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CAI Weekend

Date: 
Sat, 2010-05-29 - Sun, 2010-05-30
Contact: 
Julie Pennington
Location: 
Santa Cruz, CA

Community Alliances Initiative (CAI) & Be Present, Inc.
Weekend Gathering
May 29 – 30, 2010
Santa Cruz, CA

"Building bridges of trust, partnership and growth between diverse leaders, organizations and movements in the Santa Cruz community”

The Context
In these times, activists and social change leaders are searching for a source deep enough to sustain them in the face of fear and despair so prevalent in our community and our world, and to create new models of living and acting even while engaging directly with the impact of a society profoundly out of balance.  As we find ways to gather, dialogue, and build support for one another across all kinds of differences, we find we stand on firmer ground, and we can stretch further.

May Weekend Gathering
This is a weekend-long gathering of community building with a diverse, intergenerational group of around 35 community members and leaders committed to personal and societal transformation using the Be Present Empowerment Model - a tool for dialogue, learning and practice in addressing the impact of race, gender identity, class, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and power issues on personal and collective well-being, effectiveness and sustainability. In the context of community organizing, this weekend's work will help community leaders build skills to work through organizational issues and group dynamics, as well as to strenghen organizing and advocacy skills.

In this space, we are all facilitators in community growth. The weekend will be held by CAI members, core members of Sisters and Allies in the Bay Area, Eugene Allen, and Lillie Allen, founder of Be Present, Inc., creator of the Be Present Empowerment Model©, Creatrix of Play and lead trainer.

When and Where
The gathering will be held from Saturday, May 29 – Sunday, May 30, from 9am - 5pm both days at the Santa Cruz mountain home of Olivia Boyce-Abel. Childcare, as well as overnight accommodations for those traveling from outside of Santa Cruz, will be available upon request.

A Note About Tuition
The tuition for the weekend gathering is based on a sliding scale of $150 - $800. The fee covers light breakfast, snacks, and lunch for both days, facilitator compensation, and site costs.

Our Committment with Your Support. We have a commitment to having participants that represent a broad spectrum of our society. It is important that money does not create a barrier to anyone attending the weekend. The actual cost is over $250 per person, but we do not require participants to pay any set fees based on income or resources.  However, to the extent that participants pay at the highest rate they comfortably can, it allows us to provide limited scholarships. If you are able, please consider contributing additional tuition to support the participation of those who need to pay on the lower end of the scale or need full scholarships. If funds are the only thing holding you back from attending, please communicate with us so we can work together to get you to the gathering.

Register
Space is limited, so please let us know that you'd like to come now!

  1. Click here to register for the CAI Weekend
  2. Make a note in your registration or contact Julie Pennington for more info and to discuss any needs around tuition support or to contribute to the tuition for someone else.

About CAI
The Community Alliances Initiative (CAI) seeks to build synergy and effectiveness between diverse Santa Cruz based leaders working for positive change in our community and in the world, while creating an environment that supports growth and development on a human and organizational level.  Too often, people and organizations working for change in the world wind up recreating in our families and in our movements the same dynamics we are trying to change. CAI is a space where we can learn how to do things differently, and generate greater alignment between our values and our actions.  

Since September of 2003, CAI has been holding monthly meetings and has brought Lillie Allen to support us in our process through five weekend-long trainings.  Our work is convened and facilitated by YES! in partnership with Be Present. CAI members have been leaders from various local organizations, such as: YES!, Resource Center for Nonviolence, Santa Cruz Barrios Unidos, Santa Cruz Quaker Meeting, Thrive, Women As Allies, National Coalition for Community and Justice, Center for Farmworker Families, Literacy Program of Santa Cruz County, Be Present, and Women’s Empowerment Network.