comcast.net