As the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates the existing injustices in our world, we need reflective spaces, community, and the chance to reimagine - now more than ever. Join us for an interactive virtual workshop to reimagine how we can shape a more just future and ensure that our good intentions aren’t reinforcing inequality and inequities.
REGISTER HERE BEFORE MAY 15th!
Join Seachange Collective for a interactive 2-part virtual* workshop on "grounded program design."
Part 1: May 19th, 2020, 12:00pm-4:30pm EDT
Part 2: May 21st, 2020, 12:00pm-4:30pm EDT
We’ll introduce you to a six-step approach that helps you develop and implement projects, programs, and initiatives based in community needs and justice – rather than assumed knowledge and charity. Facilitators will guide participants in reflecting on their experiences, the first four steps of the grounded program design process, and the complexities of anti-oppression work and social justice practice.
You will leave this workshop with a more nuanced understanding of what it means to do social justice work and the ongoing processes we must engage in to do it well. We will explore what it means to do social justice work in these times, refine practical skills and tools to use in anti-oppression program design, and develop personalized action plans for our work, including:
Problem identification
Mapping your power and positionality
Mapping stakeholders
Collaborative and participatory design processes
*What does going virtual look like? The virtual workshop will take place online, using Zoom and Google Documents. It will take place in two parts over two days (with breaks!), to allow participants to come together while many of us shelter in place, and to navigate the new challenges and uncertainties of our daily work and lives. To participate you will need:
a (free) Zoom account
computer with an Internet connection, microphone, and video camera
the ability to access Google Docs throughout the workshop.
Please reach out if you have any questions about technology needs or if you’d like to schedule a quick test call with us before the workshop to make sure you’re all set up.
Who should participate? Whether you are developing a new program strategy or coordinating on-the-ground implementation of a long-running initiative, this workshop will offer skills and tools to increase equity and anti-oppression practices in your work. This workshop is ideal for folks in non-profits, schools, community organizing, foundations, public service organizations, and other spaces seeking a stronger commitment to social justice – especially if you design and implement program strategy and on-the-ground initiatives.
Ongoing Support and Accountability: After our workshops, we provide ongoing support to participants over several months, to help with your continued planning or implementation of ideas including tangible goal-setting and accountability checks.
What have past participants said?
"Grounded Program Design helped me analyze my organization's issues more critically and gave me concrete tools that can be used for any problem solving." — Dhara Shah, Co-Founder, JustDesign Cooperative
“This [Grounded Program Design] workshop is groundbreaking and should be a requirement for any agency that participates or works in any community.” — Ayana McNeill, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
"[The Seachange Collective] workshop and this creative and inclusive space created the necessary room to connect with other social-justice inclined individuals and share alternative perspectives on seemingly impossible challenges." — Emily Grubb, Program Specialist, Open Society Foundations
Who we are: Seachange Collective is a women-led training collective that supports groups committed to social, racial, gender, and economic justice. Our collective draws on our combined decades of expertise in the non-profit and social change sectors, including work in community organizing, education, policy and advocacy, case management, research, mediation, professional development, grant and individual giving. As facilitators, we are highly participatory, drawing on participants’ own expertise, real-life case studies, and a mix of theory and practice. We are experienced in dealing with a range of needs, and creation of safe spaces for difficult conversations.
Pricing: We run our workshops on a sliding-scale model, to ensure we remain accessible for organizers, non-profit staff, and public servants across a spectrum of roles and budgets. Limited scholarship funds are available. Please contact info@seachangecollective.org if you need financial assistance to join.