The Fifth Annual Exploring Difference Conference was held on-line November 12-14, 2021 with the theme of colonialism: being colonized and colonizing. It was  co-directed by Barbara Williams and Jo-anne Carlyle. 25 people participated either as members or in the training group. In addition to participants from Canada, people attended from South Africa, Ireland, England and the United States.  Many thanks to Jo-anne and Barbara for their strong leadership to foster learning in difficult moments and in containing the process.

Unlike a more hierarchical group relations conference, the Exploring Difference Conference was structured by a network of co-learners: members; practitioner consultants, consultants, the Directorate; the observers to the Directorate and the consultant.  This allowed more aspects of the system to be seen and worked with and fostered an atmosphere of learning together about the dynamics of colonialism.

The staff included Anne Aiyebusi from England and five consultants from ICI (Stewart Morton; Anita Prasad, Janelle Joseph, Tanya Lewis and Lubna Khalid) and three practitioner consultants (David Westbrook, Anna Turley and Kristine Stege). Two  ICI consultants (Tanya Lewis and Lubna Khalid) were invited to participate in and observe the Directorate. In an effort to deepen the staff’s understanding of colonialism as it unfolded in the here and now, Kathy White and Rod Smith consulted to our process as staff and the conference Directorate. In two movement sessions, Janelle Joseph continued her research on the relationships between movement and exploring difference supported by the facilitation of Erika Bailey.

Enormous thanks to Kathy White for fostering ICI’s development and learning and to Rod Smith for his conference work in making connections across difference.

In the story-telling session the group opened with a powerful recounting of their experiences. Themes explored included: residential school experience/boarding schools; white rage and its impacts; questions regarding how to listen to people’s experiences; not speaking and speaking to the experiences of racialized people: the assumptions made about one another, working through the experiences of being confronted and ignored and of immigration. In a powerful final plenary, the work continued to deepen as people articulated their experiences in the conference. It was a difficult, powerful learning experience for members and staff alike.

While there are always learnings about how conference experiences can be enhanced, the following feedback was received. One staff member wrote to say: I’m glad I was able to participate and will also be able to take the learning forward. It isn’t that often you get to see the mountain top and I felt I at least came close to seeing it at the conference which gives me hope for what can be done in the future.

A conference member wrote with the following reflection:
It was also full of learning—learning that will stand me in good stead as a laborer both in the field of racial justice and in the field of GR, and learning that will help me navigate this stage of my life. Who could ask for more?  None of it could have happened without your leadership, energy and time. 

Consulting to Dilemmas is an opportunity to deepen skills in ‘consulting’ to a community or work-related situation or dilemma with which someone is faced. The workshop will support learning about the “usual” ways you as a leader, consultant,  or team member approach a problem; how to stand back and be curious from new vantage points. There will be opportunities to present, consult and observe – and in particular explore what is being presented. Others who are interested in learning an “interpretive stance” – a standing back to ‘see’ what’s going on – will benefit from participating in this workshop. Members should come prepared with a dilemma for which they are seeking consultation/exploration.

There will be opportunities following the workshop to reflect with others about your application of your skills to the workplace and continue on a monthly basis to share new learnings and insights.

Expand your understanding of unconscious group processes with ICI Founder Barbara Williams’ course, Psychoanalysis and Organizations, offered by the Toronto Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. The course offers participants an opportunity to explore the ‘under-the-surface’ and unconscious processes that affect leadership, team and organizational functioning. It provides an opportunity to consider how to address those aspects toward task completion and the capacity to work well together. Six weeks beginning January 12, 2022: Wednesdays – 7:30 – 9:30 online.  Register today!

1. In Person    January 14-16, 2022

An online article “A typology of Colonialism” which describes the breadth of colonialisms and challenges “settler-colonialism” as orthodoxy:

https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/october-2015/a-typology-of-colonialism