| Dates: | 15th - 21st October, 2016 |
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| Location: | UK |
| Cost: | £ 980.00 Bursaries are available for this course >> |
| Includes: | Accommodation and catering for five days / six nights, facilitation & professional liability insurance. |
| Course Leaders: | TBC more >> |
| Interested? | Register your interest >> |
| Applications: | By application only. Apply now >> |
| Bursaries: | Apply for a bursary >> |
This five-day, six-night residential course will give you a first-hand experience of the Natural Change approach to catalysing and supporting leadership for sustainability through experiences of nature.
The first four days of the course take you through the ‘classic’ Natural Change core process. The final day offers a time to contextualise your experience in your personal and professional life.
The aim of the course is to provide anyone interested in Natural Change with a general insight into this innovative form of leadership development. It will also help those interested in commissioning a Natural Change Leadership project for their organisation or community group, understand exactly what the approach involves
For those interested in developing skills to facilitate processes using the Natural Change approach, the course forms the first rung on the ladder to training as a facilitator.
The Natural Change process is complex and dynamic. It operates on different psychological levels simultaneously. These include: conscious levels of awareness - comprising those ideas, values and beliefs which are relatively easy to access and explore; subconscious levels - including deep-seated assumptions about the world, which are accessible to us, but often only after deliberate and sometimes challenging effort and; unconscious levels - which take us into the realm of dreams, symbols, myths, archetypes, images and transpersonal experience.
In the Natural Change programme the aspirations of the group lead the process. In this creative and supportive environment, each participant’s personal journey, and the collective journey of the group can take form.
In practical terms, the process includes small and whole group work and individual tasks - including intellectual, sensory, intuitive and emotional elements. The work includes structured wilderness ‘solo’ time, story-telling and reviewing of experiences, spending time together outdoors working experientially, and short theory sessions on a wide variety of subjects. Throughout, the participants learn from and develop relationships with each other and with the natural environment. The process builds a highly cohesive community of people who explore change and leadership towards sustainability in an authentic, inspiring and empowering way.
This course is for anyone who would like to know more about Natural Change by experiencing the core process for themselves.
Participants may be interested in commissioning a full six-month or one-year Natural Change Leadership project for their organisation or community as part of a strategic programme of change or; they may simply have a personal interested in Natural Change and want to find out more.
The course is also an ideal introduction to those interested in facilitating Natural Change, or similar ways of working outdoors. For more information on facilitator training >>
All prospective participants will be asked to submit a written application for their place on the course and their taking part will be at the discretion of the programme leaders.
By the end of this course participants will have:
• experienced elements of the core Natural Change process for
themselves;
• gained an overview of the theoretical, cultural and historical
bases for the Natural Change approach;
• developed an understanding of the benefits and challenges of this type of training approach;
• contextualised Natural Change in their own personal and/or professional context;
• identified a personal pathway for gaining further
experience and/or training.
You will spend six nights and five days in a beautiful and inspirational place. The whole course will be based outside, weather permitting. Some sessions will run indoors if the weather insists!
The programme consists of two distinct parts. The first four days are spent immersing ourselves personally in the heart of the Natural Change process. The final day is then spent exploring how Natural Change might help you in your personal and professional life.
| Arrival | 14.00: Meet at the designated ‘meeting point’. 16.00: Introductions and overview. The Natural Change strategy for catalysing social change. |
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| Day One: | Getting to know the place and each other. Small group work, slowing down and exploring the land. |
| Day Two: | Finding direction and solo preparation. |
| Day Three: | A dawn to dusk ‘solo’ spent in silence. This is the heart of the process for many participants. This is not a test of survival! Rather, it is a rare chance to simply ‘be’ in the humbling face of nature. |
| Day Four: | Telling the stories of our solo time and learning the art of mirroring. |
| Day Five: | Contextualising our experience in personal and professional contexts. |
| Departure | Depart after breakfast. |
Final content depends on environmental and weather conditions and the
aspirations of the group.
This course is not a test of endurance! It is a chance to slow down and experience nature in new ways, while exploring the social and ecological dimensions of the Natural Change approach.
We always move at the speed of the slowest person, with the focus firmly on enjoying and connecting with the land and sea, and with each other.
As a guideline - you will need to be able to carry a day pack containing your personal equipment (waterproofs, spare jacket/jumper, lunch, flask, etc) for periods of up to four hours in a coastal environment, without paths.
Accommodation is usually on a twin-share basis with shared facilities.
Some single rooms are sometimes available by negotiation with the rest of the
group. Bedding and towels are provided.
All meals, snacks and drinks are provided throughout, prepared fresh
everyday.
We have over 15 years experience delivering outdoor-based programmes world-wide. Risk assessments are completed for every location where we work. These are reviewed each time an activity is delivered.
Natural Change facilitators complete a specialist two-year programme of training. They each hold an outdoor first aid certificate and undertake regular CPD training. They also receive ongoing supervision support whenever they are leading a programme. All outdoor elements are led by facilitators with National Governing Body qualifications in outdoor leadership for the activities undertaken.
Our risk management system is reviewed annually.
Natural Change facilitators hold professional, public and product liability insurance covering all the outdoor activities involved in Natural Change.
Once a participant’s place on a programme is confirmed, extensive information is sent to them about equipment, travel, accommodation and other preparations. They will also attend an orientation session to cover any questions or issues.