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2020 Course Application

generative somatics (gs) works to grow social and environmental justice movements that possess the creativity and power needed to transform society. We do this by bringing somatic transformation to movement leaders, organizations, and alliances—using holistic practice and embodied change to lead with love and rigor, align our actions with our values and heal from trauma and the impacts of oppression. In particular, in this moment of escalating crisis and growing resistance, gs is committed to supporting movements working toward freedom from political repression and state violence (including criminalization, militarization, surveillance, imprisonment, policing, etc.) and building scalable alternatives (such as transformative justice); and those creating climate and environmental justice (just transition, land sovereignty, environmental racism, etc.). To learn more read about our Strategic Priorities here. 

Please read through the Course Descriptions before filling out the application. 

It will take you about 30 minutes or more to fill out this application. Please allot enough time to answer thoroughly, as the courses are competitive. Your responses will help us know more about you. All text based answers have a limit of 200 words maximum. Each course has a different set of questions & essay questions. To see the right questions, you must select an option in the very first question "Which course are you applying for?" Once you pick a course, the full application will appear. 


If you're looking for the Embodied Leadership Transforming Teams course application, please email yashna@generativesomatics.org 


All applicants will hear back from us by at least 6-8 weeks before the start date of a course.


application header

Which course are you applying for?

If applying for multiple courses, please fill out one application per course

Contact Information
Movement Work
Organization Affiliations (if any) - If you aren't affiliated with an organization, leave this blank.  You can add up to two.
Movement Role(s) - Please pick one or two primary roles 
I primarily work with: (choose one)
Sectors - Pick one or two primary sectors
Connection to gs

More about you
What is your gender identity? Feel free to check more than one box.
With which of these do you identify? Feel free to check more than one box.
What is your sexual orientation? Feel free to check more than one box
Is there anything else you want us to know about you? Feel free to check more than one box
With which of these do you identify with, currently? Feel free to check more than one box. 
Click here for a resource explaining these class categories and to help you place yourself in one.
Your length of life so far?
Short Essay Questions
All answers have a limit of 200 words maximum. Don't see any questions? Each course has a different set of essay questions, to see them, you must select an option in the very first question "Which course are you applying for?". Once you pick a course, the full application will appear.
Embodied Leadership

We are committed to developing social and environmental justice leaders and formations that are able to do their work more effectively, powerfully, and resiliently, contributing to more vibrant, life-affirming liberation movements. We know that somatics is a compelling methodology unto itself, and we want to hold ourselves to the standard of producing embodied skills that will concretely magnify the power of our participants and movement partners. Read more here - gs Strategic Priorities. This course is for practitioners and movement leaders to deepen your skills in order to be a bigger contribution to liberation movements.


Somatics, Trauma, and Resilience

We are committed to developing social and environmental justice leaders and formations that are able to do their work more effectively, powerfully, and resiliently, contributing to more vibrant, life-affirming liberation movements. We know that somatics is a compelling methodology unto itself, and we want to hold ourselves to the standard of producing embodied skills that will concretely magnify the power of our participants and movement partners. Read more here - gs Strategic Priorities. This course is for practitioners and movement leaders to deepen your skills in order to be a bigger contribution to liberation movements.


*Online* Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors - Individual application
*Online* Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors - Institutions application

About your team

About your organization 

Embodied Leadership in Donor Organizing
Commitment and Course Fees

COMMITMENT: To participate in Embodied Leadership in Donor Organizing, we ask you to commit to all aspects of the program.

This is a 3 month commitment (March-May, 2020) 

If you cannot commit to all of this, please still apply and click "no" or "maybe" below and let us know what you can/cannot commit to.


BEFORE SESSION 1: 

2 hours of work. 1 hour one-on-one conversation with ELDO coach; and 1 hour of writing to prep for session 1.


SESSION 1: 

March 25th-29th. This will be at a retreat center near NYC will begin at 9am on March 25th. Please plan to arrive on March 24th evening. On March 29th, we will end by 4:30pm.


BETWEEN SESSION 1 & SESSION 2: 

Approximately 15-30 hours of work. This will include: active fundraising (making asks in-person or on the phone, sending emails, posting to social media, planning fundraising events, etc); two 1-1 phone/zoom coaching sessions; text/phone check-in’s with a buddy; correspondence on an ELDO Signal thread; as well as organized activities on Zoom/phone or in-person locally (dates below). 


  • REQUIRED activities: 

    • April 6th, 8-10pm ET 

    • April 20th, 8-10pm ET 

    • May 5th, 7:30-10pm ET


  • OPTIONAL activities: 

    • April 21st, 1-3pm ET 

    • April 26th, 3-5pm ET

    • May 6th, 8-10pm ET 

    • May 10th, 3-5pm ET


SESSION 2: 

May 15th-17th. This will be in NYC and will begin on May 15th (3pm-9pm ET), and will continue May 16th-17th (on the 16th, we will end by 6pm; and on the 17th, we will end by 4:30pm).

COMMITMENT: To participate in gs courses, we ask you to commit to attend ALL days of the training, pay your full fee, do prep readings, fill out course evaluations, do all homework between sessions, and be in daily somatic practices, as relevant to the course.

Somatics, Trauma and Resilience; Bay Area, CA
  • Session 1: April 23rd - 26th
  • Session 2: June 11th - 14th
  • Session 3: July 30th - August 2nd
  • Session 4: September 23rd - 26th
  • Session 5: November 19th - 22nd 2020
Embodied Leadership; Durham, NC
  • Session 1: Thursday July 9th - Sunday July 12th 2020
  • Session 2: Thursday August 27th - Sunday August 30th
*Online* Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors

September-November 

10 Weekly sessions (2 hrs each)

3 additional sessions of small group coaching (90 minutes each)


Detailed Course Schedule

SESSION 1: Wednesday September 9th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST * (Note Monday 9/7 is Labor Day)

SESSION 2: Monday September 14th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST 

SESSION 3: Monday September 21st

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

Coaching group 1: Thursday September 24th

Timing TBD with coaching group (1.5 hours)

SESSION 4: Wednesday September 30th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST  *(Note Monday 9/28 is Yom Kippur) 

SESSION 5: Monday October 5th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

Coaching group 2: Thursday October 8th

Timing TBD with coaching group (1.5 hours)

SESSION 6: Monday October 12th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

SESSION 7: Monday October 19th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

Coaching group 3: Thursday October 22nd

Timing TBD with coaching group (1.5 hours)

SESSION 8: Monday October 26th 

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

SESSION 9: Monday November 9th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

SESSION 10: Monday November 16th

12 – 2 pm PST / 3 – 5 pm EST

 

Participants will be expected to attend every session and coaching group.


Cancellation Policy
If you cancel 15 days or more before the first day of the first session of the course – the cancellation fee is 20% of your course fee. For any cancellation made less than 15 days before the first day of the first session of the course – you will be charged the full course fee.

Costs

There is NO course fee for Embodied Leadership in Donor Organizing. Participants are expected to contribute a donation to gs that is centered and significant for you, and bring in at minimum two additional donations to gs through fundraising. In addition to that, participants are invited but not obligated to fundraise for a gs movement partner organization. 


Housing and food will mostly be provided during this program, but there may be other financial costs for participants (travel, lost wages, childcare costs, etc). Please don’t let money be a barrier to your participation. Be in touch with danielle@generativesomatics.org. if you want to discuss this.

COURSE FEES: Sliding Scale
Please do not let cost be a barrier to applying. gs is committed to economic justice and to challenging white supremacy, capitalism, ableism and all systems of oppression in every aspect of our work. As part of that, we have a commitment to making our programs accessible and affordable to poor and working class people and people of color who are on the frontlines of social and environmental justice movements.

At the same time, the cost to run courses is significant. These costs are covered in multiple ways:
  • Course participants contribute to gs course fees from their own financial resources.
  • Organizations and foundations sponsor participants by contributing part or all of their gs course fees.
  • Participants fundraise their gs course fees from friends and family. 
  • Much of the cost of gs courses (approximately 70%) is covered by foundation grants and individual donations, including Solidarity Fund donations made by gs course participants! 

We ask that all applicants consider if there is an organization that you could ask to sponsor your participation in a gs course by contributing part or all of the fee; or if you can fundraise part or all of your course fee from friends, family, or community members. And we ask any applicant who has class privilege, especially those who were raised upper-middle or owning class, to pay as high on the scale as possible in order to support participation by poor and working class leaders. 

Our intention is for participants to contribute to covering course costs at a level and in a way that is meaningful, significant, and affordable for you. 

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT OUR SLIDING SCALE STRUCTURE and how to choose at what level you could pay. 

What amount are you proposing to pay? 

After reviewing the sliding scale structure document, please select below what you will be paying for this course.

COURSE FEES: Sliding Scale

In 2020, Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors will include both individual participants, as well as teams from institutions in the funding world. We invite individuals to apply who work in foundations or funder/donor networks, as well as those who identify as major donors. We also invite institutions (foundations and funder/donor networks) to apply as institutions, to send groups of leaders from your organizations to participate in Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors together. 


Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors 2020 is offered on a sliding scale.


We ask that you consider your  institution's access to financial resources (budget size in relation to other funders and funder networks, personal financial access, etc) and contribute a fee based on that assessment.


If you need need flexibility around this fee, please contact Saima Husain at saima@generativesomatics.org.
COURSE FEES: Sliding Scale

Embodied Leadership for Funders and Donors 2020 is offered to leaders from foundations or others who identify as major donors or leaders in philanthropy. The course fee is on a sliding scale.


We ask that applicants consider your access to financial resources (organization’s budget size in relation to other funders and funder networks, personal financial access, etc) and contribute a fee based on that assessment.


If you need need flexibility around this fee, please contact Danielle Feris at danielle@generativesomatics.org.

Please Consider Supporting gs

Finally, please consider supporting gs in our efforts to make gs courses accessible and affordable to poor and working class participants, by making an additional donation to the gs Solidarity Fund. We consider solidarity funds anything you would like to offer above and beyond your 100% payment of the full course fee. The average course fee for one student in a gs course is $3515.


Considering Fundraising For Your Course Fees?

If you’re considering fundraising for your course fees from friends and family and you’d like support to do that, please read the Fundraising document.

Thank you very much for your interest and application! Please click "Submit" below to submit your application. You will hear back from us by at least 6-8 weeks before the start date of a course.