How do we navigate power and difference equitably? What personal skills and collaborative tools can we each learn in order to practice consent with ourselves and one another?

This fully virtual 3 hour retreat takes place on Friday April 5th from 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET to 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET.

Join the Spring Up Collective and peer practitioners in learning the 3 core steps to practice consent based decision making across power lines.

This if for you if: 

• You are curious about how the framework of consent can apply in everyday situations beyond intimacy
• You often feel like your boundaries are being pushed or you are moving toward burnout and want tangible skills to self-advocate while still getting your work done
• Your organization or collective has informal decision making norms that you would like to make more codified to work effectively across power differences
• You want tangible ways to incorporate everyones voice in decision making without getting bogged down by process
• Your organization is thinking about moving from consensus based decision making toward consent based decision making

This 3 hour retreat is great for anyone who is interested in deepening their understanding of power and skills of consent based decision making. Within the retreat, participants will examine how both formal and informal power show up in our lives and unpack the 3 core steps to consent based decision making including internal consent, decision making tools, and communication skills.

Core Topics:

• Unpacking consent beyond yes and no
• Identifying your own boundaries and navigating the boundaries of others
• Understanding the social scripts that shape our ability to practice consent with ourselves
• Defining power and learning to use power ethically
• Exploring examples of the 5 core types of power and how they show up within collaboration
• Core tools to practice consent based decision making within the workplace
• Frameworks to get shared understanding of the stages of decision making and tools to get input and feedback

During the retreat itself:

• There will be plenty of space for you to ask questions or guide the learning based on what you need support in
• We encourage you to take care of yourself and do what will make you feel most comfortable including standing up, sitting down, laying down, stimming, turning your camera off, eating, moving around, stepping in and out of the room as needed
• Closed captions will be on for the entire retreat and all text on slides will be read aloud. There is also space for you to let your facilitator and breakout group peers know if there are other requests that could support you.
• Most slides have accompanying visuals to support you in digesting information through text and imagery
• There are consistent breaks and pauses throughout the retreat
• Some breakout prompts include the option to journal independently instead of having conversation which allows you to choose how you prefer to digest and integrate what you are learning
• There are optional prompts throughout the day for somatic and embodied activities to get you into your body or to play a game. It is totally up to you if that is something that feels right, or if you would prefer to opt out. 

Once the retreat is complete, you will get access to the slides from the day as well as suggestions for how you can learn more about the topics explored within the retreat. We will also share a feedback form for you to tell us how the experience was for you or if you have any suggestions to make it a better experience in the future. 

Can my organization or workplace pay for me to register for the retreat?

• Yes, email us if you need an invoice for your group
• You can also register yourself and you will receive a receipt for reimbursement
•  Email [email protected] with any other questions 
• 2-10 people from an organization can register for this retreat. If you have more than 10 people who want to take this, we encourage you to reach out and schedule a private version of the retreat just for your organization. 

Who else will be there? 

We are excited that these spaces are a place for folks to connect across the ecosystem of liberation work. Many of our participants are leaders in nonprofits, education, grassroots community organizations, therapy or social work, intentional communities and philanthropy. We encourage you to make new connections or attend with your colleagues and focus on your own community. We do not have participation requirements: we trust that if this seems like a good fit for you, you are welcome. 

How long do I have access to the online portal with the slides and resources?

Forever! Access to the online content associated with this retreat does not expire. 

When will this retreat be offered again?

This retreat is offered three times a year, in the Spring, Summer, and Fall.

Can you share more guidance on how to choose the right price out of the sliding scale?

If you are a resourced formal institution, like a school, foundation, business, or nonprofit with a budget of over $1M, we ask that you pay at the top of our sliding scale options. This helps to subsidize our ability to provide at cost services to informal community based organizations and student groups with small budgets, who we invite to pay at the lower end of our sliding scale. Somewhere in the middle lie small and medium nonprofits, conferences and events, advocacy groups, etc, where we will follow your lead on the budget you have available for professional development, continuing education, and/or community engagement.

Does this retreat work for folks outside of the US?

Each individual can choose if the timing of the retreat works for them based on their time zone. If the time zone differences would make it difficult to attend, we would encourage you to sign up for one of our 6 week courses instead. 

Is this retreat only in English? 

We can offer live translation to Spanish and ASL interpretation with at least 2 weeks notice.