CIDG 2025 Linktree Workshops

• Location: gardens
• Language spoken: English (French - to be confirmed)
• Number of participants: unlimited

About the session

A regenerative outdoor workshop to feel, regenerate, and connect. You will build trust within your community group, drop from your head to your heart and body, and connect with nature within us in the beautiful garden of the Caux Palace. We look forward to welcoming you to this space.

Facilitators

CYNTHIA ILLI (Switzerland), Sustainability Coach, Climate Reality Leader & Facilitator, TransformAction Lab - EPER

Cynthia Illi is a Sustainability Coach, Climate Reality Leader, and Facilitator at TransformAction Lab – EPER. With a background in environmental sciences and geography, she works closely with youth and organizations to foster meaningful, multi-stakeholder exchanges that drive systemic change.

As a skilled communicator and project developer, Cynthia creates the conditions for dialogue, learning, and action—helping individuals and groups amplify their unique contributions to climate resilience and sustainability.

PASCALE SCHNYDER (Switzerland), Journalist, Neuro-Embodied Coach & Coordinator TransformAction Lab 

Pascale Schnyder's passion is to support individuals and organizations in discovering their unique roles in creating a more sustainable future. With degrees in political science, communication, and economics, along with extensive experience in communication, yoga, teaching, and neuro-embodied coaching, her strengths lie in integrating inner and outer processes, knowledge, self reflection and action. Since 2019, she has been establishing the carbon conversations (KlimaGesprache) in German speaking Switzerland, which include includes training and networking for around 100 facilitators. 

• Location: 300 D&E
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

This workshop invites participants to a deep and personal exploration of diversity as an inner practice of presence, empathy, and relational intelligence. Based on the GDIs Relating and Being, the goal is to go beyond external notions of diversity and open ourselves to a deeper awareness of the invisible layers that shape our identities, assumptions, and connections with others

In line with the Presencing stage of Theory U, this workshop creates a gentle, experiential space for participants to:

• Release unconscious judgments and automatic perceptions,
• Connect with inner silence and self-inquiry,
• Discover the richness of human diversity as a reflection of the inner landscape
• Explore the depth of personal stories that challenge visible stereotypes.

We begin with a playful yet revealing moment of misperception (inspired by the "penguin perspective") as a gentle introduction to the topic of assumptions. From there, we guide a lived experience in which the true diversity of the group becomes visible—anonymously, quietly, or out loud, depending on each person's needs.

Participants can choose how to engage:

• In dialogue circles,
• Through reflective writing,
• Or through symbolic and creative expressions.

The structure honors individual expression and encourages authentic presence. We close with a moment of personal commitment—a small step toward more conscious relationships—and with the symbolic gifting of colorful socks: a joyful reminder of the beauty of difference.

Facilitators

EVA CERROLAZA (Spain), Trainer, Coach & Communicator

Eva Cerrolaza is a seasoned trainer, coach, and communicator, specializing in neuroscience applied to coaching. As the Director of Prestigio Formación Ejecutiva in Madrid and Professor at Westfield Business School, she is known for her ability to mobilize transformative learning and support individual and organizational growth.

With deep expertise in coaching, mentoring, and human development, Eva leads innovative programs that bridge science and personal transformation. She is the creator of the H.Being development approach, designed to unlock human potential through awareness, purpose, and leadership.

ANDREA NOORANI SCHNEIDER (Switzerland/India), Coach, Facilitator & Consultant for Inner Growth and Sustainable Futures

Andrea Noorani Schneider is a Swiss-Indian coach, facilitator and strategist working at the intersection of inner development, systemic transformation and sustainable futures. With more than two decades of experience leading international projects and working with global teams across cultures and sectors, she brings a deep understanding of complex systems and human connection into everything she does Her background spans tourism, urban and regional strategy, sustainability innovation, and inclusive communication. has designed and led participatory processes for municipalities, networks and organizations seeking to align their vision with the well-being of people and planet. Under the umbrella of naavaa.co, Andrea brings together her long-standing work in strategic consulting, coaching and transformative travel. Certified in coaching, mentoring and agile facilitation, Andrea works with a strong focus on neurodiversity, presence and embodiment. Her own journey – living between cultures, navigating unconventional paths, and practicing yoga & yoga off the mat – shapes the inclusive, grounded and heartful quality of her spaces.

• Location: Gardens or Main Hall bay window
• Language spoken: French
• Number of participants: 10 - 15

About the session

This workshop invites us to take the time to evoke and feel the importance of our links with the Living World. In our cultures, the Living World can be named in different ways: nature, Mother Earth, non-human living beings, ecosystems, natural environment. Outside, we experiment with our bodies, our senses, our hearts and our emotions. These experiences have shaped us and continue to shape us throughout our lives. They foster a movement of individual awareness that is enriched by storytelling, listening and group exchange. 

These deep links between us humans and other living beings are taking on even greater importance today, as pollution and over-exploitation of the natural environment around the world jeopardize our health and perhaps our very survival. Interconnection with Nature has shaped us, often without our even realizing it, since our earliest childhood. What experiences of encounters with places and living beings still stay with me today, leaving a lasting imprint on my life? Recalling and sharing these personal stories can help us reform the way we make our world with all living beings, human and non-human.

This eco-formative approach fosters ecological awareness and a new understanding of our links with the Earth. It helps us transform our relationships of use into relationships of wisdom, through reliance, an intimate experience of interconnection with the Living. It's an inner transformation that takes time, but contributes to greater ecological awareness in our individual and collective transformations of how we live, dwell, consume, eat and so on. Sharing these experiences with others, listening respectfully and stimulatingly, can open up new possibilities and ways of getting involved. 

This workshop is inspired by ecoformation, the research and experiments carried out over the last 30-40 years by French-speaking teams, mainly in France, Quebec, Brazil and Switzerland.

Ecoformation highlights the all-too-frequently forgotten aspect of human interaction with the living world, our earthly home. It is fundamental to any training approach, complementing and interdependent with the poles of self-formation and socio-formation. As Gaston Pineau puts it in "Genèse de l'écoformation. Du préfixe éco au vert paradigme de formation avec les environnements." (Ed. L'Harmattan, 2023): "As we enter the climatic/cosmic era, humanity has no choice. It must transform its elementary relationships of use with them into relationships of wisdom. To move from reflexive, then industrial, mercantile and deadly exploitation, to the formation of reciprocal, vital and sustainable relationships... Learning to move from an ecological unconsciousness to a planetary eco-citizenship is the great transitional and intergenerational challenge of an education for the present and the future."  

Sources and references will be made available to participants wishing to find out more. 

Facilitator

CLAIRE HAYOZ ETTER (Switzerland), Public Health Nurse & Adult Educator

Claire Hayoz Etter is a public health nurse and adult educator, specialized in health promotion and education for sustainable development.

At 63, after more than 30 years of enriching and diverse professional experience in healthcare, prevention, and school-based education for sustainable development (in Fribourg and across French-speaking Switzerland), she has embraced an independent path guided by meaning and inner depth. Recently trained in Life Stories and Biographical Coaching, Claire enjoys connecting with people from all walks of life, building bridges across cultures and generations, and creating spaces to explore new perspectives.

Her current focus lies in exploring the deep interconnection between human health and the well-being of all living beings on Earth—a personal and collective journey of reflection, inquiry, and engagement.

• Location: Room 400 - Foyer du Théâtre (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

We live in a world that is calling for transformation. Many of us feel a deep desire to contribute to change, to have an impact, to make a difference. But how does change actually come about? So often, we direct our attention to what is visible, loud, and obvious. In this workshop, we turn toward another dimension of transformation – the subtle, quiet power that works beneath the surface. 

We will engage with forces that are not immediately apparent – with the delicate, underground movements that, like roots beneath the soil, nourish, sustain, and transform life without making noise or drawing attention. These forces are already at work – within us and in the world. Often, they remain unnoticed because we overlook them, disregard them, or dismiss them as irrelevant or non-existent. Yet precisely in turning toward them lies immense potential for change. Our attention holds creative power – what we give energy to, we strengthen. 

A central element of this workshop is the invitation to approach what reveals itself with a spirit of not-knowing. This inner openness allows for entirely new perspectives and surprising insights to emerge. 

A central element of this workshop is the guided meditation, which offers a doorway into inner images and subtle spaces. In entering these spaces, participants are invited to meet deeper layers of their being – beyond habitual knowing – and to listen from a place of openness, receptivity, and not-knowing. There, deep wisdom is waiting to be revealed. 

This workshop invites a deepened view of transformation – not as something we ‘do’, but as something we, ‚sense’, ‚become aware of’ and ‘invite’. The change we long for may not unfold in the ways we expect or are familiar with. Sometimes, it is already in motion – waiting to be discovered, acknowledged, explored, and given wings. 

In the first part of the workshop, we turn inward to explore our own inner transformative potential and capacity to affect change. Through a guided meditation, participants are invited to connect with the subtle and perhaps as yet unrecognized forces within – and the potential they hold for the world. This will be followed by small-group dialogue to reflect on and share experiences. 

In the second part, we broaden our perspective. Again through guided meditation, we explore questions such as: Where are these subtle forces already at work in the world? What often-overlooked movements serve the well-being of the whole? What generative energies are active in hidden realms, and how can we support their unfolding? What potential might we uncover and amplify in the context of global and universal change? 

Who is this for? 

This workshop is open to anyone interested in personal and collective transformation. No prior experience is needed – only the willingness to engage in deep inner exploration through guided meditation and open to new perspectives on change. Whether in a small circle or a larger gathering – the workshop offers a space for deep exploration in any constellation. 

Facilitator

ZORA BERWEGER (Switzerland), Multidisciplinary Artist & Transformational Facilitator

Zora Berweger is a Swiss-born multidisciplinary artist and transformational facilitator based in Leipzig, Germany. Her work unfolds at the intersection of artistic expression, subtle energy exploration, and multidimensional co-creation. She develops innovative tools and formats that support inner guidance, clarity, alignment, and transformation — for individuals, groups, and organizations.

With a professional background in contemporary art and a lifelong spiritual orientation, Zora offers online courses, in-person seminars, individual guidance, group facilitation, and energetic clearings for people and spaces.

Rooted in deep listening and honoring life in all its abundant forms, Zora’s work invites engagement with the multiple dimensions of reality and inspires co-creation with the more-than-human world — opening spaces for new perspectives, orientation, innovation, and embodied connection in service of the whole.

• Location: The Galleries (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20-30

About the session

In this workshop we will explore how we can engage with social fields and tap their wisdom. We will draw on felt sense, movement, and imagination as presencing practices to unlock intuitive insights into the social fields we navigate. The workshop will invite us to explore the synergistic interplay between emotional, relational, somatic, and spiritual intelligences, helping us to gain deeper insights into the collective dynamics we encounter in our lives and work. 

This workshop is rooted in transpersonal psychology, deep ecology, integral theory, and expressive arts. We'll work with the premise that our perception and understanding of the world are rooted in larger landscapes, that our deeper nature is nature, and that we can access these deeper levels of our shared reality through various somatic and spiritual presencing practices. From the vantage point of consciousness studies and spiritual traditions we are interconnected with the web of life, and we can draw on our intuitive and sensory capacities to explore and to influence the deeper streams of consciousness, cultivating systemic transformation through relational attunement, deep listening, co-regulation and authentic creative expression.  

In this workshop we will approach presencing specifically through somatic meditation, constellation practice, expressive gesture, posture and movement and deep listening. We will work with authentic embodiment to gain insights into the deeper structures of the social fields we inhabit and try to discern social field dynamics and affordances. We will map insights through free writing, sketching, and dialogue. Drawing from holistic and creative modalities, this embodied workshop will offer us practical methods for navigating collective dynamics, and it will help us to gain fresh perspectives on inner development and social change. 

Facilitator

JESSICA BOCKLER (Germany/UK), Applied Artist, Transpersonal Psychologist & Co-Founding Director of the Alef Trust

Jessica Bockler, PhD is an applied artist, transpersonal psychologist and co-founding director of the Alef Trust, a global leader in transformative education. She is also the founder of Creative Alternatives, an award-winning arts & mental health service in the UK. Jessica’s work bridges consciousness, imagination, transpersonal psychology, and social change, with particular emphasis on integrative human development and holistic systems change. She leads Nurturing the Fields of Change, a global community of facilitators working on projects for human transformation and planetary thriving. Additionally, she serves as the research lead for Calmer Farmer, a pilot initiative supporting UK farmers in wellbeing and food systems transformation. Jessica is active in the communities of the Inner Development Goals, the Presencing Institute, and UN’s Conscious Food Systems Alliance. A member of the British Psychological Society, she is on the editorial team of the Journal of Awareness-based Systems Change and the International Journal of Presencing Leadership & Coaching. 

• Location: Restaurant français (2nd floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

Instability in and of the world is a constant supplier of instability to us. How does one rise above it to deliver the needed breakthrough thinking for the common good? This workshop will help participants access their inner pool of wisdom.  

In this workshop of 90 minutes, we will will move participants from sensing to presencing. We will do so by including a bouquet of movement based activities in small groups, individual deep reflection, and in depth group discussions.  

We belong to a school of thought where we believe that Presencing is being, living in sync with the cosmic mind. Cosmic mind is what IDG's Theory of U refers to as Inner Wisdom. Thereby, through this workshop we will take the participants on an activity and reflection based experiential journey to live into "moments of moving from the limited, emotive driven downward spiralling" to expanding into the unlimited dimensions of finding higher purpose for the good of the world beyond an individual. Learning about ways of Accessing the Inner wisdom/cosmic mind, which is a limitless reservoir of creative potential and possibilities, is our goal for the workshop.  

Our facilitators will start with reflection based activity using the Human Evolution Matrix to make participants realize the limits and power of our five senses. Participants will learn here that our world, our lived experiences, our knowledge is all restricted to and integrated experience of what is seen, felt, heard, tasted, and smelled. For example our friendly pet dog hears and smells a lot more than us and a lot more cosmos is accessible to it. Owls can see very well in the dark, when we cannot. If we put on night goggles, then we can enhance our abilities to see in the dark.  

The Cosmic Mind/Inner wisdom is beyond the purview of our five senses because all our senses are oriented outwards and not inwards. This is why trusting is difficult. Our senses are incapable of surmising what the other person is thinking and planning and hence there remains an inherent lack of trust between people. Due to such restrictions, and not understanding these fully, participants are unable to access the reservoir of true inner wisdom. We will bring Neuro Yoga techniques, which involve meditative-movement based activities which will aid participants to realize a greater dimension within them.  

Once the realization dawns upon them, facilitators will introduce a deeper reflective journey of identifying who they truly are and pointing out the source of sustained inner wisdom. The reflective journey will be done with the use of a four-question interrogation of the self. This will propel the participants away from the trap of name and form and will move them away from misidentification and towards identifying with the true self, towards presencing instead of mere sensing.  

The workshop will end with a group discussion where each participant will share their thoughts, reflections, experiences and the moderators will help them course correct to continue the quest individually.  

Facilitators

ARPAN YAGNIK (India), Expert and Coach in Fear Management and Creativity

Dr. Arpan Yagnik is a globally recognized expert and coach in Fear Management and Creativity. He trains high-ranking generals and officers of national defense forces, as well as senior commandants of special forces, in Fear Management and Creative Leadership. A former Commissioner on the Pennsylvania Governor’s Advisory Commission, Dr. Yagnik has advised senior corporate leaders on managing fear, enhancing creativity, and fostering intergenerational harmony. He is the author of multiple books addressing topics such as fear, creativity, managing instability, and getting unstuck. A TEDx speaker and columnist, he holds a faculty position at Penn State University. Dr. Yagnik was also the founder of Keep it Flowing!, an initiative on menstrual hygiene. He is also an ardent student of Aatmagyaan and Brahmavidya.

DAYA BAGHWANDAS (Malaysia/Australia), Social Entrepreneur, Founding Director of Neuro Network & Board Member IofC Australia

Daya Baghwandas is a passionate social entrepreneur, working in the field of neuro sciences. Her approach focuses on transformation linking brain development, human evolution and achieving human potential. This includes changes in the physical, intellectual and emotional development of individuals by addressing the underlying issues hindering learning and life long skills in the classrooms, playing field, home, work place and society. 

As the Director of Movement for Learning in Melbourne she worked with at risk children in the school system. Later she served as the Assistant Director of Toddler Kindy Gymbaroo, the largest international early childhood program focused on parent education with head office in Melbourne. 

She is the Founding Director of Neuro Network, offering services to parents and educators. Her program has been rolled out in schools, kindergartens and rehabilitation centres. She has worked with child soldiers in Sri Lanka, at risk youths in Malaysia and educators in preschools and primary schools in Australia, Asia and Africa. Daya gained her Post Grad qualifications in USA and has worked globally, in the US, Europe, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and India. Daya started her professional life as a Speech Pathologist and Audiologist; and is also an internationally certified Yoga Master. 

Daya is currently a Board Member of IofC Australia. She has attended Caux Forum programs for over 15 years, as part of coordinating teams and leading workshops. 

• Location: 500A (5th floor)
• Language spoken: English
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

The Voice Within is an experiential journey into the power of voice—as sound, silence, and story—to unlock inner wisdom, emotional expression, and authentic connection. Through embodied voicework, vocal improvisation, deep listening, and guided storytelling, participants will explore the landscapes of their inner and outer voice. We will use gentle somatic practices to access the breath-body connection, uncover unconscious narratives, and reclaim creative expression beyond performance. No prior experience in singing or storytelling is needed—just a willingness to listen deeply, take creative risks, and discover what your voice has to say when you truly make space for it. This workshop fosters presence, courage, and shared humanity through sound and silence. 

Facilitator

SWAN DAO (France), Psychotherapist, Experience Designer, Founder of the Institute of Devotional Arts

Dr. Swan Dao is a psychotherapist, experience designer and the founder of the Institute of Devotional Arts, an organization that creates transformative learning experiences through the expressive arts. Swan has studied and taught philosophy, theology, psychology, and theatre in Oxford, Melbourne, Paris, and Chicago, and earned a PhD from the University of Cambridge, focusing on self-transformation and system change.

A certified coach, psychotherapist, educator, and experience designer, Swan has facilitated workshops and spoken at leading conferences in over 17 countries. Blending social science, embodiment, and the arts, their work revives the original spirit of psychotherapy: tending to the soul with depth, creativity, and care.

They currently reside at Emerge Lakefront, an intentional community for culture and change makers in Stockholm.

• Location: 400 A (Salon du Pasquier) or outside
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

This workshop is an invitation to press pause, on the to-do lists, the world-saving ambitions, and even the clever thoughts and listen. Really listen. Not just to words, but to silence, to feelings, to each other, and maybe even to that inner voice we usually drown in emails and meetings. 

Over 90 minutes, we’ll take a gentle dive into the “Presencing” part of Otto Scharmer’s Theory U his 4 Levles of Listening, the space between letting go and letting come. We begin with a short meditation (walking and sitting) to arrive fully. This is followed by a joyful listening excercise in groups of 2, where participants share stories of moments that made them feel alive and connected, while the other person is just listening and trying to sense. This opens the heart and helps us connect on a human level before diving deeper. 

The core of the workshop is a listening circle with the entire group. Here, we slow down, speak from the heart, and listen without judgment or the need to respond. It's not about solving anything, but about sensing what becomes visible when we’re truly present with one another. 

Towards the end, there’s space to journal and listen inwardly: What moved me? What did I notice? We close with a short check-out round to gently transition back and carry the experience forward. 

This workshop is less about doing and more about being. It invites participants to experience what happens when we give space to the quiet, often unheard, voices, within ourselves and between us. 

Facilitator

NOAH RUF (Germany), Biologist, Permaculturist, Sustainability Coach, Mindfulness Practitioner

Noah Ruf is a biologist and sustainability coach with a passion for connecting inner transformation with outer change. With a background in biology and education for sustainable development, he set sail—literally—on a journey to learn from permaculture projects and intentional communities around the world, guided by the belief that tomatoes and teamwork might just save the planet. A dedicated mindfulness practitioner, Noah spent over a year living in Plum Village, the Zen Buddhist center founded by Thich Nhat Hanh, where he deepened his practice of presence, compassion, and the art of slowing down. He also draws from the Vipassana tradition and shares meditation and yoga practices—always reminding others (and himself) that enlightenment might begin with drinking your tea while it’s still warm. In academic settings, Noah supports student groups through sustainability coaching, helping young changemakers turn vision into mindful, grounded action. His work centers on how inner work, especially mindfulness, can build the clarity, resilience, and compassion needed to navigate both personal and planetary challenges. Noah doesn’t claim to be an expert—just a curious student of life, a companion on the path, and someone who values learning, listening, and the occasional moment of real connection.

• Location: The Galleries (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

Have you ever felt a calling that's bigger than your current circumstances allow? In the quiet moments, do you sense a future possibility waiting to emerge through you? 

This transformative workshop invites you into that sacred space where inner wisdom meets future possibility—the bottom of Theory U's journey where true presencing happens. Here, we'll combine the profound stillness of presencing with the practical clarity of Vision Building methodology to help you access your deepest knowing and bring it into form. 

Throughout our 90 minutes together, you'll experience a unique integration of contemplative practices and vision-crafting tools that I've used with clients to create lasting transformation. We'll move beyond simply talking about change to actually creating the internal conditions for change to emerge. 

First, you'll learn the powerful "Notice What You're Noticing" practice that helps you distinguish between condition-driven thinking (based on limitation) and brave thinking (based on vision). This awareness creates the space where true presencing can occur. As you release limiting paradigms, you'll experience the freeing sensation of possibility opening before you. 

Then, through an engaging "Time Machine" journey, you'll connect with your future self who has successfully manifested your highest vision. This isn't fantasy – it is accessing the wisdom that already exists within you. You'll test the authenticity of what emerges using the transformative "Five Point Test" that ensures your vision is life-giving, aligned with your values, growth-oriented, transcendent, and of service to others. 

In intimate dialogue circles, you'll practice both speaking from this deeper knowing and listening beyond words to what wants to emerge in others. This collective intelligence amplifies individual insight, revealing patterns and possibilities that none of us can see alone. 

Finally, you'll learn to crystallize what emerges using the practical "Five Filters" framework that transforms vague inspirations into clear intention. You'll identify specific bridges to cross the gap between current reality and emerging future, preparing you to move from presence to purposeful action. 

By the end, you'll experience both the profound stillness of presencing and the energizing clarity of vision—leaving with practical tools to navigate uncertainty while staying connected to your deepest purpose. As one participant expressed in a previous workshop, "I arrived feeling scattered and left with both clarity and peace I didn't know was possible." 

Facilitator

FRANCESCA TOSO (Switzerland/Italy), Transformational Life Coach, Certified Dream Builder Coach (The Brave Thinking Institute)

With more than 35 years of experience in multilateral cooperation within the UN system, Francesca Toso has negotiated and managed multiple projects for sustainable development, first with UNICEF, then with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in all regions, working collaboratively with governments, private sector entities, and academic institutions. 

In a strategic shift from macro-level socio-economic development to individual personal development, she further expanded her expertise as a certified Life Coach and Life Mastery Consultant specialized in helping conscious leaders and decision-makers to create greater impact while leading with integrity. As a Mentor for the Kofi Annan Foundation Changemakers Initiative and an Executive Council Member of Inspired Women Lead (IWL), an organization offering worldwide peer-to-peer mentoring for authentic feminine leadership, she coaches and supports clients who seek positive change for themselves and the collective good, applying decades of transformational success principles to individual development and leadership enhancement. 

• Location: Gardens or Main Hall
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

Flame & Flow is an embodied journey into the elemental forces of Fire and Water.  

These elements are often used as metaphors for passion, creativity, adaptability, and flow. We believe that integrating these archetypal energies within ourselves can illuminate a path towards presencing through personal authenticity, collective harmony, and resilience.  

In this workshop we’ll ask ourselves how do we balance our burning passions with graceful adaptability? Our creativity with mindful fluidity?  

We’ll use rituals and embodied practices for an exploration into how the polarities of Fire and Water shape our ideals, our decision-making, and our inner landscape. 

Integrating art, music and mindfulness, we will experience co-sensing and then together practice letting go of the distractions of busyness and the unhelpful patterns that limit our potential and play with the art of the possible.  

Together, as leaders and change makers, we will embody the best qualities of the fire within us while letting our creative flow emerge.  

Facilitators

• GIB BULOCH (UK/Switzerland)
• NINA BRESSLER (Czech Republic/ USA)
• NATALIA STEPANOVA

• Location: 400 - Foyer du Théâtre (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20

About the session

This workshop invites participants into the transformative practice of Social Presencing Theater (SPT), a method developed by Arawana Hayashi in collaboration with the Presencing Institute. SPT combines embodied awareness, art, and changemaking to make visible the deeper dynamics within organizations as well as in ourselves. By accessing the intelligence of the body and collective presence, participants will learn to perceive current realities more clearly and activate pathways toward profound change. 

Through guided movement, mindful observation, and creative exercises, this workshop will explore the “stuck” places in systems — those habitual patterns or blind spots that inhibit transformation. Participants will engage in individual and group practices to sense and express social fields, uncovering inner shifts that lead to external action. 

Rooted in Theory U, SPT supports leaders, changemakers, and community members in cultivating awareness-based systems change.  

This workshop is open to all — no previous experience in theater or movement is required. The only prerequisite is curiosity and a willingness to be present in the body. 

Join us for a deep dive into a field where insight arises not from analysis, but from presence and awareness.  

Facilitator

ANNE-CATHERINE SUTERMEISTER (Switzerland), Head of Community Engagement, Arts & Training Programmes for Switzerland, Caux Initiatives of Change Foundation

Anne-Catherine Sutermeister (PhD) has worked in the cultural sector for more than 25 years. She worked in cultural organisations (Théâtre de Vidy-Lausanne, Bibliothèque cantonale universitaire, Théâtre du Jorat), in higher education (La Manufacture in Lausanne and HEAD-Geneva), in cultural policy (Canton of Berne, Pro Helvetia Foundation Board, State of Valais), and as a consultant and trainer which gives her a global view of the cultural sector.

• Location: 500A
• Language spoken: English (with French interpretation)
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

At the heart of every sustainable solution lies a deeper human potential waiting to be optimized. Using the Mindful Life Optimization (MLO) Methodology and the Presencing phase of Theory U, this workshop guides participants through a profound journey to provide the pathway for realizing the Inner Development Goals (IDGs). 

“Presencing” is the transformational center of the Theory U process, where awareness is born and old habits dissolve. Built on awareness, MLO’s Human Software Optimization method provides an organic process, where individuals can self-authenticate Life Intelligence (LQ) lessons, shed outdated inner programming, develop Superior Heart Intelligence (SHQ), and other essential inner skills to become fully integrated, highly effective, and content beings. 

This workshop creates a reflective and experiential space, educating and guiding participants to: 

•  Realize nature’s laws that govern us 
•  Align personal insight and constructed-systems with the wisdom of these natural laws 
• Understand the human mind and brain, inherent biases, obstacles to happiness, and how to overcome them. 

MLO’s three Domains—Systems (natural and constructed); Planet & Sustainable Living, and Human Experience, Conduct & Happiness, synchronize the integrative nature of the IDGs and allow for deep personal inquiry and applied systems thinking. In Presencing, these domains converge to create a sacred space of stillness and potential, from which new inner architectures and solutions arise. 

Drawing from contemplative practices, body-based awareness, scientific knowledge, reflection, and regenerative systems insight, participants are guided into a living experience of the IDGs' five dimensions: 

• Being: Through MLO’s mindfulness-based awareness and SHQ practices, individuals deepen inner clarity, presence, and intentionality. 
• Thinking: Using Theory U’s co-sensing and MLO’s insight cultivation tools, participants learn to access deeper systems intelligence. 
• Relating: MLO fosters compassionate conduct and non-judgmental being, essential for meaningful connection. 
• Collaborating: Group processes based on trust, vulnerability, and shared intention enable creative emergence. 
• Acting: By understanding why wisdom and presencing work, participants develop inspired actions, prototypes, or life adjustments in service of a better world. 

This workshop is ideal for educators, community leaders, business professionals, social innovators, and parents who recognize that real change begins with inner optimization. Participants leave not only with a personal vision aligned to the IDGs but with the inner tools and embodied practices to carry it forward. 

Outcome

Participants leave with a clear, embodied understanding of the IDGs, an introduction to MLO’s Human Software Optimization methodology they can apply to seed new systems, practices, or collaborations rooted in Presence, Heart Intelligence, and Intentional Wise Actions. 

Facilitators

DR MANIJEH MOTAGHY (Iran/USA), Organizational Psychologist, UCLA Mindfulness Teacher, Author & Global Speaker

Dr. Manijeh Motaghy, PsyD, O.M.C., is an organizational psychologist, UCLA Mindfulness teacher, author, and global speaker. She has guided thousands of individuals, teams, and leaders with over 10,000 hours of practice, training, and 700+ transformative courses and retreats. Blending science, wisdom practices, and practical tools, she has transformed audiences at Fortune 500 companies like Health Net, Disney, and Kaiser Permanente. She has been interviewed on podcasts and spoken at global conferences, like IEEE Advanced Technologies and top universities. She is featured in The Global Woman Magazine, MSN Magazine, Amazon Prime, and Tubi TV.   

Dr. Motaghy uncovers how hidden societal defaults, innate biases, emotional rigidity, and the illusion of ownership create and sustain a relentless “circular anxiety economy” that drains mental health and erodes trust in the systems meant to serve us. She advocates that these same human blind spots creep into how we design AI, innovate business, and governance, amplifying harm instead of healing, spreading inequity instead of integrity. Her approach is both timeless and urgently modern: to build ethical technology and resilient societies, we must first upgrade the “human software” at the root of it all. Her Mindful Life Optimization (MLO) method, with clear, secular, and science-informed lessons, equips people across generations and cultures with practical inner skills to replace anxiety with awareness, chaos with compassion, and burnout with balance.    

MATTHEW LAW (USA), Global Operations Director

Matthew Law is an accomplished Global Operations Director with extensive international experience in several industries. Matthew has built and run communities of years of practice, international academies for front line managers, leadership workshops for multi-functional and diverse teams and innovation labs for in house hardware and software development.

Matthew is involved in conscious business leadership. He is a member of the IDG research group and the Inner MBA programme where he recently has been running IDG workshops.      

• Location: Restaurant français (2nd floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15-20

About the session

Just as clay naturally forms cracks as it dries on its journey before it shifts, these cracks represent the hidden spaces within us where transformation begins. In this workshop, we’ll explore how the cracks in clay mirror our own inner shifts—places where light, love, wisdom and new growth emerge. Together, we’ll learn to nurture these cracks through presence, awareness, and creative action. 

This experiential workshop invites participants into a journey of inner awareness through the grounding, tangible presence of clay. We begin with a moment of quiet reflection/Inner listening to help us arrive fully, connect to the space, and tune into our inner landscapes. 

Following this, participants will be gently introduced to the practice of working with clay—not as a craft, but as a medium for self-inquiry. Clay, in its essence as earth and humans, responds to touch, to intention, to breath. And when participants put their hands fully in the mud, it helps them to sense, to connect, to learn. It reflects back what we hold, where we resist, and where we yield. This activity will support them to learn/unlearn of How to lean into unknowing, uncovering deeper layers of sensing and knowing into and how to relate the emotions in difficult situation with an open heart. 

Through this embodied practice, we explore the principles of presencing—the deep noticing of what is emerging within and around us in the present moment. We will move slowly through shaping and interacting with the clay, allowing space for both intuitive and guided reflection. 

As the clay dries, cracks begin to appear—natural openings that emerge not from failure, but from tension, time, and transformation. These cracks become metaphors for the openings in our own lives: places of vulnerability, yes, but also places of shift, watering, nourishment, and light. 

We will inquire: 

• What is the quality of the soil I grow in and the seed I throw at? 
• What do I need to water my cracks and nourish my roots? 
• How do I let light shine through what has broken open? 

This will be followed by rounds of shared sensing and witnessing through the invitations:  “I see… I sense… I feel…” 

There will be small groups discussions divided as circles of coherence and then In the final big circle of coherence , will come together to reflect as a group. Each participant will be asked: 

“Of everything you’ve seen and heard today, what resonates with you most and what are the few action you will take to nourish the/your cracks found today ?” 

From this space, participants will be gently guided to move from insight to intention—identifying one small, meaningful action they can take to nourish the cracks they’ve discovered, and to support their ongoing flourishing. 

Facilitator

ASMAA SLEEM (Egypt), Educator, Storyteller and Founder of Lifelong Learning Talks

Asmaa Sleem is an Egyptian educator, storyteller, and lifelong learner. She is actively engaged in spreading awareness, fostering inner development, and promoting togetherness. Asmaa is part of the organising team behind the youth-led programme Creative Leadership and is the founder of the Lifelong Learning Talks in Egypt. With postgraduate degrees in teaching methodologies and social sciences, Asmaa focuses on youth empowerment, peacebuilding, and creative leadership. She serves as Vice-President of the Association for World Education (AWE) and has corporate experience in marketing research, notably co-founding and co-leading 'Nielsen Cares' Egypt. Asmaa's work encompasses education, development, CSR, SDGs, and peacebuilding, both locally and internationally, while she pursues further studies in positive psychology and community psychology

• Location: Theatre (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

This hands-on workshop offers a unique approach to accessing creative thinking and innovation through the body.  

Modern work environments often rely on quick answers and intellectual analysis, but real innovation lives in the unknown, where logic alone cannot reach. Embodied Creative Processing equips teams and individuals with practical, embodied tools to overcome creative blockages, quiet inner critics, and shift into states of flow, presence, and connection.  

Participants will:  

• Learn how to override fear, distraction, and overthinking  
• Use movement and attention to spark new perspectives and ideas  
• Practice "soft-focus" listening to make unexpected connections  
• Discover how embodied presence fuels team collaboration and creativity  
• Access collective intelligence for complex problem-solving  

Ideal for professionals in leadership, innovation, design, education, and creative industries, this session supports a culture of curiosity, adaptability, and intuitive thinking. You’ll leave with tools that integrate easily into daily life and work, helping you move from stuck to inspired—faster and with more impact.  

Facilitator

KJERSTI WEBB (Sweden), Actress & Artist

Kjersti Webb has worked as an actress and artist since 1996. Born in Sweden and constantly on the move, she describes herself as “Nationally Fluid” — belonging to the human race. With degrees in theatre and art, extensive training in physical theatre, and a foundation in Buddhist philosophy and design, she has woven her creative practice into reconciliation, integration, and personal development programs worldwide. She has devised, directed, or performed in over 40 projects and co-founded several theatre companies across the U.S. and Europe. In 2011, she returned to Sweden and co-founded Everything Theatre Company (ETC), producing performances, workshops, and conferences that use physical theatre for transformation, inclusion, and community building. Most recently, she co-founded The Apt Company, applying physical theatre techniques to support growth in individuals, groups, and organizations. Her workshops foster sustainability, unlock insight, and bypass blocks by tapping into intuitive and collective intelligence: “If the world is my canvas, the people are the color—then beauty is everywhere.”

• Location: 300 D&E
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

'Gift… 5 portals to the inner' is about experimenting the operation of the natural inner resources a human possesses. It will be done with the help of 'focussing/releasing the attention' and of 'getting in a more conscious state'. It will allow delegates to connect with the inner self with a deeper degree of precision than habitual. 

It is a journey in three phases, namely: 

• A 5 minutes introduction 
• A 25 minutes experiential journey guided by a proprietary audio track  
• A 60 minutes interaction including: 
  • A few minutes individual review of the experience 
  • A few minutes sharing in pairs of the experience 
  • A major portion of interactive sharing with questions, and where appropriate answers, and most importantly validation of perspectives and contexts. 
  • A concluding individual word / wish 

Delegates, as they hear the audio track, will grasp how their five senses offer natural portals to the inner world. They will understand how to reach deeper with those senses. They will also, thanks to the key pointers highlighted, be able to navigate inside with fluidity. Each delegate will experience both the freedom to choose the degree of exploration they are at ease with and will get the reassurance of knowing where they are as grounding elements will be provided. 

The audio track was recorded in early 2025 and consist of my voice reading the text 'Gift' and sounds created by the band 'Esprit Ravane' of Mauritius.  

Facilitator

MARVIN MANÈVE (Mauritius), Interdisciplinary Thinker, Facilitator & Coach

Marvin Manève is an interdisciplinary thinker with over 25 years of experience as a facilitator and coach in self-leadership. His approach blends philosophical depth with practical strategy, anchored in a rigorous exploration of human inner mechanics—a journey he has pursued intensively through research and modelling over the past 16 years. 

As the founder of Co-scripto, a Learning & Development agency based in Mauritius, Marvin designs programs and resources that integrate clarity, equity, and applied insight. His work bridges ontology, psychology, and global systems, connecting abstract frameworks with meaningful real-world impact. Known for his precision and collaborative spirit, Marvin develops initiatives that promote fairness, intellectual clarity, and inclusive growth across professional and educational settings. He recently published his first e-book and audiobook titled Gift, a practical resource that guides introspection into the inner architecture for personal growth, offering pathways towards greater ease and coherence. 

• Location: 400A (Salon du Pasquier)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 10 - 15

About the session

This workshop introduces those present to somatic tools that can be used daily to presence what is happening in our bodies and connect with the wisdom of our hearts, beyond the conscious and unconscious narratives of our brain. Presencing the complexity in our bodies, and accessing a deeper connection with our true selves through our hearts and calm nervous systems, enables us to access greater opportunities, creativity and intuition. This is one of the hopes for those attending to experience. 

We propose the workshop to take the following “U-shape” flow: a) an initial attuning our own and others’ bodies; b) With context and group agreements, noticing, sensing and observing deeply without judgement the complexity present in our bodies through experiential exercises; c) presencing this with ourselves and sharing with partners; d) tuning into our deeper intuition and creativity around what energises, challenges and resources us - including with our work in the world, and e) through deeper group reflection, sharing possibilities and actions to take from a heart-centred perspective, before closing. This workshop aims to speak to our minds, bodies and hearts in turn. 

In more detail, the 90-minute workshop is expected to take the following shape:  

• Initial Introductions (5): Introduce myself and framing of the session - my worldviews and assumptions (that others need not align with).  
• Transitioning exercise to come into coherence in the space (10) 
• Somatic anchoring exercise: breath, heart, pelvic bowl, feet. Inviting what they notice. 
• Initial Share (10): Inviting everyone in the group to share their names, maternal line (if they know), and in 1-3 words, How are they really today? 
• Set-up, context for somatic noticing & group agreements (10): 

We are in the summer season (Bealtaine) which is a supportive time for taking risks in the world for us to flourish, expand and blossom (which this work supports), after doing the inner work over winter time. This workshop is an invitation to take that risk with experiencing something new. 

Headlines on science-based tools I am working with are polyvagal theory (amongst others) & signposting. 

This somatic (embodiment) work helps us notice the complexity we carry and align more deeply with our inner voice, intuition and creativity. Moving from the dominance of our brains to our hearts (which carry our deeper purpose and longings). 

Nervous system tools help us move from overwhelm to create increased pathways in the brain to be present and access creativity when faced with challenges and opportunity.  

Agreements - Confidentiality: We are practicing attunement to our own bodies and what comes up. When sharing, we use “I” statements; we are not here to give advice or rescue others. We are practicing being with the intensity of our own reactions. Notice the space you are taking up when sharing. 

Facilitator

KATHERINE THANE (UK), Transformation Facilitator & Strategic Relations Specialist

Katherine Thane is a Transformation Facilitator & Strategic Relations Specialist with 13 years’ leadership in systemic changemaking around rights and justice issues and conflict & trauma-informed responses, including in various global high-level political environments. She brings a wide range of healing-centred, inside-out transformation tools to equip leaders for the New Paradigm. Her training in somatic and nervous system support practice enables her to bring a pioneering, intersectional approach to her expertise in communicating and influencing for change at different societal levels. She has enjoyed creating space for, and supporting global cross-cultural leaders to be on global political platforms. Kat is passionate about real solidarity approaches and models, nurturing healing-centred cultures in places of work, and learning through immersion in different cultures around the world. 

• Location: Main Hall (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English (with French interpretation)
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

How do we translate inner insight into meaningful action without slipping into performance, urgency, or abstraction? What does it mean to prototype not from ego or expertise, but from a place of presence, relational intelligence, and moral clarity? 

This 90-minute experiential workshop invites participants into a process of prototyping as an offering - a gesture made in service of what matters most, emerging from deep listening rather than problem-solving alone. Grounded in the “Co-Creating” phase of the Theory U framework, the session offers a practical yet reflective structure for moving from insight to embodied action, while staying attuned to the ethical, ecological, and systemic dimensions of what we seek to initiate. 

Drawing on the Inner Development Goals (IDGs), narrative practice, and the facilitation lineage of Creators of Peace (CoP), this session reimagines prototyping not as an isolated act of innovation, but as a relational and iterative inquiry. What we prototype carries the imprint of who we are - our values, histories, blind spots, and hopes. When we begin from a place of inner alignment, we offer not only ideas, but ourselves, in integrity. 

Participants do not need to have attended prior sessions to benefit from this workshop. The session is designed to meet people wherever they are in their process, whether arriving with a clear idea or simply a question that has been stirring within. 

Facilitator

RUKMINI IYER (India), Leadership Development & Organisational Transformation Consultant

Rukmini Iyer is a leadership development and organisational transformation consultant with over two decades of experience working globally. Her work lies at the intersection of conscious leadership, peacebuilding, and systems transformation, integrating ecocentric and decolonial approaches. She is the founder of Exult! Solutions, a consulting practice dedicated to meaningful, values-driven change. 

Rukmini’s facilitation draws on systems thinking, somatic and narrative practices, and frameworks such as the Inner Development Goals, the Work That Reconnects, and Theory U. She serves on the board of Creators of Peace International, teaches mediation and conflict resolution at Maharashtra National Law University, and leads training initiatives across cultures and sectors. 

Committed to fostering inner clarity as a pathway to ethical action, Rukmini brings a presence-oriented, dialogic approach to her work. She is a Rotary Peace Fellow and a Vital Voices Fellow, and continues to support individuals and communities in navigating complexity with courage and compassion. 

• Location: Gardens or 300 D&E
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

This workshop invites participants to explore Collective Meaning, a transformative framework that fosters deep connection, shared purpose, and collaboration in teams and communities. Born out of a positive psychology thesis and refined through global fieldwork in over 20 countries, the methodology has empowered leaders, educators, and changemakers to reimagine how people connect, collaborate, and thrive together. 

Participants are guided through the four pillars of Collective Meaning - Purpose, Autonomy, Recognition, and Relationships - using interactive dialogue, reflective exercises, and storytelling. The workshop creates a space for inner awareness and outer alignment, where individual insight and collective resonance come together to inspire change. 

Rooted in lived experience and cultural diversity, this practice enables groups to transcend transactional dynamics and build regenerative communities-whether in corporations, remote teams, communities, or any type of group. Blending personal discovery with systemic awareness, participants will leave with actionable tools to foster meaningful belonging and sustainable engagement in their own contexts. 

This session is for anyone who wants to lead with depth, hold space for genuine connection, and co-create cultures where people flourish together. 

Facilitator

GABRIELA BEDINELLI (Brazil), Global Explorer, Reseracher & Creator of the Collective Meaning Concept

Gabriela Bedinelli is a global explorer, researcher, and the creator of the Collective Meaning concept. With over a decade of experience across 25 countries, she is dedicated to fostering human connection and driving both individual and collective growth.

Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Gabriela holds a double degree from UNICAMP and has completed executive education at Harvard and Stanford. Her postgraduate studies in Positive Psychology at PUCRS led to the development of Collective Meaning—a framework exploring how shared purpose and connection can transform groups and organizations. Her thesis on the topic received top academic distinction. Professionally, Gabriela has led People, Culture, and ESG initiatives at global organizations including Bosch (Brazil and Germany), AB InBev, and the edtech unicorn Arco Educação. In 2022, she transitioned into academia and research, aligning her career with her deeper mission.

Now a university lecturer and business school educator, Gabriela shares her work worldwide. Since 2023, she and her husband have been living globally, expanding the reach of Collective Meaning and connecting with communities across cultures. Her mission: to help people flourish—together.

• Location: 400 (Foyer du Théâtre)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session

This workshop is a participatory design activity centered in debating about public services such as health, education or transport, and the challenges inherently in the implementation and utilization of these services in the context of polycrisis that we live. 

Participants will be divided in groups, receiving one public service to debate. And to facilitate the debate in each group, we will use the concept of devices of Foucault, illustrated as a set of cards categorized as – ‘Agents’, ‘Challenges’ and ‘Actions’ – each one designed to provoke dialogue and structure reflection helping them to investigate the relation between SDGs and IDGs (choosing 'Agents' to be analyzed); map and discuss the difficulties and challenges experienced (using 'Challenges' cards to debate the current consequences, possibly formulating them in the form of questions for mapping); and generate proposed solutions (using 'Action' cards, also possibly in the form of questions to stimulate ideation). 

At the end of the workshop, participants will consolidate ideas derived from the cards explored by each group, having the design of a proposal with the potential to be taken to their communities to develop prototypes for validation. Offering an opportunity for participants to understand the complexity involved in debating the systematic challenges of public services, seeking to promote an in-depth and intercultural understanding of the multiple aspects of the SDGs, encouraging the co-creation of tangible ideas aimed through the Inner Development.  

Facilitator

VALENTINA KURKDJIAN TEIXEIRA  (Brazil), Innovation Trainne at MJV Technology & Innovation

Valentina Kurkdjian Teixera is an Innovation Trainee at MJV Technology & Innovation, where she contributes to global strategic projects for clients including The Coca-Cola Company. Her work centers on exploring the intersections of technology, data, and human behavior, translating insights into workshop designs that foster critical thinking and digital citizenship. With a multidisciplinary background in innovation, education, and internet governance, Valentina has collaborated with institutions such as CESAR School, the Museum for the United Nations, and Lab Vis, bringing a systems-thinking approach to complex challenges.

• Location: 500A
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 15 - 20

About the session
This interactive workshop brings together social, political, economic, and cultural leaders from the so-called Global North and Global South to co-create a shared framework for understanding and cooperation. Participants will engage in open dialogue to explore the unique demands of each context and identify actionable pathways for collaboration in governmental, economic, cultural, and political spheres — with a particular focus on the role of civil society as a driver of global transformation.

Whether addressing sustainable development, systemic inequalities, or geopolitical tensions, this workshop fosters mutual learning and critical reflection across borders and sectors.

Key Objectives

• Develop a common framework to better understand current geopolitical dynamics
• Explore the role of civil society in global transformation and crisis response
• Compare and contextualize the SDG-related priorities of the Global North and South
• Foster spaces for co-creation and collaboration across diverse fields of action

Methods & Format

This highly participatory session will include:

• Facilitated group discussions
• Small group breakout activities
• Reflective exercises to promote deeper insight and connection

Alignment with Inner Development Goals (IDG)

Led by a facilitator with lived experience in both the Global South and North (Venezuelan and Portuguese), this workshop contributes directly to the IDG framework by promoting cross-cultural understanding, perspective-taking, and collaborative action. Participants will cultivate inner capacities for global citizenship while engaging in systems thinking and shared solution-building.

Facilitator

DYLAN PEREIRA (Portugal/Venezuela), Writer, Political Analyst & Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Revista Diplomacia

Dylan Pereira is a Portuguese-Venezuelan young professional and activist with a background in political analysis and civic engagement. He graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Liberal Studies from Universidad Metropolitana in Caracas and holds a master's in Political Action, Institutional Strengthening, and Citizen Participation in the Rule of Law from Francisco de Vitoria University in Madrid. He has been a Mountaintop International Fellow, a Transatlantic Inclusion Leadership Network Fellow of the German Marshall Fund, an Artivism and Amplifiers Fellow of the Human Impact Institute, and a Max Thabiso Edkins Ambassador in 2024. Co-founder and editor-in-chief of Revista Diplomacia, he is also a weekly opinion writer for Diario El Universal and a political analyst featured on programs such as Brujula Internacional, Primera Pagina, Ampliamente, and Con Gladys Rodri­guez. Previously, he worked as a research and policy analysis assistant at World Enabled and recently collaborated with the Council of the European Union in Brussels. He is an alumnus of the Boti­n Foundation's Programme for Strengthening the Public Function in Latin America and the Carolina Foundation's Young Ibero-American Leaders programme.

• Location: Restaurant français (2nd floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

In a world where civic engagement often feels distant, exclusive, or overly complex, how do we create spaces where leadership is not inherited or imposed—but understood, practiced, and shared? 

This 90-minute workshop invites participants to co-create inclusive, game-based civic tools that democratize leadership and foster grassroots solutions to systemic challenges. Drawing from my journey with Project Abhaya—a political literacy and leadership fellowship that has empowered over 900 young women across Nepal—this session blends storytelling, design thinking, and collaborative prototyping to help participants translate insight into action. 

Participants will work in small teams to identify real-world challenges they care about—whether related to participation, governance, identity, or inequality—and will prototype low-tech, locally adaptable games or role-play tools to explore these issues. These prototypes are not just creative exercises; they serve as seeds for real-life applications in classrooms, communities, and organizations around the world. 

The workshop will be rooted in the Co-Creating phase of the Theory U process. By moving from reflection to action, participants will engage deeply with the present while envisioning emerging futures—prototypes that reflect a shared commitment to justice, dignity, and inclusive development. 

This session is designed to be participatory, reflective, and fun—yet grounded in a deep commitment to systems change. Together, we will explore what it means to build not just better tools—but better cultures of collaboration, empathy, and leadership. 

Facilitator

ISHIKA PANTA (Nepal), Founder of Project Abhaya

Ishika Panta is a passionate changemaker from Nepal, committed to advancing youth and women’s empowerment through technology, storytelling, and civic leadership. She is the Founder of Project Abhaya, an initiative dedicated to equipping young women with the tools to overcome fear and step into public life with confidence, and she also holds the license for TEDxMaitighar, a platform amplifying bold, local voices.

Rooted in values of integrity, inclusion, and inner listening, Ishika’s work centers on creating safe, transformative spaces where marginalized communities—especially young women—can build leadership capacity, digital fluency, and the courage to shape democratic discourse. Her initiatives are grounded in her belief that social change begins with personal change, and that storytelling can be a powerful bridge for trustbuilding and social healing.

Through her leadership, Ishika aspires to contribute to a more just, empathetic, and participatory society where every individual, regardless of background, feels empowered to lead with purpose and truth.

• Location: Gardens or 400A (Salon du Pasquier)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

About the session

Activity ONE: Shape Toss: A Circle of Creativity 

This activity invites participants to pass an invisible, imaginary shape around a circle, encouraging creativity, adaptability, and free expression. The facilitator begins by pretending to “throw” a shape anything from a square or circle to something more abstract like a star or swirl into the center. As the shape is passed from person to person, each participant must change it in some way before passing it along. These transformations might include altering its color (“Now it’s glowing red”), changing its size (“Shrink it down!”), or giving it movement (“It’s spinning now!”). The shape remains entirely imaginary, and people can gesture, mime, or describe their changes as they toss it to the next person. As the game continues, the transformations become more creative and unexpected, reflecting each person’s unique perspective. After a few rounds, the group pauses to reflect: What did you learn about creativity and flexibility? How did it feel to watch a simple shape evolve through so many versions? Did any transformation surprise or make you laugh? This discussion highlights the power of imagination, the joy of collaborative play, and how we each adapt and contribute in our own way. 

Activity TWO: Agree/Disagree activity 

One side of the room will be labeled as “agree” and the other as “disagree.” I will say a statement, and people will move to one side of the room or the other, indicating whether they agree or disagree with the statement. I will then ask volunteers from each side (perhaps three from each stance) to justify why they agree or disagree with the statement. 

Here are the statements we will be working with:

• Our culture determines who we are.
• I feel most comfortable with people from the same region as myself.
• You can understand another culture without speaking its language.
• Diversity is always positive.
• Effective communication resolves all conflicts.
• The internet brings the world closer together. 
• Food is a universal language that can bridge cultural differences. 
• Stereotypes and generalizations about cultures can perpetuate misunderstandings and prejudice. 
• Cultural appreciation involves respecting and valuing different traditions, practices, and perspectives. 
• Cultural assimilation can lead to the loss of unique traditions and practices. 
• Cultural sensitivity is essential when interacting with individuals from different backgrounds. 
• Cultural celebrations and festivals provide opportunities for cross-cultural learning and appreciation. 

Closure : Each person will write a word or phrase that they are taking away from this activity. 

Facilitator

IMEN BADARJAH (Tunisia), Artist, Actress & Cross-Cultural Facilitator

Imen Badarjah is an artist, actress, and cross-cultural facilitator from Tunisia, with a strong background in customer service. Passionate about self-expression and the power of storytelling, she uses her creative voice to foster empathy and meaningful human connections. Through her work, Imen facilitates conversations that bridge cultures and promote mutual understanding across diverse backgrounds.

• Location: The Galleries (4th floor)
• Language spoken: English 
• Number of participants: 20 - 30

Facilitator

FREDRIK LINDENCRONA (Sweden), PhD, Head of Research Co-creation at the Inner Development Goals