October 25-November 22 on Wednesdays, 2023

This training is for international development and humanitarian aid workers who are seeking compassionate, anti-oppressive, trauma-informed, healing-centered practices for working with colleagues, leading teams, and building partnerships. The training uses the CourageRISE framework to guide participants toward relational cultures of care that sustain individual wellbeing in the service of their broader work for transformative, systemic change. The tools and skills learned in this course will help participants break away from workplace cultures that are stuck in ‘survival mode’ and often end up unintentionally reinforcing colonial and oppressive practices like toxic power imbalances, a sense of not belonging, employee burnout, hopelessness, and despair. The course will use a mix of inquiry, reflection, somatic practices, and discussions.

Participants will leave with clear ways of supporting collective care, wellbeing, and creativity in their programs and organizations so that they can truly work in solidarity with each other and the communities they serve. All participants will receive a copy of a participants manual or shared resource drive with key terms, concepts and templates.

Please note the training is virtual, live, and interactive. Check the time below to make sure you are able to attend in your time zone.

Learning Objectives:

• Deepen capacity for self-care and compassion that can not only help us sustain in the work, but also  care for others and cultivate a sense of belonging

• Develop a stronger anti-oppressive, trauma-informed, and healing-centered lens to our work

• Recognize features of our embodied conditioning or stress shaping, and learn how to develop intra- and inter-personal practices to heal and transform conflict, harm and oppression 

• Imagine and sense into alternatives in how we work - how do we build solidarity with each other and with the communities we work with

• Learn about and practice tools for developing a culture of care in your organization, program or project

Click here to see the course syllabus.

Trainers: Maha El-Sheikh and Brooke Lavelle

Maha El-Sheikh (she/her)  has 20 years of experience as an international humanitarian and development professional, including 15 years in the Middle East. Her work currently focuses on the social injustices underlying our global humanitarian crises. She has been actively engaged in anti-racism and decolonization initiatives in the humanitarian and development sector, working to reimagine aid through compassion-centered, counter-oppressive, liberatory frameworks. She is co-director and core faculty at Courage of Care Coalition, and a member of the international solidarity movement, where she partners with relational facilitators and leaders in the economic, racial and climate justice movements.

Brooke Lavelle, Ph.D.  (she/her) is a co-founder of Courage of Care. She holds a Ph.D. in Tibetan Buddhism and Embodied Cognition, and is committed to ways in which individuals and communities develop cultures of practice that support love, health and liberation. Brooke has consulted to various human rights, education and spiritual organizations, and has experience leading national and international political, educational and climate justice projects. Through her work at Courage of Care and in her neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, Brooke understands the challenges of trying to build alternatives to the status quo, and remains steadfastly convinced that another way is possible.

Location: Virtual Event

Dates: Wednesdays from October 25-November 22, 2023

Time: 8am - 11:00 am Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Click here to find the time in your time zone. Please note that the time will adjust after November 5 due to the end of daylight savings time in some countries.

Fees: We use a redistributive pricing model which means that organizations and individuals with more resources pay more money so that we can fund scholarships for organizations and individuals with less resources. Tier 1 and Tier 2 rates are higher in order to help cover the costs of Tier 3 and Tier 4 scholarship rates.

• Tier 1: for institutions with annual budgets of greater than $4 million USD. $995

• Tier 2: for (a) Individuals who work for institutions with annual budgets that are less than $4 million USD; or (b) individuals who are consultants, freelancers, or otherwise self-employed; or (c) individuals who are employed but self-paying. Select “Tier 2” during registration. Discounted rate: $525

• Tier 3 Scholarship: for students and early career professionals who are self-paying. Scholarships are limited. Scholarship recipients pay $385 Apply here.

• Tier 4 Scholarship: for financial need. Scholarships are limited. Scholarship recipients pay $100. Apply here.

Group discounts and payment plans available. Email trainings@cynara.co.

Tailored trainings internal to company employees are available upon request. Email trainings@cynara.co.