It was a special joy to design and facilitate a customised leadership retreat for the core team and country directors of Animal Alliance Asia, which empowers animal justice advocates across Asia. Here are some gems from the participant feedback I appreciated.
🔆 “It addresses a real gap and acknowledges our value outside of productivity.”
“There are many ways to acknowledge our value/impact of our work other than just numbers.”
This group cares about building community, empowering local leaders, doing work in culturally relevant ways, and living out their organisational values. This is not captured in quantifiable outcomes that are sometimes emphasised by external stakeholders. So through discussion with them, we co-created a project debrief discussion guide that honours the whole journey – learning and growth, relationships, values honoured, wellbeing etc
🔆 “We can have fun and experience joy in activism. We need our wellbeing to create the impact we want to create in our respective communities.”
To question the status quo can be challenging. To see them light up and view activism with this lens was beautiful.
Sometimes the mission of social impact work is so important, that we forget these are human beings, not tools, who are working for the mission. They are to be cherished and nurtured. This consolidates compassion and justice – the very things they are working for.
🔆 “Sometimes I get in between the divided thoughts and philosophy of this society, even in our movement, and I have always thought of ways to get out of it but haven’t be able to. But after this retreat, I believe that I might have found some light as a potential solution to deal with that problem.”
We used an activity to enable them to take the perspective of key stakeholders who may have differing views from them.
🔆“Well-being is never just personal, there’re always structural elements.”
And leaders play a very important role in creating the culture in organisations for people to flourish and do inspired work.
🔆 We were wholly human together. Lots of tears and laughter. Based on our conversations on the first day, I introduced them to a song on the second day – an anthem on empowerment and speaking your truth bravely. We even sang it together. Liberating.
🔆 These were other words they left with:
“…the depths of transformations that I never experienced in other workshops.”
“enlightenment and reset”
“hopeful and deep”
“collective healing”
“Grateful and life-affirming”
Gratitude to Animal Alliance Asia for trusting and co-creating with us, and to our funders for being our catalytic partners.
