Working together

To change the world, we need to work together. That’s not always easy when people bring different experiences and beliefs to the table. Those who want to tackle society’s big challenges often feel a deep sense of responsibility for the world and the people around them and that can be emotionally demanding. That’s why a healthy culture, where people support each other and have space to rest, is essential.

We teach you how to make broadly supported decisions together, in a transparent and effective way. This approach fosters initiative, leadership, and engagement from the ground up. When conflicts or tensions arise within an organization, we can guide the process around them.

We offer a training course on Effective and Inclusive Meetings for entire teams and for individual chairs. In addition, we provide the in-depth workshops “Overcoming Obstacles” and “Learning to Facilitate.” Finally, we can also think along with you behind the scenes, or you can hire us as a neutral chair or facilitator.

1. Effective and inclusive meetings

Turning your ideals into reality sometimes means: lots of meetings. And the way those meetings go can be frustrating, boring, unproductive, and not inclusive. Whether your voice is heard often depends on who you are. But it doesn’t have to be that way! Meetings can also be inclusive, energizing, and lead to real results. Want to learn how?

Stroomversnellers has developed a workshop called “Effective and Inclusive Meetings”, where we share tools for the preparation, facilitation, and follow-up of a successful meeting.

The goals are:

Increase shared awareness of the importance of agendas, action points, and decisions;
Reduce the chance of meetings going off track;
Build understanding of different experiences, power dynamics, and privileges within a group and how these show up;
Learn methods to prevent imbalances in participation;
Develop a shared language that helps the group reflect on itself.

This workshop is designed for any group that meets regularly; for example, a team within an organization, a group of volunteers, or an activist collective. The workshop preferably takes placein person at the client’s location (“in-house”) and lasts four hours. After the workshop, you’ll have a shared language to understand behaviors and hold each other accountable. You’ll gain insights into how efficient and inclusive meetings keep people motivated, and you’ll have practical tools to prepare meetings effectively.

A shorter version of the workshop is available on request, covering two modules. However, the module on understanding different experiences, power, and privilege is an essential part of the training.

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The price is €2600 (incl. VAT) for a half day with two trainers. See our [rates page] for more information about options and possible discounts.

This workshop can also be adapted for participants from different groups or organizations. In that case, the workshop lasts five hours and costs €3000 (incl. VAT).

Guides affiliated with this training:

Consensus decision-making Online facilitation Facilitation tools

2. Overcoming obstacles

People who fight for a better world know: no friction, no shine! But that shine is often for the outside world because within many social movements, people tend to avoid or suppress internal conflict. Or the conflicts are simply too painful, too big, or too explosive.

In this one-day workshop, we explore how to make space for minority voices and how to give resistance a constructive place within the organization. We show that conflict, friction, and resistance are natural parts of working together and we provide models to understand both your own position and the phase your group is in.

By the end of the workshop:

You can recognize and interpret your own experiences, leading to mutual understanding;
You have tools to identify the needs underlying a conflict;
You can listen, summarize, and ask deeper questions;
You understand how resistance shows up within groups;
Each participant gains insight into their own stress responses and how to deal with them.

The price is €2600 (incl. VAT) for a half day with two trainers. See our rates page for more information about options and possible discounts

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Guides affiliated with this training:

The Movement Action Plan

Click here for tools designed by others.

3. Learning to facilitate

Do you recognize that some meetings feel sluggish and unproductive? That certain people are barely heard, or don’t feel connected to the group? Would you like to strengthen, deepen, and further practice your skills in supporting and guiding groups?

World-changers are sometimes hesitant about structure and leadership. But an individual can help a group move forward! As facilitator, you guide groups during meetings and decision-making processes. You make sure things run smoothly and that everyone has the chance to participate actively. In short, facilitation means making things easier.

During this two-day training, you’ll learn through experience. We’ll work hands-on with attitudes, techniques, and methods that help you guide groups in a more inclusive and effective way.

We’ll explore and practice:

What facilitation really means;
How to take on the role of facilitator;
How to make meetings and decision-making more accessible, by working with different group sizes, energy levels, and attention styles;
How to make meetings and decision-making more productive through flow, agenda design, and harvesting outcomes;
How to ask powerful questions that make discussions richer and more meaningful

In addition, we exchange practical experiences, challenges, and common pitfalls with others who are committed to creating positive change. You can expect aninteractive and experiential training. Using our experiential learning cycle, based on direct education, we build on the knowledge and experience already present in the group and work with whatever emerges during the sessions. Each training is facilitated by two trainers, allowing participants to experience different styles and personalities.

Request training

This training consists of five half-day sessions and costs €26,000 (incl. VAT). It works best with 12–24 participants. If there are more than sixteen participants, we may include a third co-facilitator. The host organization is responsible for arranging a location and providing food that meets the participants’ accessibility needs.

See our rates page for more information about options and possible discounts.

Tools designed by others:
350’s Facilitation Tools Collection
Starhawk’s Path to Productive Meetings
Trainers for Change Facilitation Tools

4. External facilitation with Stroomversnellers

Facilitating meetings effectively leads to more efficient and inclusive decision-making processes. A facilitator helps participants stay engaged while working together toward a shared goal.

In some cases, it can be valuable to have a meeting or gathering guided by an external facilitator. Sometimes a group may lose track of how to move forward, an external facilitator can then offer a roadmap or an agenda that helps spark change. Other times, simply having a neutral person present, or ensuring everyone in the organization can participate, already makes a difference.

At Stroomversnellers, we have experience facilitating meetings between residents and policymakers, activists and artists, social movements and academics, students and changemakers. Our trainers also have expertise in building coalitions and collaborations, alternative living communities, guiding change processes, conflict mediation, and curriculum design.

We can:

Help you define realistic goals for your meeting;
Design a varied and achievable meeting agenda;
Create a decision-making process that engages and activates participants;
(Co-)facilitate a meeting;
Provide a moderator or chair for your event;
Design, guide, and facilitate a change process within your organization

Depending on your request, we prepare an invoice based on the time needed for coordination and preparation, the number of facilitation hours, and any follow-up work.

Request training

For designing a half-day session from scratch, we charge €3200 (incl. VAT) for commrcial partners. Our hourly rate for customized work is €120. See our rates page for more information about options and possible discounts.

Related workshops on decision making, collaboration, and conflict include Resilient Against Online Hate and Moving Emotions.