ISPSO Members Day Workshop

The purpose of the event is to establish a shared space in which the members and the Board of ISPSO can have a creative dialogue about their future hopes and expectations of ISPSO, and what they would like to do together. This complements the President’s Commission on Envisioning the Future as another strand of member consultation that will inform Board deliberations about future policy for ISPSO.

The event is in 3 parts.

Act one: pre-lunch on Members’ Day – storytelling colloquy

  • Members’ Experience Project presentation, sharing experience & drawings, informing members about the Facebook page and inviting people to engage with this project
  • Storytelling festival: snowballed conversations between the participants on what ISPSO means to me; what I hope for the future of ISPSO
  • Several cycles: in pairs, in 4s, in 8s
  • What are the themes, surprises, disappointments, contradictions?
  • Close this act with a plenary, gathering story fragments
  • Trail the fact that the 8s people will be the basis of the arts’ festival after lunch
  • Citizen observers gather their observations

Act two: post lunch – multimedia arts festival

  • Working in small groups, devise a showing which conveys your vision for the community of ISPSO in 5 years’ time
  • Any medium, any genre
  • Materials available
  • Needs to be accessible to your colleagues, & last no more than 5 mins
  • ‘Gallery walk’ where people will visit showings
  • Citizen observers gather their observations

Act three: end of day

  • Another cycle of snowballed conversations in 2s, and 4s to share reflections on this experience: what are you feeling? What has this provided – directly and indirectly? What has this neglected? What is in view? What is obscured?
  • In larger groups – discussion hosted by a member of the Board: What are the priorities for ISPSO in the next 5 years? What would I / we like to be on the agenda for the Board?
  • Followed by a plenary on some emerging themes for the Board to take forward

Post event

  • Board deliberates and decides on way forward making use of members’ contributions
  • Members’ Experience Project open Facebook page with material (agreed by participants) from Members’ Day among other sources to which people are invited to contribute

Workshop Facilitated by Andrew Harrison and Sarah Sutton

Also see: Full Members’ Day Program

Carole Eigen
President, ISPSO