Welcome to the Art of Hosting and Harvesting Meaningful Conversations,
a training and practice retreat for all who aspire to lead by engaging with interactive ways of working with groups and teams.
Welcome leaders—those who want to help—
trainers, teachers, consultants, politicians, managers, social workers, entrepreneurs, social innovators, youth workers, community builders, hosts.
The Art of Hosting and Harvesting Meaningful Conversations
has been offered in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and North and South America.
We are a growing community of practitioners,
supporting each other to further our ability as practitioners/hosts in co-creative learning and problem-solving.
The Art of Hosting is more than just a training
• The Art of Hosting is a response to a world that is becoming increasingly complex and fragmented, where true solutions and innovations lie not in one leader or one viewpoint, but in the bigger picture of our collective intelligence.
• The Art of Hosting is a response at a time when institutions and democracies are failing to address the increasing chaos in our world. It is a testing ground for those seeking to find new, effective and healthy patterns for organising, innovating and interacting, to create new forms that serve us better.
• The Art of Hosting is a practice ground for all who aspire to bring out the best in others. It is based on the assumption and experience that human beings have an enormous untapped wealth and resilience.
We have three days together to deepen a practice of being present, focusing on questions that matter, listening to each other and to what we create together, harvesting, and choosing wise action. It is our opportunity to be in the practice of thoughtfully doing the work that needs to be done.
Please use this workbook in ways that help you most –
reflections, insights, outrageous ideas, questions, drawings,
musings, contacts, plans for action, collaborations, inspirations –
and share them with others
in an active web of conversation during your time here and beyond.
This workbook is intended to be a personal journal and reflection tool, to help focus and deepen your learning in relation with other participants.
It shares the basic assumptions and understanding of the Art of Hosting practice.
It includes several tools and practices that the Art of Hosting Community of Practice has found simple and helpful. They are for you to use, improve, and share.
It provides you with books, links, information and where to go next in your learning and/or reading. It isn’t intended to be linear. We will focus on various sections along the way.
Our chronos, or clock time together, will look something like the schedule below. However, our intent is to enter kairos, appropriate time together. We will sense our way forward, designing and co-creating in real time.