9-day retreat in Nonviolent Communication
Join us for a residential retreat in Germany (24-Sep-2023 to 3-Oct-2023) 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 60-80 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
Language: English (we may translate a few sessions to German, please check with us)
Begins: Sunday, 24 September 2023 (5:00 pm)
Ends: Tuesday, 3 October 2023 (1:00 pm)
Location: Jonathan Seminarhotel in Bavaria, Germany
Sponsor: Center for Nonviolent Communication
Organiser: Jürgen Engel, 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 Germany 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 intensive 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, Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu 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.
- Support mutual understanding and connection when working in colonised countries.
- Foster restoration and harmony by mediating conflicts and helping to resolve differences among others.
While we will prioritise 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: Roxy Manning (United States)
Psychologist (PhD) and Certified Trainer
Roxy Manning brings decades of service experience to her work interrupting explicitly and implicitly oppressive attitudes and cultural norms within individuals, communities, and organizations. Rooted in her experience as an Afro-Caribbean immigrant to the United States, Roxy brings a diversity of perspectives to her work that generates profound insights for transformative change.
Roxy has worked and consulted across the U.S. with businesses, nonprofits, and government organizations wanting to move towards equitable and diverse hiring practices and workplace cultures, as well as with individuals and groups committed to social justice internationally.
As a facilitator, she’s thrilled by the process of holding opposing voices and ushering groups from discord towards values-driven solutions that work for everyone. Her own inner work coupled with her professional experience has grown her capacity to meet people with varying levels of education, disparate life experiences, and the most intense feelings in ways that help them feel heard, respected, supported, and loved.
As a psychologist, she maintains a private therapy practice, and works in San Francisco serving the homeless and disenfranchised mentally ill population. As a Certified Trainer and assessor with CNVC, she works with folks from the Global Majority who are interested in NVC certification and creating ties with the global NVC network to create local communities that thrive. Learn more about Roxy.
Trainer: Iris Bawidamann (Germany)
Youth and Social worker, Certified Trainer, founder and co-owner of Klarweit
Iris has lead international trainings with participants from all continents with a focus on human rights, participation and intercultural understanding. She is co-founder of Klarweit, an organization that offers NVC trainings to business entities, governmental structures, NGOs and private people. People who experience Iris as a trainer and facilitator often express enjoyment of how she combines empathy and clarity while following closely the groups' needs.
She loves to bring together depths and lightness. She was an active Youth Worker for about 10 years, then focused as from 2006 on training staff in NGOs and governmental structures. She started learning NVC in 2005 and is teaching it since 2012. Since 2012 she was learning with Robert Gonzales, assisting and supporting many of his trainings in Europe. Her passions are nature and family. Learn more about Iris.
Trainer: François Beausoleil (Canada)
Certified Trainer, Co-Founder and Lead Trainer, Empathic Leadership Institute
François trains, coaches and supports individuals and organizations throughout the world. He brings a strong business and coaching focus to his work. François is highly skilled at helping participants discover and transcend internal and external barriers so that they can live from a more fully empowered state.
François’ previous career was as a musician with Cirque du Soleil – he brings creativity and music into the rooms and hearts wherever he shares his work.
He has an MBA from Sherbrooke University in Quebec, is a Certified Trainer with the Center for Nonviolent Communication, and a registered corporate coach. In addition, he is the author of the book, “The Blame-Free State,” published in 2014. Learn more about François
Trainer: John Kinyon (United States)
Co-creator/founder, Mediate Your Life International Training, Certified Trainer of the Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC)
John has devoted his life and career to furthering human connection and cooperation around the world through empathic communication. John is co-creator of the Mediate Your Life (MYL) program and company, based in the work of Nonviolent Communication.
For over 20 years, he developed and delivered the MYL training throughout the U.S. and in counties around the world in Europe, Asia, and Australia. John offers online and in person trainings, courses, and programs internationally. He also facilitates an international online forum that focuses on healing social-political divides and building empathic community.
John's work is at the intersection of communication, consciousness, and conflict transformation. His approach provides conversation “maps” for navigating challenges and conflicts, inner and outer, in all aspects of life. He works with individuals and organizations as a trainer, coach, and mediator, and is an author and speaker.
John’s mentor was NVC founder Marshall Rosenberg, a global peacemaker whose work has deeply touched the lives of hundreds of thousands or more in over 70 countries around the world. John worked closely with Marshall Rosenberg for over a decade, and was a co-founder of the Bay Area Nonviolent Communication and has been a certified trainer with CNVC since 2000. Learn more about John
Trainer: Shigeko Suzuki (Japan)
Certified Trainer, Vocalist, a singer who weaves the resonance of life, Alexander Technique teacher
After having performed over 20 years as a recording vocalist, Shigeko now finds passion in listening to the resonance of life in each one of us and creating a world where all of our voices matter.
Since 2006, with her partner Ken and other friends, she has been practicing and introducing NVC in Japan as one of the pioneers. Together they contributed to a emergence of quite a unique community, where people were so excited that they motivated themselves to learn and share and created a network with each other, without having a big structured association.
She organized and translated IIT in Japan in 2014 and 2017. She and Ken translated Martial Rosenberg's 'Speak Peace' and published it in 2021.
She also has a deep interest in trauma healing, especially the trauma that has been carried through generations that is deeply related with social change.
As her life work as a singer, she loves to explore together a deep self connection through body and voice, which is the instrument of Life. Also with Ken, she walks that path of exploring partnership, longing to create a relationship where both of their soul resonates and dances with joy.
This is their first experience to participate IIT as trainers in a language that is not their mother tongue. She has passion to explore how she can find her own power so that she can contribute by empowering others in a community that has a diversity. Learn more about Shigeko.
Trainer: Ken Anno (Japan)
Certified Trainer, Alexander Technique teacher
Ken was introduced to NVC in 2004, while training to become an Alexander Technique teacher. Since 2006, Ken has been involved with inviting trainers to Japan from abroad and sharing NVC within Japan. Together with Shigeko, his partner, they have been involved in translating Marshall Rosenberg’s book “Nonviolent Communication - the Language of Life” and “Speak Peace in a World Full of Conflict” into Japanese.
Ken has worked over a decade in helping bring NVC accessible and relevant within the Japanese culture, contributing to creating strong and vibrant community within Japan, while creating a connection with NVC communities around the world. Ken had been teaching mainly in Japan with Shigeko, but in recent years, they had been invited to teach at an English speaking events such as NVC Global Festival and Resonance Summit. He is interested in applying NVC in order to live an authentic life. Learn more about Ken.
This IIT is dedicated to our dear friend and teacher, Robert Maoz Kržišnik, who was originally scheduled to be a trainer at this training, but tragically died in a car accident in August 2022.
We miss you and will forever hold you dearly in our hearts. This one is for you! ❤️ Learn more about Robert.
| The Organiser |
Organiser: Jürgen Engel (Germany)
CNVC Certified Trainer, Systemic Advisor, founder and co-owner of Klarweit
Jürgen NVC journey started at an evening with Marshall in Frankfurt in the year 2005. Since then his primary focus has been learning, integrating and soon sharing this precious consciousness. In 2007 he met Robert Gonzales at the IIT in Albuquerque who then became his primary teacher until his recent passing. In 2010 Jürgen left his job in the news business behind to become a solo entrepreneur as a trainer and coach on the basis of NVC.
Soon after he met his life partner, Iris Bawidamann, and they founded a training company which is now named Klarweit and offers a full range of workshops around Nonviolent Communication, Dyads and deep self-exploration.
Ever since organizing large workshops and festivals with international trainers, like Robert Gonzales, Robert Krzisnik, François Beausoleil, Miki Kashtan, Dian Kilian, Saleem Ebrahim, Marie Miyashiro and many more has been a passion for them. Now Organizing an IIT in Germany is the next consequential step on this exciting journey. Learn more about Jürgen
| Cost |
The cost of this training has two components: 1) Tuition; and 2) Accommodation (Room and Board)
1. Tuition (USD): convert to your currency
- $1,989 Early Bird (make your payment by 01-Apr-2023)
- $2,340 Standard (02-Apr-2023 and after)
Additional tuition discounts (you may apply only one of these 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].
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 prioritise 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)
2. Accommodation / Room and Board (USD): convert to your currency
Room and board will be paid at the venue upon arrival and include your room and all meals throughout the event beginning with dinner the first day and ending with lunch the final day.
The venue offers first class mostly organic and vegetarian meals partially sourced by their own permaculture. They can accommodate various diets including vegan, macrobiotic, raw food, and others. If you are on a very specific diet, please email us for more details. In addition to three full meals a rich variety of tea, coffee, fruit juices, Osmose water and fresh fruit will be available all day and are included in the price.
Some room types are limited and are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Room options include (indicating prices for the whole event per person):
- EUR 1,350.00€ - Single (1 person per room)
- EUR 1,035.00€ - Double (2 people)
- EUR 886.50€ - Triple (3 people)
- EUR 796.50€ - Quad (4 people)
- EUR 648.00€ - Dormitory (5 or more people)
- EUR 594.00€ - Tent / Camper van on the premises
If you have questions about the accommodation, please email the organiser, Jürgen Engel.
| Location |
Venue: Jonathan Seminarhotel
Address: Kellerstraße 5, 83339 Chieming, Germany (location in Google Maps)
This training will be held at the unique Jonathan Seminarhotel.
Located at the famous Lake Chiemsee in Bavaria, the Jonathan was remodelled from an old farmhouse to a modern seminar hotel with environmentally friendly, ecological aspects in mind and therefore ensures an atmosphere helping you to relax your body, mind and soul as well as concentrate and focus on your workshops.
The Jonathan is the last building on a dead-end road at the edge of the village heart. It is surrounded by two large gardens with trees, a pond and meadows. It is meant to give our guests a chance to be by themselves in order to integrate the impressions of the seminar during break times. And there is a walk along through the fields into the forest nearby and the Lake Chiemsee. You can learn more about the vision of the seminar hotel.
| Travel |
Travel Visa
If you need to obtain a visa, please consult the German Embassy in your country. If you need an invitation letter from us in order to apply for your Visa, email us.
General Travel Information
Please wait to purchase your travel until we confirm your registration.
Airplane:
If you are traveling by air, we recommend the Munich Airport in Germany (92 km drive), or the Salzburg Airport in Austria (47 km drive).
Car and Public Transportation:
Here is the location of the venue in Google Maps. Information on how to get to the venue by public transport or car can be found here.