9-day residential retreat in Nonviolent Communication
Join us for this residential retreat in China (1 December - 10 December, 2023 Beijing time) that will help you bring nonviolence and peace into all areas of your life. In this event, you can discover skills that will help you improve the quality of your relationships, deepen your inner peace, and increase your contribution to the world.
This 9-day immersion experience into Nonviolent Communication (NVC) will offer learning sessions, home groups, coaching and feedback from skilled trainers, and a community environment where you can learn and practice the key skills of NVC.
Our team of Certified Trainers will share both the core curriculum of NVC as developed by Dr. Marshall Rosenberg, as well as their own unique applications. We expect a group of approximately 50 to 60 people from different countries, cultural backgrounds, professions and walks of life.
People around the world are using Nonviolent Communication skills to transform conflict, create resilience in their relationships, and build a world where everyone's needs matter and are met collaboratively.
We will create a dynamic learning laboratory that will show you how to create a more compassionate and peaceful culture in your life at home, at work, and in your community by learning how to:
- Speak from the heart
- Practice deep, non-judgmental listening
- Build self-empowerment from the inside out
| Basic Details |
Format: In-person, 9-day residential retreat
Languages: English, Chinese
Begins: Friday, 1st December 2023 (5:00 pm Beijing time)
Ends: Sunday, 10th December 2023 (1:00 pm Beijing time)
Location: China Life Garegarden国寿嘉园 (Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China)
Sponsor: Center for Nonviolent Communication
Organizer: 李夏Summer Li, Certified Trainer with the Center for Nonviolent Communication
Steps to Register:
- Fill out the pre-registration form.
- Make your payment (or request financial assistance). Instructions will be provided after you submit the pre-registration form.
- The Organizers in China will send you instructions on how to book your Room and Board.
- Note: 5 weeks prior to the start of the training, we will send you a form asking you about your dietary preferences, special needs, or other things that will make your experience as successful and meaningful as possible.
| Goals of this Training |
The purpose of this training is to give you the opportunity to live the process of Nonviolent Communication in community over an extended period of time, in order to develop the mindsets and practical tools to help you in three areas:
1. Personal and Professional Relationships
- Increase connection and closeness with the people you love.
- Speak in a way that inspires compassion and understanding.
- Initiate difficult conversations with more ease and confidence.
- Remain centered and peaceful when receiving difficult messages.
- Express and receive anger fully, safely and respectfully... yet powerfully.
- Resolve long-standing conflicts and heal painful relationships.
- Parent children from the heart and move beyond power struggles into cooperation.
- Translate criticism, judgments and blame into life-serving messages.
2. Inner Transformation
- Shift patterns of thinking that lead to depression, guilt and shame and that perpetuate pain.
- Transform anger into self-understanding, thereby increasing inner peace.
- Enliven yourself by expressing and receiving gratitude.
- Learn to embody unconditional love.
3. Contribution to others and Social Change
- Share NVC in ways that transmit and model its power to transform and inspire others.
- Create educational systems where students love learning and teachers love teaching.
- Learn to engage in effective, lasting nonviolent social change in the tradition of Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Facilitate meetings and support group decision making in a power-sharing, collaborative, and consensus-based ways.
- Support holistic and human-based workplaces.
- Engage with others at work and in the community to foster openness, trust and authenticity.
- Foster restoration and harmony by mediating conflicts and helping to resolve differences among others.
While we will prioritize these three areas in the curriculum, there is also room for co-creation. There will be opportunities for you to request specific topics and applications to support you in living and sharing NVC at work, home, and in the community as well as internally in how you relate to yourself.
| The Training Team |
Each member of the training team is a Certified Trainer with the Center for Nonviolent Communication.
Trainer and Assessor: Sylvia Haskvitz (United States)
Certified Trainer and Assessor, MA., BS
Certified Trainer since 1989 and a First Generation NVCer. She has also sporadically worked as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist since 1983. Combining these two passions, she authored Eat by Choice, Not by Habit, an NVC based book applying this consciousness and language to our bodies and food that has been translated into several languages.
As one of her clients said, “Sylvia cares about what goes into your mouth and what comes out of it.”
Sylvia is a contributing author to Healing Our Planet, Healing Ourselves with a chapter title Enemy Images based on her year and a half facilitation of a weekly dialogue group with Arabs and Jews in San Francisco, CA during the time of the Oslo Accords in the 90’s.
One of her favorite quotes: “Sorry about the long letter, I didn’t have time to write a shorter one.” Pascale
Highlights her value of brevity and clear communication.
Sylvia has shared NVC worldwide with organizations, individuals, couples and families. She lives with her partner of 25 years in Tucson, AZ, USA.
Trainer: Michael Dillo (Switzerland via Germany)
Certified Trainer and Assessor, Communication Coach
Michael Dillo was born in Hannover, Germany. In 1984, he graduated as a civil engineer. In his doctoral thesis, he specialized in underground structures in rock, which paved his way to Switzerland in 1991.
Working in the highly competitive civil engineering field, Michael became increasingly aware that many barriers in education, science, and business were created by a lack of understanding of communication between interlocutors. His observations led to a growing interest in communication. It was during this phase of search that he became aware of Marshall B. Rosenberg, who had set up his European domicile in Switzerland.
Since 1997 Michael has attended several seminars with Marshall Rosenberg and continuously deepened Nonviolent Communication. However, it took him quite a while to understand the difference between understanding NVC intellectually and internalizing it. In 2004 he was certified by CNVC as a trainer in Nonviolent Communication. In 2013 he became an Assessor for Certification and a member of the Certification Coordinating Council (2015 - 2020) to coordinate CNVC's worldwide education activities.
Today, Michael has shifted his work focus entirely to Nonviolent Communication. Michael works with NVC teams in the US and Europe to support the spread of NVC. Over time, he has expanded his seminar and coaching activities beyond Switzerland and Germany to the US, Spain, Italy, Afghanistan, Brazil, Israel, Ukraine, Hungary, and, most recently, Bangladesh.
Michael is married, has an adult son, and lives in Switzerland.
Trainer: Deborah Bellamy (Austria)
Certified Trainer, retired Assessor
Deborah met Marshall Rosenberg (The founder of NVC) in 1995 at a conference for Alternative Adult Education in UK. Ever since she has been passionate learning, sharing Nonviolent Communication. With inspiration and support Deborah co-founded GFK (Nonviolent Communication) Network Austria in 2003 as well as becoming the first certified trainer in Austria even though she grew up in another culture.
Her area of training/coaching is in International Companies, Institutions, couples and individuals. She is a certified trainer for Nonviolent Communication since 2003 and joined the Assessor Team Europe in 2012 to contribute candidates on their certification process to pass on the integrity of NVC to the best of her abilities. She retired in 2022.
Deborah continues to be part of an international network of trainers certified to train others in Nonviolent Communication, based on the Marshall Rosenberg model of communication which enhances human connection, understanding and relationship, pertinent for use in every context of contemporary life.
Deborah dreams of a world where everyone's needs are heard and fulfilled and that ways are found peacefully to meet them.
Deborah`s favorite strategy for learning and developing NVC skills is using the “Dance Floors“ created by her experienced NVC colleagues, Gina Lawrie and Bridget Belgrave. She is convinced this supports the depth and learning of Marshall Rosenberg`s work in order for a more compassionate, sustainable, just world.
Deborah values authenticity and compassion. Her way of being of sharing NVC is a playful, light and with depth attitude.
Her residency is in Austria where she lives in the forest on a old farm with her partner, dog, cat, snakes, honeybees and many more wild animals.
Trainer: Manasi Saxena (India)
Certified Trainer and Board Member of Center for Nonviolent Communication; Founder-Director, enCOMPASSion Foundation
Manasi is a learning facilitator whose focus lies around the intersection of personal growth and community development. As a Certified Trainer with the Center for Nonviolent Communication, Manasi has offered numerous trainings to small and large organizations. Her focus lies on Value-driven Leadership and Decision-making, Communication, and Empathy. Some of the organizations she has worked with include Peace Corps Nepal, UNHCR Delhi, Institute for Social Democracy, Welthungerhilfe India, Save the Children India, Manzil, Katkatha, and others.
As Founder and CEO of enCOMPASSion Foundation, Manasi has been instrumentally involved in since March 2020 have been Emergency Relief in the aftermath of the Delhi communal riots; Noida Covid Relief Project 2020; Project Warmth in 2020-2021; and Project Empathy, in collaboration with Connext Coaching, which ran for 25 weeks in the Second Wave of Covid in India.
Manasi's core focus is fostering a paradigm of sustainability, collaboration and resilience through community-driven social change embedded in the key NVC idea, that everybody's needs matter. She offers her skills in multiple spheres - in facilitation of groups, in project management, in working with her own team as well as larger groups, in conflict transformation, mediation, and leadership, systems change, and DEI capacity building for individuals, groups, and organizations.
Trainer: Christlin Rajendram (Sri Lanka)
Certified Trainer
Father Chris has a Philosophy Doctorate in Social Communication. Born in 1943 in the city of Battikaloa on the east side of Sri Lanka, Father Chris was the fourth child in the family of eight children.
In 1960 he joined the Jesuits and in 1973 became a priest. He studied and then taught in universities of his country and the USA in sphere of communication and conflict studies.
"I am from Sri Lanka. I met Marshall when I was planning to return home, to a war-torn country, after my studies at Ohio State University in 1997. I was looking for something that could make a difference. It was a timely meeting, not only the process but also the person in Marshall. He was willing to bring it to Sri Lanka. It was indeed a great gift. Since then I have been involved in spreading NVC in South Asia.
For me NVC is a spiritual path that invites us to wake up and be present in this world so that many more could have the possibility and opportunity to wake up. The IIT is a special event designed by Marshal to introduce NVC. Welcome to this IIT in China."
Note: Father Chris will join this training if we exceed 55 participants.
| The Organizer |
Organizer: 李夏Summer Li (China)
Certified Trainer, Head Coach of No-Fault Zone Game in Mainland China, Chief editor of public wechat: NVCEDU, Self-directed Learning Coach, TEDx Speaker
Summer Li, currently a Certified Trainer of the Center of Nonviolent Communication (CNVC) and the Head Coach of No-Fault Zone Game in Mainland China, specializes in the training and consulting of Nonviolent Communication and No-Fault Zone game. She started to learn and practice NVC since 2012. For sharing and developing Nonviolent Communication, she founded the Chinese NVC Learning Center, provides Nonviolent Communication-related training and consulting services to parents, children, teachers, administrative staff, and people in other industries. She is skillful in training in groups and one-on-one counseling for parents, children, teachers, schools, professionals, counselors, etc. She is also skilled with communication, interpersonal relations, psychological counseling, emotional management, emotional trauma, etc.
In order to serve people more deeply and widely, NVC Learning Center cooperates with the Chinese Academy of Management & Sciences to become the only designated training center for Nonviolent Communication Certified Facilitators in China. Summer serves as the Program Director and trainer. Under Summer’s leadership, NVC Learning Center has introduced some Nonviolent Communication books, and has participated in the translation and proofreading of books. She is also a Learning Coach for children and adults. Summer entered the field of international education in 2010, and has served as the Manager of a teacher professional development program. Summer was also a Marketing Director and Foreign Affairs Director of an international school. She has also worked with representatives of certification institutions such as CIS, WASC, NEASC, and participated in the certification of international schools as a certification expert of the NCCT of the Ministry of Education.
Her passion is to support people to have inner peace, they can bring the peace to the people around them, so that we will live in a peaceful world.
Public Wechat: nvcedu
| Cost |
The cost of this training includes two components: 1) Tuition; and 2) Room and Board.
1. Tuition (USD):
- $1,989 - Early Bird (make your payment through 14-Sep-2023) - convert to another currency
- $2,340 - Standard (15-Sep-2023 and after) - convert to another currency
Discounts:
- 10% if you participated in (and paid for) a previous intensive training with CNVC
- 10% if you have been a Supporting Member of CNVC for 6 months or more.
- 15% for registered Certification Candidates
- 25% if you are an active Certified Trainer with CNVC - Note, that there is also a limited number of tuition-free spaces available for Certified Trainers, granted by a committee. For more information, email us at [email protected].
Note: only one of these discounts may apply; you may combine it with the Early Bird discount
Financial assistance:
Instructions will be provided on how to request Financial assistance after you submit the pre-registration form.
After applying the available discounts, if you are not able to afford the tuition, you can request financial assistance to further reduce your tuition fee (Note: We do not offer assistance for Room and Board, which is a direct expense for us to the venue). We have a limited amount of financial assistance available and we prioritize people who meet one or more of the following criteria:
- Actively collaborating with others in the NVC network
- Can use what they learn in this training to make an impact such as in education, government, environmental sustainability, equity and inclusion, or with an NGO or community-based organization.
- From a region that has fewer in-person NVC trainings.
- Part of an economic system that offers less access to financial resources.
- Come from a disadvantaged group (race, ethnicity, origin, religion, gender identity, class)
- Willing to search for other sources of financial support such as their workplace, family, or organizations they are involved in (in order to be in partnership with us about finding the resources to host this training while including as many people as possible)
Note: You can request financial assistance after filling out the pre-registration form.
Cancellation and Refund Policy for Tuition:
A. If we cancel:
If we cancel this training, you receive a 100% refund (or if you prefer, you can apply your payment to another CNVC intensive training within 2 years).
B. If you cancel:
Through 31-Oct-2023, you have two options:
- Transfer 100% of your payment to a future CNVC intensive training within 2 years; or
- Receive a refund minus a nonrefundable $150 tuition deposit
Between 01-Nov-2023 and 27-Nov-2023 you have two options:
- Transfer 75% of your payment to a future CNVC training (we retain 25%); or
- Receive a 50% refund (we retain 50%).
Beginning 28-Nov-2023 no refunds or transfers are available.
Note: Any refunds due will be issued within 2 weeks after the cancellation.
Finally, before this training begins, we will ask you to make several agreements to create an environment that is safe and supportive for everyone, and that supports you in making choices for your own well being. To preview these agreements, go to this page.
2. Room and Board (CNY): convert to your currency
Room and Board will be paid at the venue upon arrival. Room options include:
- ¥ 8,712 - Single Room (private bathroom)
- ¥ 7,722 - Double Room (private bathroom and one double bed) - share your room with 1 other person
- ¥ 5,202 - Double Room (private bathroom and two single beds) - share your room with 1 other person
Notes:
- Room and Board will be paid at the venue upon arrival.
- Availability of various room categories are limited and available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
- Room and Board prices include your room and all meals throughout the event beginning with dinner the first day and ending with lunch the final day.
- Three meals/day are included in the package. You can choose not to eat, but the hotel cannot deduct it from the above pricing package.
- Breakfast is buffet, lunch and dinner are set dishes. Usually, the set dish includes a large meat dish, two small meat dishes, a vegetarian dish, a soup, a fruit, a staple food, a dessert, a coarse grain. The above content is provided according to the seasonal ingredients. Soup, vegetarian dishes, staple food can be renewed free of charge. Vegetarian dishes are provided according to the seasonal dishes. Please check availability if you are on a special diet by emailing the local Organizer.
| Location |
Venue:
China Life Garegarden国寿嘉园
Address: No. 35 Luting Road, Yangcheng Lake Peninsula, Suzhou Industrial Park, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China (location in Google Maps)
This IIT will be held at the unique China Life Garegarden国寿嘉园.
The event will be held at the national tourist resort of Yangcheng Lake Peninsula in Suzhou City. The venue is located on the south bank of Yangcheng Lake in the north of Suzhou Industrial Park. The total area of the region is 24.39 square kilometers, including 9 square kilometers of inland water area. It is also a habitat for egrets.
Suzhou City was founded in the sixth year of King Jing of Zhou Dynasty (514 BC), and has a history of more than 2,500 years. It basically maintains the double chessboard pattern of “parallel water and land, adjacent river and street”, with the unique features of “small bridges and flowing water, pink walls and black tiles, historical sites and famous gardens”.
The venue of this event is in the hinterland of the health and wellness plate of Yangcheng Lake Peninsula, a national-level tourist resort in Suzhou City. Yangcheng Lake is famous for being a habitat for egrets. It is surrounded by lakes on all sides, and the green forest coverage rate is more than 60%. There are several scenic spots on the island, such as Chongyuan Temple, Lianchi Lake Park, Xianying Lake Park, and Yunsong Lake Park.
| Travel |
General Travel Information:
Please wait to purchase your travel until we confirm the training. We will make a final decision and announcement about whether this training is occurring.
Transportation is very convenient. High-speed rail, expressway, subway, city ring road and airport are all available.
Travel Visa:
If you need to obtain a visa, please consult the Chinese Embassy in your country. If you need an invitation letter from us in order to apply for your Visa, please email us.
Air:
The straight-line distance from Hongqiao Airport in Shanghai, an international metropolis, to the venue, is 60 kilometers, about an hour’s drive; from Shuofang Airport is 35 kilometers, about 50 minutes’ drive.
Car:
Here is the location in Google Maps.
Public Transport:
Distance:
- from Suzhou Park Station to the venue is 6.5 kilometers, about 15 minutes by taxi.
- from Suzhou North Station to the venue t is 11.2 kilometers, about 25 minutes by taxi.
- from Suzhou Station to the venue is 15.1 kilometers, and it takes about half an hour by taxi.
The venue is 15 kilometers away from the city center, 10 kilometers from the CBD area of the Industrial Park, and 4 kilometers away from the Yangcheng Lake service area of the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway.
| Will you join us? |
We look forward to welcoming you to Suzhou City in China! ~ 李夏Summer and the Team